After winning 6 NBA titles alongside Michael Jordan at the Chicago Bulls, Scottie Pippen moved to Houston Rockets in 1999. Alongside Charles Barkley and Hakim Olajuwon, Pippen hoped to win another ring by forming a super team. Barkley had never won the NBA title but took a $1.2 million pay cut in order to make the Pippen deal happen.
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However, things did not work out. Pippen, out to create his own legacy, publicly criticized Charles Barkley and forced a move to Portland Trail Blazers a few months later. Speaking to ESPN on September 29th, Pippen said that he would not give Barkley an apology even at gunpoint. This took place after some crucial comments were made at a 1999 Nike summit.
Scottie Pippen blindsided Charles Barkley despite his $1.2 million pay cut
The Houston Rockets were thrashed by the LA Lakers in the first round of the Playoffs. Barkley led the team in assists but a lack of chemistry between their three best players meant the Rockets were always struggling.
Pippen later revealed that he thought he needed more youngsters around himself in order to make up for his advancing age. He was 33 when he moved to the Rockets.
After game 1 against the Lakers, Pippen publicly criticized Barkley for fouling Shaquille O’Neal with 28 seconds left on the clock. The former Bulls player had himself made a turnover, and O’Neal made just one of the free throws:
What’s more, Barkley had spent a week with Scottie Pippen in Hawaii for a Nike promotional event. Following the tour, Pippen broke the news that he wanted to move away, according to SI:
“In the early summer, Pippen began quietly campaigning to join Jackson in L.A. In August, after Pippen and Barkley spent a week together in Hawaii on a Nike promotional trip, the news broke that Pippen had asked to be traded. Barkley returned to Houston and, claiming he had been blindsided, demanded that Pippen apologize to him, the other Rockets, and their fans.”
However, Scottie Pippen was adamant, and claimed the following to ESPN on September 29th:
“I wouldn’t give Charles Barkley an apology at gunpoint.”
Pippen wasn’t successful post-Michael Jordan and Chicago Bulls
Pippen was not well-liked by Michael Jordan, who had called Barkley when he publicly criticized the Rockets’ legend. Scottie later revealed that he had already won 6 titles. He claimed he had moved to the Rockets in order to “help Barkley win one.”
Regardless, his eventual move to the Portland Trail Blazers was also his most lucrative contract. Pippen played for the Trail Blazers for 4 seasons before returning to finish his career with the Bulls.
During this time, he earned more than a whopping $15 million per season. The move to the Rockets was expected to prove successful. However, Pippen never came close to winning another ring after he left the Bulls.
