Not all of the playoff runs that the former Chicago Bulls Hall-of-Fame forward and UCA product Scottie Pippen had in his career were successful.
Although he is remembered for his time playing for the Chicago Bulls with all of those great dynasty teams in the 1990’s, there was a career in the NBA for Scottie Pippen beyond the Windy City. He didn’t find a whole lot of success at his stops with the Houston Rockets or Portland Trail Blazers, but those are still noteworthy stops near the end of his NBA career.
Throughout his lengthy and accomplished NBA career, Pippen spent a dozen seasons with the Bulls, four with the Trail Blazers, and one with the Rockets. He played in 23 games in his last season in the NBA, which came with the Bulls.
After landing a big contract with the Rockets in a famous sign-and-trade deal during the 1999 offseason, the career trajectory of Pippen was never the same. Even though he was still in his early 30’s when he landed with the Rockets, he was never an All-Star selection again. He was still serviceable with the Rockets and Trail Blazers, but never the superstar he was with legendary shooting guard Michael Jordan and the Bulls in the late 1980’s and throughout the 1990’s.
There is still a number of accolades that Pippen raked in during his career in the league. He was a seven-time NBA All-Star selection, six-time NBA Champion, one-time steals champ, seven-time All-NBA Team selection, 10-time All-Defensive Team selection, and one-time All-Star Game MVP. Pippen also came very close to getting the MVP honors during the 1993-94 campaign, when Jordan was playing baseball.
All in all, Pippen was a very accomplished player in his NBA career. But there were a few opposing players that were very problematic for him in the playoffs. And that just didn’t come during his run with the Bulls.
Here’s a look back at three opposing NBA standouts that gave Pippen a lot of trouble in the playoffs.