Scottie Pippen – loser
Scottie Pippen has been given a ton of praise for being the two-way confidant that Michael Jordan leaned on to obtain two straight three-peats. Jordan even alluded to the fact that without Scottie, he wouldn’t be a multiple-time champion.
However, Scottie’s shortcomings as a player and a person were evident through the piece. His falling out with the Bulls’ staff in 1994 for not getting the ball late in Game 3 vs. the Knicks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals was evident. Injuries succumbed to him the latter half of the Bulls’ second championship run to where Pippen was ineffective on the floor a lot of the time.
In his year and a half tenure as the franchise player for the Bulls, he flamed out in the playoffs then could barely help the team stay afloat the following year until MJ’s return. Pippen has the undeniable accolade of being the greatest two-way player of his era at the time.
However, his lack of intangibles and sketchy injury history on the back half of his career truly limited him from showcasing his consistent rise towards greatness.