NBA legend Scottie Pippen has revealed that his fractured relationship with former teammate Michael Jordan is beyond repair, though they won lots of titles together and got along as teammates.
Pippen and Jordan won six NBA championships together as part of the Chicago Bulls dynasty, and are widely regarded as one of the best duos basketball has ever seen.
However, Pippen recently revealed on the PBD Podcast that their friendship is strained and very unlikely to be restored.
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“I just think Michael is a very difficult person to deal with,” Pippen said.
“I played with him for years, so I know that when it’s time for you to move in your direction, then go in your direction. Don’t sit there and try to procrastinate or stretch it that the relationship is not where it was or not what it used to be. It’s never going to be the same. So why try to make something out of nothing?”
"I Was NEVER Jordan's Friend" – Scottie Pippen OPENS UP About His STRAINED Relationship With MJ@patrickbetdavid @ScottiePippen pic.twitter.com/S9K8DtOZus
— PBD Podcast (@PBDsPodcast) January 18, 2025
According to Pippen, the duo shared little time together outside basketball, and it contributed to where their friendship stands today.
“I guess the last three championships we won, we trained together at his house, but other than that, we didn’t really put a lot of time in away from basketball,” he said.
Tensions reportedly escalated after ESPN’s 2020 docuseries ‘The Last Dance’, which Pippen went on to publicly criticize.
Pippen also revealed that there had been a rift between the two long before the docuseries was released.
In his 2021 memoir, Unguarded, Scotty Pippen admitted that seeing it all unfold this way between himself and Michael Jordan hurts, but he’s chosen to live with what the reality is.
“Watching the doc was definitely one [occasion] when I think about the relationship I wish the two of us had, and it hurts. It hurts a lot,” he wrote.
Pippen also reflected on not reaching out to Jordan after his father’s 1993 murder and said it is still a decision he knows he could have been better with. “I feel horrible every time I think about it,” he wrote.
Their relationship then took another blow when Pippen’s ex-wife, Larsa, began to date Jordan’s son Marcus, who was 17 years younger.
The two have since reportedly split, but for Scotty Pippen, his bond with Michael Jordan on the court remains unmatched, however, he is fully aware of the reality that their good friendship may never be restored to where it once was.
