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By now, it’s no secret that Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen aren’t exactly on the best of terms. The legendary Chicago Bulls players have been embroiled in a (mostly one-sided) feud over the past several years. Pippen and Jordan remain estranged, and a number of their former teammates have weighed in on their fractured relationship. Among those to speak out as of late is Randy Brown, who’s hoping his former comrades will mend fences. Now, Brown is addressing the narrative that Jordan and Pippen were never close.
Randy Brown, a former point guard, was a member of the Bulls when they won three consecutive championships between 1996 and 1998. While Brown was a key support guy off the bench, he still became relatively well acquainted with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. That appears to be a major reason why Brown, as he explained during his appearance on fellow ex-Bull Stacey King’s Gimme the Hot Sauce Podcast, is not convinced Jordan and Pippen had no relationship beyond the court:
Our days are numbered, and it’s sad to see that this is playing out in the media, that people think that Michael and Scotty weren’t close. And I’m never going to give into that. I’m never going to give into any of that. I spent hours with these guys when there was no basketball.
Believe it or not, a major reason why the notion that Jordan and Pippen were never close was actually sparked by the latter. During an interview he gave a little over a year ago, Pippen said he and Jordan “never were great friends” and didn’t hang out much off the court. Brown, however, seems to be suggesting that’s not exactly the case, and Stacey King – who played for the Bulls between 1989 and 1994 – agreed with Brown’s assessment. On that note, Brown add some more thoughts:
You went in the trenches. You don’t win championships with guys you don’t like. You just don’t.
The catalyst for the Jordan/Pippen feud was The Last Dance, the Emmy-winning docuseries that tracked the Bulls’ final championship run during the 1997-1998 NBA season. While Pippen initially claimed he wasn’t fazed by the doc, he later blasted Jordan in his 2021 memoir, Unguarded, as he claimed MJ used the show to uplift himself and not give others players their just due. (During his interview, Brown revealed that he agreed that some players didn’t receive credit.) Pippen has since criticized Jordan on multiple occasions, even going so far as to call him a “horrible” player.
Although Pippen has been clear on where he stands with Jordan, there are still those who believe there’s still a chance the two can reconcile. Their former teammate, Dennis Rodman, previously expressed hope that the pair could work things out. Fellow Bulls alum Horance Grant believes Pippen and Jordan will have to swallow their pride. Whether or not that’s possible remains to be seen.
In the meantime, the narrative that Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan were never close continues to permeate the public consciousness. Should Randy Brown stand by his words, though, he’ll continue to argue against that idea.