Scottie Pippen Asked Michael Jordan To Present Him Into Hall Of Fame Despite Not Being Close Friends With Him: ‘There Really Was No Other Choice, So What If Michael And I Weren’t Best Friends?’

NBA legend Scottie Pippen was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010 and asked Michael Jordan to present him. 

Pippen and Jordan won six championships on the Chicago Bulls in the ’90s. They are universally recognized as the top duo in NBA history. 

Pippen considered asking Julius Erving to present him since Dr. J. was the player he grew up idolizing.

However, Pippen went with Jordan despite the two not being close friends. 

“For the Hall of Fame ceremony, I needed to choose an official presenter, a person to stand on the stage with me as I delivered my remarks,” Pippen wrote in his book. “That individual is required to be a member of the Hall. I thought about asking Dr. J since he was the player I idolized growing up. Except I barely knew him. Instead I picked someone I knew quite well, whose greatness I observed up close, day after day, year after year.

“There really was no other choice. So what if Michael and I weren’t best friends? The two of us will forever be linked together, the best duo in NBA history. He helped make my dreams come true, as I helped make his. He said yes right away and I was extremely grateful.”

The Bulls were 514-177 in the regular season when Jordan and Pippen played.

Jordan averaged 31.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.5 steals and 0.8 blocks alongside Pippen, while Pippen averaged 17.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.9 blocks next to Jordan. 

“I would never be able to find a tandem, another support system, another partner in the game of basketball like Scottie Pippen,” Jordan said in Episode 2 of The Last Dance docuseries. “He was a pleasure to play with. He helped me so much in the way that I approached the game, the way I played the game. Whenever they speak Michael Jordan, they should speak Scottie Pippen. Everybody says well I won all these championships, but I didn’t win without Scottie Pippen. And that’s why I consider him my best teammate of all time.”

Pippen had two stints with the Bulls. He averaged 17.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.1 steals and 0.9 blocks.

One of the greatest two-way players in NBA history, Pippen made seven All-Star teams, seven All-NBA teams and 10 All-Defensive teams with Chicago. 

Jordan also played for the Bulls twice. He averaged 31.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.5 steals and 0.9 blocks and won five MVPs, six Finals MVPs, 10 scoring titles, three steals titles and one Defensive Player of the Year Award. 

Arguably the best player of all time, Jordan made 12 All-Star teams, 11 All-NBA teams and nine All-Defensive teams with Chicago. 

Most NBA fans assumed Jordan and Pippen were close friends since they were amazing teammates.

However, Pippen wrote in his book that he and Jordan were never close. 

“Michael and I aren’t close and never have been,” Pippen wrote. “Whenever I call or text him, he usually gets back to me in a timely fashion, but I don’t check in just to see how he’s doing. Nor does he do the same. Many people might find that hard to believe given how smoothly we connected on the court. Away from the court, we are two very different people who have led two very different lives. I was from the country: Hamburg, Arkansas, population about 3,000; he was from the city: Wilmington, North Carolina.”