By Ron Johnson
In the old days of the NBA, there was one player that ushered in a massive paradigm shift to the sport of basketball. He transcended the game and put the final nail on the old school ways of the sport itself. And when he finally retired, he had already solidified himself as the be-all end-all GOAT of the NBA.
Just for reference and to clarify, that man was NOT Scottie Pippen.
Scottie Pippen went on the ‘Gimme the Hot Sauce’ web show and told Stacey King the most beyond ridiculous take on the discussion of who truly is The GOAT. Now while I am trying to put myself in the position that Pippen finds himself in with this discussion, this is a discussion we have already had on several occasions.
Now while my 13-year-old has pledged his allegiance to LeBron James, my wife and I have a rather different take on this. Sure LeBron may have all the statistics he so desires, as he should considering he has had more frequent flyer miles than The Kardashians. However, Pippen may have solidified The GOAT without even knowing he did.
According to Pippen: “LeBron will be the greatest statistical guy to ever play the game of basketball, and there’s no comparison to him. None. So, does that make him the greatest player ever to play the game? I’ll leave that out for debating, because I don’t believe that there’s a great player, because our game’s a team game, and one player can’t do it.”
Now before you hear the rest of his statement, I want you to remember that Kobe Bryant won an NBA Championship with a B+ at best Lakers squad, his first without Shaq. Also know that the Pistons aka the Motor City Bad Boys won a championship with short fused Ben Wallace and outcast player Rasheed Wallace, Boston and Miami both won after grabbing key talent from other squads, Golden State won multiple ships via the Splash Brothers and oh, LeBron needed the help of Kyrie, AD, D-Wade and Bosh to win his titles.
So why is Pippen calling basketball a team sport, yet finding the need to praise James while disrespecting the guy that has six championships, all with the same team?
That’s indeed a damn good question.
This is what Pippen said after that team game BS: “Like, I seen Michael Jordan play before I came to play with the Bulls. You guys see him play. He was a horrible player. He was horrible to play with. He was all one-on-one, he’s shooting bad shots, and all of a sudden, we became a team and we start winning, everybody forgot who he was.” (Forde, 2023)
If you are anything like me right now, you are saying the same thing I am saying:
And there is a reason why die hard old school NBA fans are saying this: it is because we all know that LeBron would not have survived in Jordan’s NBA, but Jordan would have ended LeBron in his. If you break it down, LeBron would only be considered GOAT if he was able to achieve all this success under one banner rather than multiple. Jordan not only did it all as a member of the Chicago Bulls, but he also took time out to play baseball as well as do a movie (one that even John Cena could say is a crappy bootleg version of his).
Depending on who you ask, Jordan will always be in the conversation, whereas James may sneak into the convo at the very end. But to be fair, and just in my opinion, Pippen is out of pocket for calling Jordan a horrible player AND a horrible teammate. Maybe it is because Pippen did not like to actually do work for a championship, or maybe it is because he expected more from the Bulls besides being Jordan’s sidekick.
Regardless, I am pretty sure Pippen was not doing much complaining when he acquired those rings. And how was Pippen’s career post-Jordan 2.0? It was shit. Let’s call it what it was. Pippen bounced around in the final stretch of his career, and had it not been for The Last Dance 30 for 30, there is a good chance that we would not have heard from Pippen again.
But like a cockroach that keeps appearing when the lights go out, Pippen continues to pop up and throw more shade in Jordan’s direction. But this is Scottie’s M.O. All he has done for a majority of the century is throw shade at Michael because in all honesty, Michael was not only better than Pippen, but he’s also better than James.
How many championships did Pippen win the first time Jordan retired? The second time? If any, how many were with the Bulls? Scottie Pippen deep down knows that his bread and butter during that time was Jordan. The NBA knew who the Bulls’ bread and butter was as well. Jordan could have ran Pippen up one side and down the other without leaving a scar, but instead, Jordan channeled his inner Eminem and is biding his time. Considering it took decades for anyone to ask who would win a game between LeBron’s Lakers and Jordan’s Bulls amongst other questions.
For starters, Jordan said he could beat LeBron in his prime one-on-one. He then goes on to explain the dream showdown between LeBron’s current Lakers team and those pesky Bulls led by the GOAT himself. The story goes like this:
A sports reporter asked Michael Jordan if the thought the 90s Bulls team could beat LeBron’s Lakers.
Jordan: Yeah, I think so.
Reporter: By how much?
Jordan: Two, maybe three points.
Reporter: Why such a close game?
Jordan: Well, most of us are almost 60 now. (Bitar, 2023)
The fact of the matter is that you have to look at this from the perspective of both men. Not saying that LeBron is a complete bust, but for Pippen to say he is the GOAT sounds like something that a Wise Man would say to stay in the good graces of his boss. I do not know who Pippen is kissing up to, but I can tell you this: It was at this moment Scottie Pippen should’ve known…he ****ed up.
And just for clarification, there’s this:
Sorry, Scottie. You may be from Arkansas, but this is the most pig slop you’ve ever spewed.
References
Bitar, E. (2023, February 18). Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James. Who Won More NBA Awards and Accolades? Retrieved from Fadeaway World: https://fadeawayworld.net/michael-jordan-vs-lebron-james-who-won-more-nba-awards-and-accolades
Forde, M. (2023, May 26). Scottie Pippen Rips Michael Jordan, Calls Him ‘Horrible Player’. Retrieved from Athlon Sports: https://athlonsports.com/nba/scottie-pippen-michael-jordan-lebron-james-nba