Basketball Greats - Scottie Pippen

Pippen claimed the starting position as small forward for the Bulls during the 1988 playoffs, helping star Michael Jordan bring the team to their first Eastern Conference semi-finals in over a decade. Continuing to improve, Pippen earned a vote to the All-Star Game in 1990. In 1991, he was the Bulls’ second best offensive and defensive player, second only to Jordan, and had established a name for himself in professional basketball.

With Jordan, Scottie Pippen led the Bulls to Championship titles six times between 1990 and 1998, missing it only in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons. As a consistent scorer, Pippen became just as revered for his defensive game and was picked as part of the 1992 US Olympic Dream Team, competing in Barcelona, Spain.

The 1993-94 season allowed Pippen to come into his own, out from under Jordan’s overwhelming shadow and earning the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award. This was probably his best season, with him leading the Bulls in terms of scoring, rebounds, and assists, as well as the entire league in steals.

When Jordan returned, he, Pippen, and Dennis Rodman led the team to gain the best record in NBA history, with 72 wins and only 10 losses. They went on to win the title that year and the two following. Then, Jordan again left the league, and Pippen determined he had no desire to stay in Chicago. In 1998, after an 11 year stint with the Bulls, Pippen traded to the Houston Rockets, though the season was shortened due to a lockout. He was traded in the off-season due to lack of chemistry with his teammates to the Portland Trailblazers, whom he took to the Western Conference finals (though the team was knocked out by the LA Lakers).

Pippen’s effectiveness as a player began to dwindle with the onset of several injuries, and he retired before the start of the season in 2004. He then spent some time as an analyst for the Bulls and is currently a special assistant coach for the Lakers. He became a studio analyst for the NBA with the ABC network in 2005.

>> BASKETBALL >> PLAYERS