Scottie Pippen Thinks Michael Jordan’s ‘Flu Game’ Was Overblown By Everyone: ‘I Have A Problem With How Michael Was Made Out To Be Some Kind Of Superhuman’

In his book, “Unguarded,” NBA legend Scottie Pippen wrote about Michael Jordan‘s “Flu Game” with the Chicago Bulls. 

On June 11, 1997, Jordan played in his well-known “Flu Game” against the Utah Jazz in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals. 

Although it’s called the “Flu Game,” Jordan suffered from food poisoning after eating pizza in his hotel room the night before Game 5. 

Jordan threw up all night before Game 5 and had IVs hooked up to him in the Bulls locker room. MJ played 44 minutes and finished with 38 points while shooting 13-of-27 from the field, 2-of-5 from beyond the arc and 10-of-12 from the free-throw line.

Here’s what Pippen had to say about Jordan’s “Flu Game” in his book: 

“Many in the press ranked it as his greatest performance ever, given what was at stake and the condition he was in,” Pippen wrote. “I don’t necessarily disagree. However, I have a problem with how Michael was made out to be some kind of superhuman. We are professional athletes who get paid an incredible amount of money. We are supposed to perform at no less than 100 percent.

“The press wasn’t fully to blame. So was Michael. I’m not suggesting he wasn’t sick. He obviously was. Just that he played up his role that night. The way he played up his role in almost every drama he found himself in. People made a big deal of Michael collapsing in my arms toward the end of the game. As if it showed how inseparable we were. Sorry to spoil the script. The hug was a moment in time. Nothing more.

“Making Michael too much of the story also took away for about the billionth time from what we accomplished as a team. Michael didn’t hold Karl Malone to 19 points or John Stockton to 5 assists.”

The Bulls won Jordan’s “Flu Game” by a final score of 90-88 to take a 3-2 lead in the series. 

Jordan was so sick that he didn’t speak to the media after the “Flu Game.” The next time reporters got to talk to Jordan was after Game 6 in Chicago.

“I didn’t wanna give up,” Jordan said. “No matter how sick I was or how tired I was or how low on energy I was. I felt the obligation to my team, to the city of Chicago, to go out and give that extra effort.”

The Bulls defeated the Jazz in Game 6 to win the 1997 NBA Finals. Jordan won his fifth Finals MVP after finishing the series with averages of 32.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists.

Meanwhile, Pippen averaged 20.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.8 blocks. 

Jordan and Pippen are no longer friends. Pippen is upset with Jordan because of “The Last Dance” docuseries. 

“On and on it went, the spotlight shining on number 23,” Pippen wrote. “Even in the second episode, which focused for a while on my difficult upbringing and unlikely path to the NBA, the narrative returned to MJ and his determination to win. I was nothing more than a prop. His ‘best teammates of all time,’ he called me. He couldn’t have been more condescending if he tried.

“On second thought, I could believe my eyes. I spent a lot of time around the man. I knew what made him tick. How naive I was to expect anything else. Each episode was the same: Michael on a pedestal, his teammates secondary, smaller, the message no different from when he referred to us back then as his ‘supporting cast.’ From one season to the next, we received little or no credit whenever we won but the bulk of the criticism when we lost. Michael could shoot 6 for 24 from the field, commit 5 turnovers, and he was still, in the minds of the adoring press and public, the Errorless Jordan.”

Jordan and Pippen won six NBA championships together.