Was Pippen 'The Real Leader'? Former Bulls Great Appears to Take Shot at MJ to Help Sell Book
The Chicago Bulls of the 1990s are undoubtedly one of the greatest dynasties in sports history.
Yet as more time passes since their last NBA championship, it is becoming clear that even the best teams have conflicts bubbling under the surface.
While Michael Jordan is arguably the best basketball player ever, at least one of his teammates feels that he would not have enjoyed as much success without help.
Scottie Pippen, an NBA great in his own right, apparently feels he has been slighted in the coverage of the Bulls’ legacy.
In order to try and right that wrong, Pippen is releasing a new book entitled “Unguarded,” the New York Post reported. The book can be pre-ordered now, and its description contains what could be interpreted as some jabs at Jordan.
“Simply put, without Pippen, there are no championship banners — let alone six — hanging from the United Center rafters,” a description of the book on publisher Simon and Schuster’s website says.
“There’s no ‘Last Dance’ documentary. There’s no ‘Michael Jordan’ as we know him. The 1990s Chicago Bulls teams would not exist as we know them.”
In addition, the description says that Pippen took exception to living in Jordan’s shadow. It promises to unveil “never-before-told stories” about Pippen’s time with the Bulls, and goes as far as to label Pippen “the real leader within the Bulls locker room.”
“In ‘Unguarded,’ the soft-spoken, six-time champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist finally opens up to offer pointed and transparent takes on Michael Jordan, Phil Jackson, and Isiah Thomas, among others,” the description continues.
“Pippen details how he cringed at being labeled Jordan’s sidekick, and discusses how he could have (and should have) received more respect from the Bulls’ management and the media.”
Pippen also personally marketed the book on his Instagram page, saying it will officially be released on Nov. 16, 2021.
This is not the first time that Pippen has expressed frustration with his public image. He told The Guardian in December that he “wasn’t too pleased” with “The Last Dance” documentary that ESPN released to detail the Bulls 1990s dominance.
“I don’t think it was that accurate in terms of really defining what was accomplished in one of the greatest eras of basketball, but also by two of the greatest players – and one could even put that aside and say the greatest team of all time,” Pippen said.
“I didn’t think those things stood out in the documentary. I thought it was more about Michael trying to uplift himself and to be glorified. I think it also backfired to some degree in that people got a chance to see what kind of personality Michael had.”
Pippen also said that he raised concerns about the documentary to Jordan himself, and that Jordan responded by saying, “Hey, you’re right.”
Despite Pippen’s disdain, “The Last Dance” was an unmitigated success. ESPN reported last May that it averaged nearly 12.9 million total viewers per episode of the 10-part documentary.
The Bulls won six NBA championships in the 1990s, and Pippen played a significant part in all of them. According to 247 Sports, he was a seven-time NBA All-Star, as well as a seven-time All-NBA selection. Three of the latter instances saw Pippen earn first-team All-NBA honors.
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