Phil Jackson in 1995: “Scottie is such an unselfish player; he’s the greatest all-around player in the NBA right now… Now no one can score like Michael, and scoring is a wonderful thing to do, but it’s not the end-all, end-all.”

27 comments

1. So do you think he believed it?

2. Phil, like a coach should, used the media to speak indirectly to his players. He was one of the best at that. Don’t think this wasn’t calculated

3. This was 1995. MJ was out of the league. So, you could make the claim Scottie was the best all-around player in the league in 1995.

4. As a Pippen fan, this familiar quote still warms my heart every time I hear it.

5. Might be the player of the 90s most underrated today.

6. Hopefully we can stop treating Phil’s words as law now

7. this is how the bulls sub talks about josh giddey 😂😂😂😂🤡

8. Pippen won everywhere he went, with or without Jordan. Went to WCF with Blazers and one game away from ECF when Jordan was gone from the Bulls, winning 55 games without Jordan that first year. Bulls/Jordan couldn’t get out of the first round until Pippen arrived. He lived in MJs shadow but Jordan’s career would look a lot different without Pippen.

9. If you were making the best possible starting 5 any time from 1991-1998, Scottie Pippen would have to be on it. Nobody had close to his combination of defensive versatility, unselfish connective playmaking, and scoring ability.

10. Pippen was an amazing all-around player. Good, not great scorer. Really strong passer and one of the best defensive wings ever.

    If Phil means Pippen was the most versatile player in the league in 1995 I think that’s a relatively easy pick. Maybe someone like Gary Payton has an argument.

    If we’re just straight up talking best player in 1995 then what would possibly be the argument for Pippen over the likes of Hakeem and David Robinson?

11. Pippen had a fragile Ego 

12. Pippen in the two years without Michael:

    1994 – MVP (3rd), All NBA 1st team (1st in votes), All Defense (1st in votes), DPOY (4th)

    1995 – MVP (7th), All NBA 1st team (3rd in votes), All Defense (1st in votes), DPOY (2nd)

    …I think he, and all his peers, believed it.

13. And let me tell ya something else about this young man… good with money. The way he handles money I tell ya he’s the whole package.

14. Anybody circle back with Phil on that quote after the Kukoc game??

15. Jordan was an incredible defender though

16. Has anybody seen Phil Jackson and Stephen King in the same room?

17. he’s trolling michael.

    i bet there are clips of him saying essentially the same thing about kobe and shaq

18. Unfortunately, Scottie’s game and stats will just fade him. He was way more Tim Duncan than Kobe Bryant. He just wanted to make the team better and it was a beautiful thing to watch him do it.

    I do feel that he went crazy from Jordan and then celebrity. But that was all after he played.

19. Jordan was also an elite defender, Phil is trolling for sure 😂 gotta love it.

20. The video cut out early. Phil then asked the GM to trade Michael for a defensive center.

21. it may not be the end-all end-all but it is the be-all be-all

22. Bron>MJ confirmed by the goat himself

23. Except for the time he refused to enter the game when the final play wasn’t called for him to shoot

24. And Michael took it personally

25. We never got to see full Scottie till 95’. He was obviously not the GOAT like MJ but bro he was that guy, he was to me somebody who would be a clear first option on any team except the Bulls, Spurs, Magic, and Houston.

26. Pippen is the ultimate #2 guy ever. He would never be Jordan but he was a very excellent player

27. mj gets all the love he deserves. he’s the goat in my opinion. but, without scottie, i’m not quite sure mj would’ve been the goat that he’s become.