Over the past few years, details have begun to circulate surrounding the dire situation of Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen’s relationship. Despite winning six NBA championships together, all signs point to irreparable damage to their bond from the past. Such a turn of events, even after the Last Dance being blamed for it, still remains a slight mystery. Former Bulls star Craig Hodges chose to shed some light on how the fracture began. He talked of the lack of assistance from Jordan on the business side of basketball for Pippen as the reason for it.
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There is no doubt that Jordan was the best player on the Bulls. But that doesn’t mean that Pippen was just some scrub. The 6-foot-8 forward quickly became one of the best players the league had to offer. His skill and talent earned him recognition as a member of the NBA’s top 50 players of all time.
In fact, even Jordan has been on record praising Pippen for being an amazing teammate during their tenure on the Bulls. But that hasn’t held up as Pippen has recently become outspoken regarding his distaste for MJ. Hodges understands completely why his former teammate feels the way he does.
Craig Hodges, during a guest appearance on the All The Smoke podcast, provided his opinion on the soured relationship between the two. He hinted that Pippen wasn’t paid as he should have been, and Jordan should have stepped u,p or at least that is what Pippen needed from him.
“I think [Scottie Pippen] felt that [Michael Jordan] could have done more from a business side of helping him,” Hodges said. “You think of how many professional athletes today who gave a piece of themselves contractually in order to keep my boy here. I think Scottie wanted a little bit of that to happen.”
Hodges believes Jordan didn’t do all that he could to ensure Pippen received as much money as possible. After all, Jordan was the star of Nike and the Jordan brand. Losing a few million from his NBA contract wouldn’t have mattered much in the grand scheme of things due to his other streams of revenue.
That wasn’t the case with Pippen. The most Pippen earned in a single season as a member of the Bulls was $3.4 million in the 1992-93 season. Meanwhile, the most money Jordan earned with the Bulls was $33 million in the 1997-98 season.
Pippen’s career earnings soared when he left the Bulls. He was paid handsomely by the Rockets and Trailblazers. Bulls had paid him a meagre $32 million for 13 seasons, while Portland paid him $66 million for just 4 seasons. This clearly represents how undervalued he was in Chicago, and his expectations from Jordan or the organization weren’t far-fetched.
Nowadays, there are many instances of players taking a pay cut so that their teammates can receive adequate pay. The Miami Heat’s Big 3 of LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade is a perfect example. It’s hard to imagine why Jordan couldn’t have done something similar, especially because of Pippen’s legacy and MJ’s earnings from other sources.
Unfortunately, there is no changing the past. But players can look at the situation involving Pippen and Jordan and not make the same mistake. Make the necessary sacrifice to ensure they can build toward achieving the ultimate goal of winning a championship.
