It is easy to remember the 1998 NBA Finals for Michael Jordan’s heralded game-winning shot over Bryon Russell, but what often gets overlooked is the sacrifice Scottie Pippen made just to be on the court.
The 1997–98 season had been a pressure cooker for the Chicago Bulls, with speculation swirling that it would be the final ride for Jordan, Pippen and head coach Phil Jackson. Behind the scenes, tensions were running high — and Pippen’s back was paying the price.
Pippen’s reluctance to play
The University of Central Arkansas product had been nursing a serious back injury throughout the 1998 season. He aggravated it early in Game 6 against the Utah Jazz, forcing him to head to the bench in noticeable pain. The injury was so severe that Pippen told the Bulls’ medical staff he couldn’t continue. But with the championship on the line, his teammates and coaches weren’t ready to let him sit out.
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“I was pretty much done,” Pippen said. “And I was kind of talked into it by my teammates and the coaching staff. It was something we all wanted and we had to fight for. I didn’t want to play. I was just hurt; physically, I didn’t want to go anymore. But I did want the title. And ultimately, I sucked it up, took a few meds and we were able to win that series. But it was a pretty tough series for me to get through.”
Despite the pain, Pippen pushed through, taking medication to numb the discomfort and playing limited minutes in what would become one of the most grueling games of his career. The forward had purposefully delayed off-season foot surgery to avoid missing summer recovery time, a decision that sidelined him for the first 35 games of the regular season.
His absence put a heavier burden on Jordan to carry the team, a strain that created friction within the organization. General manager Jerry Krause had even floated the idea of trading Pippen — a suggestion that didn’t sit well with the six-time All-Star. Pippen demanded a trade himself and sat out longer than medically necessary, extending the drama into midseason.
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No contract
By the time Pippen returned to the lineup, he was playing without a contract extension, earning far less than what his production warranted under the NBA’s salary structure at the time. Still, the Bulls managed to push through to another finals run, setting up a showdown with the Jazz for a sixth title.
After being 2-0 down, Utah had clawed its way back into the series after winning Game 5, setting up a do-or-die Game 6 for Chicago. In that game, Pippen was visibly limited, playing just 26 minutes and scoring eight points on 4-for-7 shooting. The back injury hampered his movement and forced Jordan to shoulder even more responsibility.
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The game remained tight until the final seconds when the league MVP sank the now-legendary shot over Russell to seal the Bulls’ sixth championship. Had Jordan missed that shot, Chicago would have faced a Game 7 — a scenario where Pippen’s availability was highly questionable given the severity of his injury.
After eleven seasons with the Bulls, Pippen’s time ended shortly after that championship run. In January 1999, he was traded to the Houston Rockets.