Scottie Pippen was revered multiple times as a great teammate, great man, and a great player in “The Last Dance” documentary. Though Pippen may not have been a fan of how he was portrayed, many fans grew a new appreciation and respect for his role in Chicago’s run through the 90s.
Interestingly enough, LeBron James suggested that his game would be a near-perfect fit with Mike. Stephen A. Smith agreed on a recent segment of First Take.
“At the very least, just as good if not probably better because he’s better than Scottie Pippen was — as great as Scottie Pippen was — LeBron was better. I think it’s important to understand that LeBron James is incredibly, incredibly qualified to take the position that he took.
Not just because he’s a great player but because of what he endured en-route to greatness. LeBron James may have been the leader in Cleveland, but he was not the leader in Miami. He suffered his first year in Miami playing against the Dallas Mavericks — he didn’t consider himself the alpha, he considered that to be Dwyane Wade’s team and Dwyane Wade had to let him know ‘yo, I need you to step up and to be that guy.’
Now he wasn’t going to be the best player in the world if he was playing alongside Michael Jordan, but the flip side is what Michael Jordan would have asked of him is similar to what Dwyane Wade asked of him to some degree. And as a result, because LeBron showed the willingness to take that bull by the horn, and really elevate his game form a mental perspective.
LeBron showing the ability and willingness to adapt and adjust accordingly shows me he cold have done that under any circumstances — even with Michael Jordan.”
We all know LeBron is a better player than Scottie was — not many deny that claim. But when it comes to sacrifice and working with a player who may be better than you, Scottie bit that bullet unlike anyone else in history.
LeBron did that to a degree with Dwyane Wade and was able to step up and adjust his role/contributions to the team when he needed to.
Smith uses that as evidence to indicate success with a potential partnership with Michael. It’s certainly interesting to think about and, no matter your thoughts on the subject, it would be interesting to behold. The two greatest players in history going to battle beside each other? That’s just deadly.
