“Don’t Think You Could Be Able to Guard Wilt Chamberlain”: Scottie Pippen Called Out Patrick Ewing in 1996

Scottie Pippen is the definition of a self-made man with a lengthy career in the NBA (17 seasons), winning six championships. However, of all Pippen’s achievements, making it to the 1996 NBA 50 Greatest Players list was his crowning achievement. In 1996, Pippen was the only player, besides his teammate Michael Jordan, who made the list from that legendary Bulls Squad.

During the NBA 50 celebrations, Pippen shared an interesting conversation with Knicks legend Patrick Ewing. Talking to the Knicks legend, during the NBA 50 celebrations, Pippen stated,

“I honestly don’t think you could be able to guard Wilt…He was a shot blocker. Defense was his specialty.”

 

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Ewing, who played along with Pippen’s ‘what if’ games, told Pippen that Wilt wouldn’t be able to guard him either. Though Patrick Ewing acknowledged that guarding Wilt might be a task, he was confident in his skills.  But all things considered, Wilt versus Ewing would be a match-up for the ages.

Between them, Chamberlain surely had a distinct advantage over Ewing in size and strength. But Ewing had a higher basketball IQ and superior lateral agility, making the matchup even more interesting.

Ewing retired a New York legend, as the Kingston native would take the Knicks to two NBA Finals appearances. He was dominant on both ends of the floor, averaging 21 points, 9.8 boards, and 2.4 blocks during his 17-year-long season. Unfortunately for Ewing, he never took the Knicks over the bump, resulting in the Knicks legend retiring ‘ringless’.

Wilt Chamberlain made bold claims

Wilt Chamberlain is sort of a ‘meme’ in basketball. Though Chamberlain never played in the modern NBA, his records still sound just as outrageous, many decades later. Wilt holds the record for the most points scored in a game (100 points), against the Knicks nonetheless. But scoring 100 points was only one among many of Wilt’s outrageous achievements.

The 7’1″ legend believed that he was better than Michael Jordan, and would average over 65 or 70 points during the 90s. He revealed how the game in the 90s allowed for more space and less physicality, leading to taller players getting more wide-open shots.

Most of Wilts’s logic in the interview is nothing short of ‘false’. The 80’s and the 90’s were probably the most physical era’s in the NBA. With players like Shaq, Matumbo, Hakeem, and Patrick Ewing guarding the paint, Wilt would not have had an easy time scoring. And with centers having become more skilled in footwork, placement, and passing, over the decades, Wilt would also face problems on the offensive end.