- Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen and Shaquille O’Neal-Kobe Bryant were two of the greatest duos in NBA history
- Ron Harper had the fortune of playing alongside both of them
- Harper spoke about the difference between those two iconic duos
Ron Harper is one of the few who were fortunate enough to play alongside two of the most iconic duos in NBA history, Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen, and Shaquille O’Neal-Kobe Bryant. Harper won five championships playing with the four Hall of Famers, and he shared how different it was for him to play with the two duos.
“With Scottie and MJ, it was more of playing with guys of my size, same size, so we could do the same thing,” Harper said. “We were great offensive players but great defensive guys too, who truly loved to play.”
Once he got to the Lakers, Harper just had a different role.
“With Shaq and Kobe, it was more of a leadership role,” Harper continued. “Trying to teach them how to be a part of a basketball team, (telling them) ‘You two, gonna need this team. You two are the best players on this team.'”
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It is easy to see why Harper just had very different roles.
When he came to the Chicago Bulls in 1994, it was a team that had already won three titles. It was an experienced group, and once Jordan returned from his first retirement, all he had to do was fit alongside him and Pippen.
He did that very well as he adjusted to become a defensive stalwart on the Bulls and played a significant role in them three-peating from 1996 to 1998.
When Harper joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 1999, he became one of the veteran leaders. O’Neal and Bryant were the best players, but they hadn’t won anything and needed some guidance.
He provided some of that, and they broke through in his very first season, beating the Indiana Pacers in the 2000 NBA Finals. Another title followed in 2001 and that would be Harper’s final season in the NBA.
He retired with career averages of 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game.
Ron Harper Spoke About Winning Five Titles In Six Seasons
Playing alongside these duos meant Harper did something that not many can claim to have in NBA history, win five championships in six seasons. Harper stated he won those five titles because he accepted his role as a defensive point guard.
Harper had averaged 20.1 points per game with the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1993-94 season but willingly sacrificed his scoring once he got to the Bulls. In the 1994-95 campaign with them, he only averaged 6.9 points per game.
He had put up good numbers despite serious knee injuries for much of his career but realized that changing his game and accepting this new role would help him win, and it did.
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