One would think that winning 6 NBA titles together is something that would likely form a great bond between the two best players on a team that successful. It doesn’t always work out like that though and Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen are an excellent example of when those relationships go wrong. Pippen has taken quite a few shots at both Jordan and the Bulls since the airing of the ‘The Last Dance’ documentary.
There has been plenty of speculation about what exactly the issue has been between the two and several people have weighed in with their opinions. The latest to do is Gary Payton, someone that played against the Jordan-Pippen Bulls in the NBA finals in 1996. In an interview with DJ Vlad, Payton gave some possible reasons for why Pippen isn’t too fond of Jordan at this point.
“Scottie Pippen changed a lot of things for the Chicago Bulls. If he wasn’t there. I think they wouldn’t won a lot of games because he did guard the best player, he made the big crucial plays, he got the crucial rebounds he got the crucial blocks and things like that. that’s why he was a little salty about the last dance.”
To be fair to Michael Jordan, while he has often been described as someone that was vindictive and mean towards his teammates in his pursuit of winning, he did acknowledge that none of his achievements would have been possible without Pippen’s contributions. Payton himself acknowledged as much, explaining that Scottie did get his credit for the role he played in the legendary success the franchise enjoyed.
“He’s got his credit, he knows what he was, and I know what he was and basketball players know what he was and people who know basketball understand how that Bulls team wouldn’t have been the Bulls team without him on it.”
It’s hard to tell exactly what has gotten Pippen so riled up so many years after their playing careers have ended but being in Michael Jordan’s shadow constantly would elicit a reaction from anyone after a point. While things may never be the same between the two Chicago icons again, what they achieved with the Bulls will forever stay a vital part of NBA history.
