Scottie Pippen ‘Admired’ Dennis Rodman’s Ability To Play Defense And Rebound: ‘He Could Have A Tremendous Impact On A Game Without Scoring A Single Point’

Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman won three NBA championships together on the Chicago Bulls in the ’90s. 

Pippen and Rodman were rivals when Rodman was on the Detroit Pistons, but Pippen always admired Rodman’s game. 

“Yet even while the Pistons kept beating the Bulls in the playoffs, I admitted his ability to play defense and rebound,” Pippen wrote in his book. “He knew where the ball was headed the moment it left the shooter’s hands and was able to wrestle rebounds away from players five inches taller and 50 pounds heavier. That didn’t happen by accident. He studied the tendencies of his opponents and teammates, planting himself in perfect rebounding positioning even before guys got into a shooting mode. Dennis possessed an unbelievable basketball IQ. He could have a tremendous impact on a game without scoring a single point. How many players can you say that about?”

In the offseason of 1994, the Bulls lost Horace Grant to the Orlando Magic. Without Grant in the middle, Chicago didn’t have a defensive stopper or rebounder, so general manager Jerry Krause was forced to trade for Rodman in 1995.

In 199 games with the Bulls, Rodman played his role perfectly. He averaged 5.2 points and 15.3 rebounds and was a defensive pest. Opposing big men loathed playing against Rodman because he never ran out of energy and loved being an instigator.

“As the days wore on, I was surprised at how reserved he was,” Pippen wrote. “There is Dennis Rodman the spectacle and Dennis Rodman the man and the two are very different. Dennis kept to himself most of the time in training camp, working on his conditioning and his craft. He was often the first player to arrive at the gym and the last to leave. I never saw anyone else learn the triangle as fast as he did. Learn in? He mastered it.

Behind Pippen, Rodman and Michael Jordan, the Bulls won three straight championships in 1996, 1997 and 1998. All three players are in the Hall of Fame. 

Rodman finished his NBA career with averages of 7.3 points, 13.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.6 blocks. He won five championships, seven rebounding titles and two Defensive Players of the Year Awards and made two All-Star teams, eight All-Defensive teams and two All-NBA teams. 

Pippen averaged 16.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.8 blocks during his stellar career. He won six championships and made seven All-Star teams, 10 All-Defensive teams and seven All-NBA teams.