NBA icon Scottie Pippen was irate when the Chicago Bulls signed Toni Kukoc to a six-year, $26 million contract in 1994.
Pippen was one of the top players in the NBA during his prime, but the Bulls never paid him like an elite player.
“I wasn’t thrilled, however, with another move the Bulls made. Which was signing Toni to a new deal for $26 million over six years, the largest in the history of the franchise,” Pippen wrote in his book. “It figured. They leave me underpaid year after year then hand Toni a fortune. First the last shot, and now this.”
Pippen’s highest salary with the Bulls was only $3.4 million in 1992-93.
In July 1991, Pippen signed a seven-year, $18 million contract with the Bulls. He could have made considerably more money in Chicago if he had played it right, but the small forward couldn’t risk passing up $18 million since he had to take care of his family.
Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and general manager Jerry Krause could have re-negotiated Pippen’s contract after the do-it-all swingman outplayed his deal and became a superstar.
However, they never did, tarnishing Pippen’s relationship with both men, especially Krause.
Once Pippen learned that Krause tried to trade him before the 1997-98 season, he began to yell at the general manager on the bus in front of the team.
Pippen also underwent surgery on his injured ankle during the 1997-98 season instead of the previous offseason as his way of thumbing his nose at Krause.
In November 1997, Pippen publicly demanded a trade from the Bulls, stating he wouldn’t come off the injured list until the team traded him. The NBA legend was upset Krause wouldn’t pay him.
Pippen also knew the Bulls would break up after the season since Phil Jackson wasn’t returning and Michael Jordan was a free agent.
The Bulls wound up not trading Pippen, who made his 1997-98 debut on January 10, 1998, against the Golden State Warriors.
With Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc and Dennis Rodman back on the court together, the Bulls were once again primed to win a title despite all the turmoil behind the scenes.
The Bulls won 62 games in 1997-98 and defeated the Utah Jazz in the 1998 NBA Finals to capture their sixth championship in eight years.
Pippen averaged 15.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks against the Jazz. He played through serious back pain in Game 6 after injuring himself on the first play of the game.
The Bulls traded Pippen to the Houston Rockets after Jackson and Jordan retired in the summer of 1998.
As part of the sign-and-trade deal, Pippen signed a five-year, $67.2 million contract, finally receiving the money he deserved.
Per Spotrac, Pippen made around $109 million in NBA money. The Hall of Famer played for the Bulls (twice), Rockets and Blazers, averaging 16.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.9 blocks and making seven All-Star teams, 10 All-Defensive Teams and seven All-NBA Teams.
Pippen was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team in 2022. He’s the only person to win an NBA championship and Olympic gold medal in the same year twice.
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