"The losses don't affect his lifestyle" - Former mobster claims Charles Barkley, not Michael Jordan, is gambling addict and lost $10 million once

Former mobster Michael Franzese recently opened up about Michael Jordan's gambling habits in his playing days.

Like many other NBA players, Jordan would often gamble, be in the casino, golf, or pick-up basketball games. That led to some people assuming that MJ had a gambling problem, but that wasn't the case.

In one of "Vlad TV's" videos, Franzese talked about the nature of betting and why people do it. Franzese referenced Jordan's recent interview about gambling and explained why the NBA legend wasn't addicted to it.

"Michael Jordan said something very interesting recently in one of his interviews," Franzese said. "They asked him if he had a gambling problem, and he said 'no I don't.' He said 'I have a competition problem.' In Michael's case, that's correct. The losses don't affect his lifestyle in any way shape or form. ... So he doesn't have a gambling problem."

The former mobster then proceeded to call out Charles Barkley for having a gambling problem.

While Barkley denied his betting addiction, Franzese believes otherwise considering that the NBA legend once lost $10 million. Franzese clarified that losing that amount of money is a clear indication of addiction.

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Michael Jordan is king of competition

Michael Jordan

When it came to competition, no other NBA player was more competitive than Michael Jordan. While the late Kobe Bryant can be considered a close second, MJ's competitiveness was on a different level. Bryant's competitive nature mostly only applied to basketball, but Jordan embodies the word 'compete' and applies it in his everyday life, too.

Jordan has always loved raising the stakes, as it gives him the thrill of wanting to win at all costs. During team practice, he would go as far as to bully his teammates for not beating him. There were instances when he would place bets whenever he'd play pick-up basketball with other NBA stars.

While it's only natural, as basketball is a competitive sport, MJ would take his competitiveness to his personal life, too. Jordan is a huge fan of golf and plays the sport as a hobby. However, he can't help but always raise the stakes by placing bets during his golfing sessions with friends. Nevertheless, it's no wonder people would assume that Jordan has a gambling problem.

However, as the Chicago Bulls legend said previously, he doesn't gamble for the money. He just loves raising the stakes so that his opponents would take the competition more seriously.