Scottie Pippen hits back at MJ’s comment with IG bragging post originally appeared nbc sports chicago
Scottie Pippen, long small forward and six-time champion Chicago BullsPinned Michael Jordan as a “horrible player” before Pippen joined the team in 1987.
He caused a stir with comments and social media bragging instagram post,
“From humble beginnings to leading the Bulls franchise with 6 championships, 2 gold medals, the Hall of Fame, and the most playoff wins. Here’s to the unsung heroes… Cheers!” Pippen captioned the photo of a younger version of himself.
Here’s what he said about Jordan on a recent podcast.
“I saw Michael Jordan play before he came to the Bulls. You guys saw him play. He was a terrible player,” Pippen said. Gimme the hot sauce! podcast. “He was terrible to play. It was all 1-on-1, hitting bad shots. All of a sudden, we become a team and we start winning. Everyone forgot who he was. He was such a player who was not really at the top of his class.”
I’ll debate it in a sec. First, I’ll let Pippen do some of the heavy lifting.
Less than a minute later, another ex-Chicago Bull, Stacy King, asked Pippen who would win between the 72–10 Chicago Bulls and the 73–9 Golden State Warriors. Pippen didn’t waste a second.
Pippen said, “Come on man. We’re the greatest team ever. If MJ hadn’t left, we probably could have won 2-3 more titles.”
I thought Jordan was a “horrible player”? How could they have won two more titles? I imagine Pippen would have countered that his presence on the team would have brought Jordan and the 1998 Bulls more titles.
Still, there couldn’t be a more egregious and objectively inaccurate controversy about Jordan’s playing career.
In 1986–87, Jordan’s final season before Pippen joined the Bulls, Jordan averaged 37.1 points (his most in a single season). livelihood) with 5.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game on shooting less than 50 percent from the field. His efficiency and assists increased after Pippen came, but what else?
Pippen’s presence probably helped Jordan win the Defensive Player of the Year award during Pippen’s rookie year, I’ll give him that. But a terrible player? “Horrible player” and “Michael Jordan” are words that should never be in the same sentence. Pippen also placed Jordan in his all-time starting five. Logic doesn’t work anywhere.
The six NBA championships were won by Jordan, Pippen, and the Bulls in the 90s, which would not have been possible without Pippen. He is arguably the greatest second best player the team has ever had. Jordan also recognized this, famously saying “there is no Michael Jordan without Scottie Pippen.” This is where the debate gets interesting. One player can’t do it all, as Pippen said on the podcast. But if Jordan wasn’t around, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.
Another point Pippen stood by – this one more reasonable – was his greatest “statistical” player over LeBron James.
“LeBron is the greatest winner,” Pippen said. “He’s too old now and gets criticized a lot. He’s never been a shotmaker. He’s never been the guy to take the last shot. He’s never been great. I said this years ago, and for I was criticized. When LeBron James leaves the game, he will be the greatest statistical player ever to play the game.”
Pippen noted that he has been saying this since James was “two to three years” in the NBA. Unfortunately, Pippen would be wrong again. I’ll let him argue again.
In a 2018 debate on the topic of Jordan vs. Jordan on ESPN, Pippen said, “Michael Jordan is the greatest player to ever play our sport. There’s no doubt about it. There’s no sport where I’d beat Michael Jordan.” I would pick LeBron James.” James.
Pippen’s recent comments are an unfortunate product of his relationship with Jordan. Either way their arguments are not supported by any strong, logical evidence to help their case. There are many instances where he has contradicted himself, as shown above.
The basis for Pippen’s argument comes from his personal grappling with Jordan. He mentioned on the podcast that he does not believe his relationship with Jordan and Phil Jackson can be mended. His argument holds zero weight and is superseded by the factor of his relationship with Jordan.
