Scottie Pippen has been at loggerheads with Michael Jordan since ‘The Last Dance’ came out. According to Pippen, Jordan was a selfish player. The 10-part documentary was directed by Jordan himself and put him on a pedestal. Moreover, he says that Michael Jordan was glorified while not giving nearly enough praise to Pippen and their teammates. Pippen now goes on record in his memoir ‘Unguarded’ to explain his beef with Jordan and Charles Barkley.
After their lone season as teammates on the 1998?1999 Houston Rockets, the rivalry between the two former NBA stars began. That year, the Rockets were a title contender. They had a forgettable first-round exit to the Lakers that season. Houston traded Pippen to Portland after he engaged in a public feud with Barkley in an attempt to force himself out of H-town. It has been more than two decades since the feud started, yet Pippen went on to reignite the sparks after talking about Barkley in his memoir.
Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley become a topic of discussion in Pippen’s memoir
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Jordan and Pippen created history by winning six championships together for Chicago Bulls. When it come to Michael Jordan, Pippen was quite vocal in his memoir. The Chicago Bull feels Jordan ruined the brand of basketball.
He says ?“I may go as far to say Mike ruined basketball, In the 80s on the playgrounds, you?d have everyone moving the ball around -? passing to help the team. That stopped in the 90s. Kids wanted to be ?Like Mike.? Well, Mike didn?t want to pass – didn’t want to rebound, or defend the best player. He wanted everything done for him.”
Scottie Pippen says Michael Jordan put out "The Last Dance" because he didn't want younger fans calling LeBron the GOAT.
More: https://t.co/HYo8pC57km pic.twitter.com/nYK6G4zgEC
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) November 2, 2021
In his memoir, He calls out Jordan for making the Chicago Bulls documentary all about himself. Pippen was disappointed in Michael’s narrative that made him the frontman, while the rest of the Bulls a side cast.
Pippen says ” Michael was determined to prove to the current generation of fans that he was larger-than-life during his day ? and still larger than LeBron James, the player many consider his equal, if not superior.?
Scottie Pippen on Michael Jordan and THE LAST DANCE
Excerpt from UNGUARDED: https://t.co/cv3FVuqUBx pic.twitter.com/W2TG15vh1z
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) November 2, 2021
Pippen also calls out Charles Barkley in his memoir . Back in the day, the two had a few words to exchange. Barkley was fuming as Pippen forced his way out of the team. Charles felt he deserved an apology from Pippen as the city and fans of Houston welcomed him with open arms.
Pippen responded to Charles Barkley’s demands for an apology by saying, “I wouldn?t give Charles Barkley an apology at gunpoint. He can never expect an apology from me. If anything, he owes me an apology for coming to play with his fat butt.”
Is Pippen reigniting the feud with Barkley and Jordan?
Barkley responded to Pippen with a few remarks of his own. The Hall of Famer questions why the age-old feud was brought to the limelight. Barkley feels that his ex-teammate tried to resurface drama just to promote his memoir.
Charles Barkley calls out Scottie Pippen for his recent crusade against Michael Jordan 👀 pic.twitter.com/T1FBjkhhHM
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) November 18, 2021
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Barkley clapped back by saying “Scotty I’ve always liked you, you’re a?good player, I ain’t that. We never got the?fight we never had any bad words all?of a sudden I’m a bad guy because you?got a book and a bourbon coming out. I?just kind of felt sad”
Holy shit man Scottie Pippen just unloads on MJ and The Last Dance in here my lord https://t.co/757MLrAKvk
— Jason Patt (@Bulls_Jay) November 2, 2021
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Pippen may be out of line bringing these Hall of Famers to feud with him after all these years. Hopefully, these legends can co-exist as all three of them were inducted into the list of NBA 75.
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