Scottie Pippen's Life Story Should Be Read, Admired, and Emulated
In an era when some people are often praised for telling "their truth" even if that "truth" diverges from evidence-based reality, why does the autobiography of one of pro basketball's greatest players make so many people not only cringe but feel compelled to publicly rebuke that player?
Scottie Pippen's Unguarded has attracted a lot of media attention, much of it negative.
Why do people get upset by what Scottie Pippen writes/says, and why does Pippen care so little about what other people think?
On the surface, these are simple questions, but the answers to these questions reveal a lot not only about Pippen but also about the mainstream media and our society in general. Our society enjoys being fed simple narratives, and mainstream media members are paid to create simple narratives. If you stick to the popular narrative, you will remain popular. If you challenge the popular narrative, you will be attacked.
Some professional athletes are masters at creating and/or promoting simple narratives; they tell media members what the media members want to hear, and the media members in turn give the general public a narrative that is favorable for the athlete who provides them with soundbites that they can use.
"Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all-time" is a
simple narrative. There is evidence supporting the validity of that
statement, but there is also evidence supporting the notion that Michael
Jordan is not the greatest basketball player of all-time--and, more to
the point, there is evidence that there is no objective way of
determining that one player is better than every other
player who ever played basketball.
"Michael Jordan was Batman and Scottie Pippen was Robin" is a simple narrative. The complex reality that Jordan and Pippen formed perhaps the greatest and most versatile duo in basketball history does not fit within the confines of that simple narrative, but--as Pippen said in a recent interview--he brought out the best in Jordan and Jordan brought out the best in him. As a result, Jordan and Pippen led the Chicago Bulls to six championships. Pippen emphasizes that basketball is a team sport, not an individual sport--but that goes against the simple, hero-driven narrative that can be traced back for decades; think of the famous marquee promoting not Lakers versus Knicks but rather George Mikan versus the Knicks: if Mikan's teammates had stayed in the locker room, could Mikan have beaten five Knicks by himself?
Understand how this works and then you understand why Jalen Rose calls Pippen the most underrated great player of all-time; the simple narrative idolizing Jordan leaves no room for Pippen to be anything more than a member of Jordan's supporting cast. Contrast Rose's perspective with the bleatings of "Screamin' A" Smith promoting simple pro-Jordan narratives while blasting Pippen for telling his life story. Rose works for ESPN but he has shown on multiple occasions that he does not feel compelled to stick with simple pre-determined narratives, and "Screamin' A" has repeatedly demonstrated that he is incapable of doing anything other than loudly spewing the same narratives over and over.
Pippen was selected to both the NBA's 50 Greatest Players List and the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, but he is often belittled in a way that other great players are not: his bad moments are magnified, his significant contributions to six championships are minimized, and he is sometimes dismissed as a player who could only thrive as the second option behind Michael Jordan but was not capable of leading a team as the first option. These criticisms of Pippen are asinine and demonstrably false, and it is not surprising nor is it wrong for Pippen to resent these attacks on his basketball legacy.
In Scottie Pippen's Place in Basketball History, I noted that Phil Jackson once declared, "Scottie was our team leader. He was the guy that directed our offense and he was the guy that took on a lot of big challenges defensively...the year that Michael retired, Scottie I think was the most valuable player in the league." Pippen's former teammate Bill Cartwright said that Pippen "was as much a part of winning the championships as MJ. I don't think it would have gotten done without him." I also pointed out that when Pippen was 37 years old The Oregonian selected him as the midseason MVP of the 2002-03 Trail Blazers: "Statistics don't tell the whole story with Pippen, whose ability to guard anyone from Atlanta Hawks power forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim to San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker to Boston Celtics small forward Paul Pierce has given the Blazers incredible versatility." Further, Tex Winter--who had a front row seat as a Bulls' assistant coach watching Jordan and Pippen--stated, "Jordan always felt Pippen was something special. Michael realized how easy it was to play with him and how he helped make his teammates better. It's often said Jordan needed Pippen and Pippen needed Jordan. I'm not sure Jordan didn't need Pippen more than Pippen needed Jordan."
Being honest is no guarantee of always being right, but being honest does guarantee that you are going to upset many people, including people who are powerful and who have a vested interest in repressing your honest statements.
Scottie Pippen is honest about what he thinks and how he feels. He has never participated in mass market simple narrative creation. He speaks his mind with no filter, regardless of whether or not his opinion conforms with popular narratives, and regardless of whether or not his opinion may offend other people. As I put it in 2007, Scottie Pippen is No Diplomat, but He Knows Basketball; when Pippen was asked his thoughts about the Chicago Bulls' current players, he offered his candid assessment. For example, Pippen said that Tyrus Thomas "dribbles better with his left hand than his right. He must have broken his arm when he was a kid. He shouldn't be dribbling. He should be a fetcher. Like Ben Wallace, (Joakim) Noah, go get the ball." Pippen declared that Ben Wallace "doesn't know the game like Dennis Rodman did. Dennis knew how and why he got rebounds. So you keep on him (Wallace) or he doesn't play." Thomas was the fourth overall pick in the 2006 draft, and the Bulls acquired him from Portland by trading away the rights to LaMarcus Aldridge. It is obvious that Pippen's assessment of Thomas was correct, but what Pippen said is not what the Bulls wanted to hear at that time. Wallace was an impactful player, but anyone who saw both Rodman and Wallace play understands that Rodman had a better overall grasp of the game in terms of setting screens, passing, and contributing in ways beyond rebounding and defense. Neither player was an offensive threat as a scorer, but Rodman was more of an offensive threat than Wallace and demonstrated a higher overall basketball IQ than Wallace, as Pippen correctly noted.
Scottie Pippen has a genius level basketball IQ, and he is not afraid to express unfiltered opinions about the sport that he understands so well.
Contrary to mainstream media portrayals, Unguarded is not vindictive in tone, nor is it focused on attacking or diminishing Michael Jordan (or anyone else). Unguarded tells the remarkable story of a boy from Hamburg, Arkansas who was one of 12 children, who began his college basketball career without a scholarship, and who worked so hard on his craft that he provided generational wealth to his family while earning official recognition as one of the NBA's greatest players ever. Pippen was an unselfish player who served as the de facto point guard on offense and as the linchpin to team success on defense.
Pippen's life story is inspirational and uplifting.
This is the man and the athlete who should be the focus of so much criticism? Ray Lewis pled guilty to obstruction of justice in an unsolved double murder, and Brett Favre was a selfish player who is also accused of welfare fraud for receiving funds for speeches that he never gave, but Scottie Pippen is the retired Hall of Famer who must be shouted down and demeaned? This is not surprising behavior by the media--I previously questioned why Ray Lewis is lionized and Terrell Owens is demonized--but it is very disappointing.
Pippen begins Unguarded by recalling the bullying incident at school which paralyzed his brother Ronnie from the neck down when Ronnie was just 13 years old. Pippen describes how the school officials did nothing to stop the bullying before the fateful attack, and he discusses the horrible mistreatment that Ronnie endured in the hospital. Eventually, Pippen's parents were able to bring Ronnie home. It took years of hard work for Ronnie to regain some of his mobility. Pippen concludes, "He has inspired me like no one else...I'm not the biggest success story in the Pippen family. He is" (p. 4).
About 10 years after Ronnie was paralyzed, Pippen's father Preston suffered a debilitating stroke that left him wheelchair bound and rendered him unable to communicate much verbally. The family rallied around Preston to help and support him the same way that the family helped Ronnie. Preston passed away a few years later, during the 1990 playoffs.
Pippen describes how poor his family was, but he adds, "In spite of everything, I never felt poor. I felt blessed" (p. 7). Pippen says that when he was younger he did not think about how his early experiences influenced his mindset but now that he is in his fifties he reflects back and realizes that how much the challenges experienced by his brother and his father impacted his thinking. Pippen knows that he is portrayed as naive or stupid for signing a long-term contract that soon resulted in him being underpaid relative to his value, but at that time he felt that he could not risk being left with nothing if he got injured and was no longer able to play. A five year, $18 million contract was something that he could not pass up after seeing two examples of how your entire life can change in an instant.
Becoming an NBA player fulfilled Pippen's improbable childhood dream. His favorite basketball player is Julius Erving. Pippen declares, "Talk about charisma. There has been no one in the sport like Dr. J ever since. Sorry, MJ. Sorry, Magic. Sorry, LeBron. Whenever one of Dr. J's games was on TV, I couldn't take my eyes off him" (p. 14).
However, when Pippen was a young, small point guard, his nickname on the playground was Maurice Cheeks, the heady Hall of Fame point guard who was Erving's teammate for many years and who later coached Pippen in Portland near the end of Pippen's career.
To say Pippen was not highly recruited is an understatement. He received no college offers except for an opportunity to go to the University of Central Arkansas on a work-study program. Pippen would not be able to play in any of the basketball team's games, but he would be permitted to work out with the team. Pippen received a basketball scholarship only after two players quit the team. Pippen averaged just 4.3 ppg as a freshman, but he was elated to have the opportunity to play in all 20 of the team's games.
While attending college, Pippen grew from a skinny 6-1 point guard to a 6-7 player with point guard skills and a forward's size, and he became a two-time NAIA All-American. Pippen's contentious interactions with Jerry Krause, the Chicago Bulls' longtime general manager, are well-documented, but Pippen gives Krause credit for recognizing his talents from the beginning. Pippen writes about Krause, "There isn't one word I wish I could take back. At the same time, give the man his due. He could spot talent where others couldn't..." (p. 40). That is not a vindictive or vengeful assessment by Pippen; that is honesty: he had his disagreements with Krause and he regrets nothing that he said about Krause, but he also respects Krause's ability to scout players. Krause made a trade with Seattle to swap first round picks and acquire Pippen.
Regarding his early interactions with Jordan, Pippen does not belabor the point but it is obvious that he was never intimidated by Jordan. Sure, Jordan challenged Pippen on the court--Jordan challenged everyone--but Pippen went right back at Jordan, and Pippen is one of the few players in basketball history who had the physical skills and the mental toughness necessary to compete with Jordan. We have read, seen, and heard many stories about Jordan berating and belittling players, but those stories never involve Pippen. Pippen says that he constantly worked to improve his game, but he never sought Jordan's approval. Pippen's work ethic and determination to be great were formed long before he ever met Jordan, so the simple narrative that Jordan molded Pippen into greatness does not make much sense. Jordan was just entering his fourth season when Pippen was a rookie. Jordan's Bulls had a 1-9 playoff record up to that point, so Jordan was not in a position to give anyone lessons about what it takes to be an NBA champion. After Jordan's first retirement the Bulls--with Pippen as the undisputed best player on the team and, arguably, the best player in the NBA--went 6-4 in the playoffs, with perhaps only one terrible Hue Hollins call preventing them from returning to the NBA Finals.
Pippen recalls that the first NBA game he saw in person was his first preseason game. Think about that: one of the NBA's 50 greatest players had never even been to an NBA game until he joined the Chicago Bulls. Pippen was used to having hard-driving coaches in high school and college, but he resented the way that Doug Collins publicly berated him and other players, particularly because Collins rarely said anything negative to or about Jordan. Pippen writes that he is not surprised that Collins became a respected TV commentator, and he acknowledges that Collins has a great basketball mind. Pippen says that he learned a lot from Collins, but that he did not appreciate Collins' coaching style. Those words may not go over well in a basketball community in which Collins is a highly regarded figure, but everything that Pippen asserts is true and easily verifiable.
By nature, Pippen finds it difficult to trust people, and his relationship with the Bulls' front office was strained by several situations in which he felt betrayed. During his rookie season, Pippen had serious pain radiating down his legs. The medical staff insisted that he was just having muscle spasms. It is baffling that no trainer or doctor figured out that Pippen was experiencing radiculopathy (the medical term for nerve pain in the legs caused by a herniated disc in the back). Pippen did not receive a correct diagnosis until he was evaluated by a doctor not affiliated with the team, and Pippen eventually needed back surgery, which took place after his rookie season and caused him to miss the start of his second season. Pippen resents not only that the Bulls misdiagnosed him, but that Collins and others in the organization questioned his toughness.
Pippen describes how Collins marginalized and at times even mocked veteran assistant coach Tex Winter. Meanwhile, the youngest assistant coach on the staff--Phil Jackson--made a name for himself with his thorough scouting reports and engaging communication style. Jackson, who is not quite the contemplative monk he portrays himself to be, also knew how to curry favor within the highest power structures of an organization, a skill that he displayed throughout his coaching career. Even though Collins led the Bulls to the 1989 Eastern Conference Finals, he was fired that offseason and replaced by Jackson. One of the reasons that Jackson was hired to replace Collins is that the team needed a coach who was not afraid to challenge Jordan, and another reason is that Jerry Krause wanted to implement Tex Winter's Triangle Offense, but Collins resisted doing this.
Nothing that Pippen writes about Collins is vindictive, or even surprising. Sam Smith and Roland Lazenby have both written about what happened behind the scenes before Jackson replaced Collins as Chicago's coach, but Pippen lived through the situation so it is valuable to have his firsthand account. Pippen's description of Collins' coaching style is in line with recent comments made by Kwame Brown about what it was like to play for Collins in Washington when Collins catered to elder statesman Jordan the same way that Collins catered to young superstar Jordan.
In contrast to Collins yelling at players and embarrassing players, Pippen recalls that Jackson "was critical in a constructive way. He didn't embarrass us in front of our fans or teammates. He pulled guys off to the side or asked one of the assistant coaches to explain what we did wrong. I felt respected as a player and, more important, as a man" (p. 86). Pippen describes Jackson's practices as well-organized, and says that the team expended just enough energy to stay sharp while also preserving enough energy to play hard during the games. Jackson implemented Tex Winter's Triangle Offense, but Jackson was smart enough to run isolation plays for Jordan in the fourth quarter if the Triangle Offense was not working. The Triangle Offense provided a structure that kept everyone involved, and it forced the defense to chase Jordan when Jordan did not have the ball--but the Bulls never forgot that they had the sport's greatest closer if/when they needed him.
Pippen describes the challenges the Bulls faced in learning how to run the Triangle Offense. One of the biggest challenges was convincing Jordan to give up the ball and trust his teammates to make the right decisions. Pippen notes that Jordan was used to holding the ball for five or six seconds, but Pippen adds that even at his worst Jordan never monopolized the ball the way that James Harden did during his time in Houston. Pippen recalls watching Harden and thinking to himself, "For God's sake, James, stop dribbling!"
Pippen is not afraid to shatter simple narratives, but if you are a media member getting paid to promote Jordan as the greatest player ever and to promote James Harden as the greatest scorer ever then expert commentary from Pippen refuting your simple narratives threatens your livelihood and your status. Keep that thought in mind when various media members criticize Pippen's firsthand account of his NBA career.
To Pippen, Jordan is a great player--Pippen admits that he would have wanted the ball in no other player's hands during last second moments such as the famous shot to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1989 playoffs--but the story of the Chicago Bulls is the story of a team coming together, not the heroic one man quest of Michael Jordan triumphing against all odds (including overcoming the teammates he derisively considered to be his supporting cast instead of viewing them as his partners).
To Pippen, Harden is not a basketball superhero but just a player who dribbles the ball too much instead of focusing on team success.
I am baffled by the notion that Pippen's book and the comments that he has made during his book promotion tour indicate that he derives no joy from his time with the Bulls. Pippen makes it quite clear that the joy he derives comes from how a team worked together to win six titles. Ask any of Pippen's teammates and, to a man, they will tell you what a great teammate he was, and how he lifted them up, particularly after Jordan often broke them down with harsh remarks. Pippen views basketball as a team game, and he is offended by the media's attempts to transmogrify the Bulls' team success into a simple narrative focused entirely on deifying Michael Jordan. Pippen's recollections and fondest memories of those six championship seasons revolve around what the team accomplished as a group.
Pippen is not a person who has many regrets, but in Unguarded he says that he should have made more of an effort to reach out to Jordan after Jordan's father was killed during the summer of 1993. Pippen states that he will regret that for the rest of his life. I wonder why those passages from the book and those heartfelt sentiments are not emphasized in the media coverage of the book.
I wonder if anyone who has blasted Pippen and Unguarded has read the entire book.
Pippen notes that he played in 1386 NBA games (regular season and playoffs combined), yet there is inordinate focus on 1.8 seconds from those games. He also questions why a documentary about "The Last Dance" (which is what Phil Jackson called the Bulls' 1997-98 season) dwells on 1.8 seconds from a 1994 playoff game. Pippen asks, "Why then did Michael find it necessary to bring it up again? Did he consider for a moment how it might affect me and my legacy? Besides, he wasn't on the team in 1994. He was playing baseball" (p. XIX). Pippen says that it is fair to ask him questions about those 1.8 seconds--and he devotes an entire chapter in Unguarded to answering those questions--but he insists that those 1.8 seconds do not belong in "The Last Dance." Pippen adds that it is fair that "The Last Dance" mentions his 1997 delayed surgery and his trade demand, because those things were a part of that season; however, he declares that Jordan should not call him selfish because Jordan displayed selfishness on many occasions, from retiring right before the 1993-94 season (thus providing the Bulls no time to try to replace him on the roster) to the way that Jordan played in game six of the 1992 NBA Finals. Pippen recalls that Phil Jackson, at the urging of assistant coach Tex Winter, took Jordan out of that game six because Jordan was forcing shots and the Bulls were trailing by 15 points. With Pippen and four reserves on the court, the Bulls rallied, and then Jordan returned in the final moments to join Pippen as the Bulls sealed the deal to win their second championship in a row.
Pippen is right to question why on the one hand the 1.8 seconds scenario was featured so prominently in "The Last Dance" but on the other hand his key role in the game six comeback was minimized. Pippen believes that these editorial choices were made in order to portray Jordan as a one man team. Is that an unreasonable perspective for Pippen to have about how he and his teammates were depicted in a documentary over which Jordan had creative control?
While "The Last Dance" aired, I wrote Remember 25-8-6 About Scottie Pippen, Not 1.8:
An objective examination of the record shows that the Bulls would not have won a single title without Pippen. Michael Jordan won one playoff game--not one playoffs series, but one playoff game--without Pippen. Pippen was an MVP-level player for the 1994 Bulls team that lost in game seven of the Eastern Conference semifinals, and he was the leader of the 2000 Trail Blazers team that lost in game seven of the Western Conference Finals. Pippen's defense against Magic Johnson in the 1991 NBA Finals and against Mark Jackson in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals played a major role in Chicago's victories in those series. Pippen was a rare player who could dominate a game without taking a shot.
During Jordan's first retirement, Pippen emerged as an All-NBA First Team/MVP-caliber player, and he remained an All-NBA First Team/MVP-caliber player for several years, until age and back surgery slowed him down in 1999. Pippen is without question one of the top 25 basketball players of all-time--not a Pantheon-level player, but securely in the next category of greatness.
Michael Jordan is an iconic historical figure whose impact transcended the NBA, and he is understandably the focus of "The Last Dance." His viewpoint dominates the narrative not only because he is the central figure, but also because the footage would have never been seen by the public without his approval. All of that being said and acknowledged, it must also be said and acknowledged that Pippen was not some minor character in this epic-length drama; Pippen was Jordan's co-star during those title runs, and the story would not exist--the Bulls would not have been a dynasty--without Pippen.
It is indisputable and inarguable that Scottie Pippen Was One of Just Three Essential Members of the Chicago Bulls' Six Championship Teams:
Only three main cogs participated in all six Chicago championship teams: Phil Jackson, Michael Jordan, and Scottie Pippen. Every other participant was replaceable, and was replaced.
Those who are quick to assert that Jordan could and would have won six titles with any other coach running the team and any other star player alongside him should be reminded of several facts:
1) Prior to teaming up with Jackson and Pippen, Jordan's career playoff record was 1-9, with three first round losses.
2) After teaming up with Jackson and Pippen, Jordan failed to make the playoffs in two seasons with the Washington Wizards.
3) After winning six titles with the Bulls, Jackson won five more titles with the Lakers.
4) After Michael Jordan's first retirement in 1993, the Bulls replaced him in the starting lineup with Pete Myers, and went on to post a 55-27 record, just two wins less their 1992-93 record. The Pippen-led 1993-94 Bulls lost in seven games in the second round to the New York Knicks, who benefited from a game-deciding call by Hue Hollins in game five that Darell Garretson--one of the other officials on the court during that game--later publicly called "terrible."
5) After Jordan returned to the Bulls near the end of the 1994-95 season, the Bulls lost in six games in the second round of the playoffs.
6) Pippen was the heart and soul of Portland's 2000 team that pushed the eventual three-time champion L.A. Lakers to seven games in the Western Conference Finals.
7) Pippen's playoff record without Jordan was 3-6 in series, and 19-21 in games. That may not look great at first glance, but it is much better than Jordan's playoff record without Pippen, and most of Pippen's playoff games without Jordan took place past Pippen's prime and after Pippen had major back surgery. Pippen went 1-1 in playoff series and 6-4 in playoff games in his only playoff run during his prime sans Jordan.
The above seven bullet points contain facts, not opinions or speculation. Those facts can be placed in context in a variety of ways, but the bottom line indisputable fact is that--of the three essential members of the Bulls' six championship teams--Jordan had the least playoff success on his own. That does not mean that Jordan was not great, but it does suggest that efforts to lionize Jordan while marginalizing the contributions of Jackson and Pippen do a disservice to the historical record.
What is your vision of the ideal basketball player? You might say, "My ideal player is unselfish and he focuses more on team goals than his individual accolades. He has no skill set weaknesses: he can score from all levels (in the paint, midrange, three point range), he can rebound, he is a talented and willing passer, he can handle the ball, and he not only can defend his position but he can defend multiple positions while demonstrating a high level understanding of team defensive concepts. He is quick, explosive, and he is big enough to play inside yet nimble enough to play on the perimeter."
Or, if you wanted to be concise, you could just say "Scottie Pippen." Pippen is one of the few players in basketball history who fits the above description of the ideal basketball player.
Read Unguarded, and then ask yourself this question: "Why are so many members of the mainstream media focused on portraying Pippen in a negative light?"
Labels: "The Last Dance", Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan, Phil Jackson, Scottie Pippen
posted by David Friedman @ 7:03 PM
