The overrating of the NBA and its stars on this forum is beyond ridiculous but Jordan's popularity still to this day is unlike any other basketball stars...Jordan with the help of Nike and the Olympics transcended the game and broke through the NBA barrier to achieve worldwide stardom...He is easily the most popular basketball player of all time, the jumpman is as well known and respected as the nike swoosh all around the world...
That said nobody was hotter than a prime Tyson in the 80's...When he destroyed Mike Spinks he damn near hit Ali status and in terms of popularity NO athlete was/is more popular than Muhammad Ali...