Scottie Pippen Reportedly ‘Beyond Livid’ About ‘The Last Dance’
Written by SOURCE on May 21, 2020
Scottie Pippen might be one of the few people on earth who wasn’t a fan of The Last Dance.
According to ESPN 1000’s David Kaplan, Pippen is “beyond livid” at Michael Jordan over his portrayal in the doc.
Per CBS Sports, Kaplan said that Pippen is “so angry at Michael and how he was portrayed, called selfish, called this, called that, that he’s furious that he participated and did not realize what he was getting himself into.”
Kaplan’s report aligns with previous reports that Pippen was not pleased with how he was depicted in the docuseries.
On Wednesday, NBA reporter Nick Friedell made an appearance on ESPN 1000’s Kap and Company show. where he said that those close to Pippen claim that he’s “not happy” about what he’s seen in The Last Dance.
“We haven’t heard from Scottie. He hasn’t gone on the record, but it’s been pretty clear listening from others that he’s not happy about what he’s seen and at some point we’ll hear from him,” Friedell said around the conversation’s 5-minute mark.
Friedell isn’t the only person to hint at Scottie’s disdain for the documentary. Earlier this month, ESPN‘s Jackie MacMullan revealed that Pip was “wounded and disappointed” by the way he was depicted in the documentary. In fact, he was so upset that his former Bulls teammate, Dennis Rodman, spoke to MacMullan in his defense.
“I wish he didn’t give a shit like me about what people say,” Rodman told MacMullan. He goes on to say that Pippen should be considered a top 5 player of all time but he’s been underrated his whole career by being connected to Jordan.
“Scottie was so underrated—and so underpaid. He should be holding his head up higher than Michael Jordan in this documentary,” Rodman said. “I think a lot of people are now realizing what he went through. The kid was a hero, in a lot of ways, during those great Bulls runs.”
But, the problem is that Scottie wasn’t painted as a generational talent in the documentary. Pippen’s frustrations with the front office and his faulty contract with the Bulls took on a life of its own. Also, his dedication to the team was questioned several times. Early in the series, Jordan called Pippen “selfish” for using his injury as leverage during the beginning of the 1997-98 season and Scottie’s intense migraine in 1990 was highlighted as a semi-fatal flaw along with his refusal to finish a game in 1994.
During a recent episode of Complex’s Load Management podcast, Jalen Rose and Danny Green also touched on this.
“During the documentary, I think they made him seem at times a very emotional guy,” Green says at the episode’s 54-minute mark. “They probably could’ve did a better job of not making him look like a scapegoat.”
Pippen isn’t alone in his objections. Horace Grant went on record calling Jordan a liar after MJ labeled him as the source for Sam Smith’s Jordan Rules book in the series.
“[He] puts this lie out that I was the source behind [the book],” Grant said to Kap and Company on Wednesday. “Sam and I have always been great friends. We’re still great friends. But the sanctity of that locker room, I would never put anything personal out there. The mere fact that Sam Smith was an investigative reporter. That he had to have two sources, two, to write a book, I guess. Why would MJ just point me out?”
Nick Friedell claims that the grievances, Grant, Pippen, and other players have with the documentary are rooted in the direction of the series. Per Friedell, the players were under the impression that this series would touch on the team as a whole. Instead, the documentary morphed into a Michael Jordan-centric piece that lightly touched on their contributions.
Also, Curtis Polk and Estee Portnoy are listed as executive producers. Friedell claims that these individuals are “gatekeepers” for MJ and were burdened with the task of maintaining his image throughout the documentary. Additionally, Jordan was reportedly the only participant to be paid for being featured in The Last Dance.
“That creative control is crucial,” Friedell explained.
Listen to Nick Friedell’s full conversation with ESPN 1000’s Kap and Company show.
