Scottie Pippen was a crucial figure in the Chicago Bulls dynasty that dominated the 1990s.
Secured via a trade with the Seattle SuperSonics during the 1987 NBA Draft, the seven-time All-Star emerged as a defensive standout that helped a Michael Jordan-inspired franchise win six titles.
“Whenever they speak Michael Jordan, they should speak Scottie Pippen,” His Airness declared on the hit Netflix show ‘The Last Dance.’
“Everybody says I won all these championships. But I didn’t win without Scottie Pippen. That’s why I consider him my greatest teammate of all time.”
Pippen left the Bulls in 1999 after being traded to the Houston Rockets, leaving for the Portland Trail Blazers just months later.
He left the NBA in 2004 with just shy of $110 million in career earnings after returning for a brief stint in Chicago.
Growing up in Hamburg, Arkansas, with a population of just 2,857 according to the 2010 census, Pippen is a country kid at heart.
And he has returned to his roots, buying a livestock farm alongside his brother Billy.
The Hall of Famer has been pictured mucking in on his estate, proving he isn’t afraid to get dirt on his boots.
But the country life hasn’t all been simple for the 6ft 8in forward, who had two John Deere tractors worth over $50,000 stolen in 2018.
His family offered a $2,500 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction but it isn’t clear if the culprits were ever found.
Pippen has also delved into media roles, working as an analyst for the Bulls during the 2011 playoffs.
He also appeared on ESPN’s ‘The Jump.’
Despite his lucrative NBA contracts, Pippen reportedly ran into financial difficulties in the early 2000s.
Per NBC, he lost $27 million in bad investments and was forced to sell property, including a mansion he bought for $4 million in 2000.
His latest venture has raised a few eyebrows. Pippen’s social media timeline became heavily focused on the world’s of cryptocurrency and AI in 2024.
“How many championships would we have won with @ElonMusk? 
” he asked on with an AI-generated photo of a ripped Elon Musk in a Bulls jersey.
It racked up tens of millions of views and Pippen used the attention to draw focus to a project that is seeking to tokenize the basketball used to beat the Los Angeles Lakers for Chicago’s first championship.
“I think the Game 5 ball that I have is very recognizable to some degree,” he told TMZ Sports, “and what we’re trying to do is make it a real-world asset.”
The basketball legend has also been posting unusual images tying together his career and the world of crypto.
One shows him in a prayer-like pose on a court being visited by a man in a ‘Satoshi’ sweatshirt in reference to the anonymous creator or creators behind Bitcoin.
“I had a dream I met Satoshi Nakamoto last night,” Pippen wrote. “He didn’t see me as another player. Instead, Satoshi was proud that I was opening a new lane for RWA in the crypto market.”
Another image saw Pippen in a Chicago jersey reaching for a floating Bitcoin token as dozens of hands try to take it from him.
The strange posts have caused a stir on social media and in a world where cards and jerseys can fetch seven or eight-figure sums, perhaps Pippen is onto something. Judging by the volume of mentions, he certainly thinks so.
