Despite ‘Last Dance’ Pushing Scottie Pippen’s ‘Lack of Pay’ Narrative, Michael Jordan Earned $16,000,000 Less Than Scorned Teammate

Chicago Bulls legends Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan are known to have more than fair share of disagreements. Among them, is the fact that Pippen was grossly underpaid during his time at the Chicago Bulls. While Michael Jordan himself got a bumper deal after his return from retirement in 1996-97, Pippen never earned more than $3.5 million per year during his tenure at the Bulls. He was eventually able to set things right with respect to his NBA earnings, and finished his career with $16,000,000 more than his illustrious teammate, according to Sportrac.

Scottie Pippen and MJ have a long-standing feud that stemmed from the former’s portrayal in The Last Dance. According to SBNation, Pippen had claimed that MJ was put on a pedestal in the documentary, while his teammates were put down. According to Pippen, MJ didn’t do justice to his career in the documentary and reduced him to a member of the supporting cast.

Scottie Pippen’s Salary During Time at Chicago Bulls Was Talked About in The Last Dance

Netflix’s “The Last Dance” documentary painted a rather tainted image of Scottie Pippen. He was shown to have constant issues with the Bulls due to his salary.

Additionally, Pippen claimed that it didn’t focus on his career enough and was almost “condescending.” Regardless, Scottie signed a $18 million, 7-year deal at the end of his rookie contract in 1991.

This meant that the first time he made more than $10 million a year was joined the Houston Rockets. While Michael Jordan earned more than $30 million in both 1996 and 97, his total earnings amounted to $93,877,500, according to Sportrac.

Pippen, on the other hand, finished with $109,957,430, which was down to a longer career and contracts he signed after leaving the Bulls.

Michael Jordan is on Another Stratosphere When It Comes to Overall Earnings

MJ might not have signed any big contracts during his NBA career. However, off the court, he has been making the big bucks right from when he was a youngster.

Jordan first signed for Nike in 1984. He went on to create the Jordan brand, which garners over $5 billion in revenue every year. MJ has a net worth of over $3 billion.

That does not take into account the recent $3 billion sale of the Charlotte Hornets. Pippen earned a lot as a player. However, he is only worth around $20 million today, according to Celebrity Net Worth.