Scottie Pippen Quotes
Basketball Player
It was truly an enjoyable moment in my life that I will never forget having the opportunity to play for two gold medals. But I think nothing sticks out more than winning a championship in 1991 for me.
When I was four or five, I had an older brother who got paralyzed from the neck down in junior high school. Some kid did a wrestling fall on him and hit his spine. We had to take care of him. I went from being the baby to not really being the baby anymore.
I may go so far as saying LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game. Because he is so potent offensively that not only can he score at will, but he keeps everybody involved.
Most of basketball is in the mind. But it helps to have big hands.
I wouldn't give Charles Barkley an apology at gunpoint. He can never expect an apology from me... If anything, he owes me an apology for coming to play with his sorry, fat butt.
It's not always about getting better on the basketball court. This game teaches you how to become a better person as well. It pushes you into the team concept.
Once you get a taste of success, it's a hard thing to turn down.
Every team deals with obstacles throughout the course of the season, and it's as a unit that they need to be worked through. Injuries are part of the game, just like facing tough teams on the road or having one of your best players get into foul trouble.
Everything was a lesson learned and a step forward for me.
When I got to Central Arkansas, I was a small, slim guy with little chance of playing in the NBA. Then, I went through a two-year growth spurt, and suddenly, I was 6-foot-7.
I was way behind physically in high school. They had weight bars that were about forty-five pounds. I couldn't handle them. Couldn't even put the weights on. It was embarrassing. So I always figured out ways to avoid lifting when I was young.
I want to be a role-model player, someone respected and looked up to.
I wasn't really that interested in playing. I had gone through some hard times not playing in high school, but my coach had it in his mind that basketball was the way I would get an education.
I've come a long way from my first commercials.
It's always been a passion of mine to come out and share some of my knowledge about basketball and the experiences I've had with the younger generation.
The All-Star Game was one of my top highlights as a player. In my eye, it gave me a good idea of where I ranked among my peers. That was always my benchmark to say that I am still in the upper echelon of players.
I've never seen a player that can dominate a game the way LeBron James can. He don't always have to score. He makes plays for other guys. But when the game is on the line, and you need a shot to be made, he's going to make that play.
If I had an opportunity to hand-pick a team that I wanted to play in the NBA Finals, it would probably be the Lakers.
Yes, I think the '96 Bulls are the greatest of all time. I think the 72-10 record speaks for itself and the fact that we were able to cap it off with a championship. What it boils down to is we had a dominant style, a dominant defense, and we were a very good offensive team. It was the way we dominated our opponents that separated ourselves.
Basketball is a lifelong game. You continue to learn from the game day in and day out, and all along the way, you get better.
Don't disrespect me, lie about it, and then come smile in my face and act like nothing's wrong.
Defense is something I take a lot of pride in.
Some guys get into the NBA, get the big money, and are satisfied with themselves.
Basketball is such an escape from a lot of things.
Playing with Michael Jordan would be a great opportunity for me. I would have someone around I could learn a lot from. I look up to him as a player and as a person, and that would make me a better player and person.
I worked at a place called Virco. They build school desks.
Fatherhood is great.
You've got to have a commitment to your craft.
In the playoffs, it's win or go home. You might not have a chance to look back at a game and say, 'Man, we didn't box out here.'
If you can prove that you're in that elite class on a consistent basis, it speaks volumes about a player's longevity. It also says that as a player, you were steady, stable, and great and that you deserve to be recognized.
It's definitely tough to get up and walk away from something you have been a part of for so long. But it's part of life.
When you endure an 82-game season, you have a great opportunity to build a lot of confidence and cohesiveness with your teammates and coaches.
I think when you come from a small college like I did, then you have to use every opportunity available to you.
Being the youngest of twelve kids and having your underwear handed down teaches you how to share.
I take a lot of pride in my first '92 gold medal.
I'm a guy who is easy to get along with, and I'll put up with a lot of things. But not dishonesty.
You continue to compete against the very best every day, and you will get better, or you'll be embarrassed.
When I look back at my first few seasons in the NBA, we didn't dominate as a team. There were a lot of nights where we took a beating and got whacked across the head. But we got better along the way, and we started to taste the success. With that came the pressure and expectations to be successful.
There's nothing like the camaraderie of being around the other players.
The respect I had to give my brothers and sisters growing up I think has helped me. I want my kids to be raised the same way.
Defensive awards and accolades aside, to have your jersey retired puts you in a position where you'll be known forever.
You look back at the '95 season, and a lot of those guys were getting mega minutes. Michael Jordan was out playing baseball. We were still winning, won 55 games I think, so those guys were all very content and happy with the way that things were going that year.
He lifted weights, he rode the bike; he kept himself going before and after games, as well as practices. He always kept himself in top shape and was very determined. You put a relentless Dennis Rodman out on the basketball court, and you better have someone there to match his energy. If you don't, it's going to be a long night.
The things that have happened for me, to me, have helped me grow up. Especially the passing of my father. That was something that took me to another level of growing and maturing. That's whan I started to be more of a man.
I never wanted to be Michael Jordan, although I would like to trade bank accounts.
I'd probably say the championships mean more to me, but the gold medal makes you a bit different. It's a special award.
As I look back, I have to say growing up was fun, not a problem at all.
To have a beautiful house on the outside is one thing... Once you get inside, that's what really makes a home.
It had been a long journey for me just to get drafted. I had to work very hard as a collegiate player just to get recognized, being at a small school.
The key about playing internationally is the confidence that you gain. Not only do you train with some of the best players in the NBA, but you compete against some of the best players in the world.
Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to play the game.
Each season was different and presented its own set of circumstances and challenges.
Things for me really started to click right after my third year in the league. I sort of figured out that there were a few things that I needed to do if I wanted to get better - I needed to gain some more weight and add some strength.
I'm a family man, and I couldn't be happier. My wife and I have been blessed with an incredible family, and my kids are my life.
I'm no slouch, but when comparing LeBron's game, I'm usually left out.
Coaching jobs are far and few between; you try and get into the right situation and take advantage of it from there.
I was LeBron James before LeBron James.
Your job, what you do every day, I think it takes a high priority over anything. That was something I dedicated myself to throughout my career.
I spend a lot of time at home with my kids.
No guy on the basketball court is a threat to score with LeBron James out there. Not only will LeBron dominate from the offensive end as well, but he's also doing it on the defensive end, which really makes him the complete package.
I went to a small school, so I had to be a jack of all trades and master a few.
It's tough to lose and lose and lose and get a little closer, but you still lose.
We grew up in a small house with four bedrooms. I shared a bedroom with three brothers. But I enjoy the way that I was brought up. It kept me hungry. It kept me humble.
Fans are demanding. They want to win. They want it now. If you have an injury, they want you back the next day.
Sometimes as a player, you're not there yet. The doctor can tell you the headache is gone, but he don't totally know that it is gone unless he can get in your head.
I just like to be around family.
When you get some easy baskets, the basket definitely looks like it's much larger.
As a player that has played this game, I know, at the end of the day I've had numerous amount of surgeries, and the doctors released me at numerous amount of times to go and play. But a lot of those times didn't mean go and play against the best in the world right now, but to get yourself ready to compete again.
Defense was one thing I was really able to work at and get better.
I'm able to run and jump and do all the things I can do. I'm blessed.
I think I learned a lot from a lot of experiences that I dealt with over my career.
My mentality when guarding a point guard was always to try and disrupt him and take them out of the offense.
I've played basketball all of my life, and I've had things happen on the court that you eventually have to move on from. It's part of some of the obstacles that you meet in trying to reach your pinnacle.
Everyone in my family was pretty tall, so we always thought I would get bigger.
I went through ups and downs as a young player dealing with criticism and things of that nature. To finally win that first NBA championship, it was definitely a relief of a lot of pressure and frustration we dealt with as a team. It was great to bring a championship to the city of Chicago.
When I got the call to guard Magic, I knew that I could cause him a lot of problems.
I thought the lanes opened up when Michael Jordan used to drive. I used to be like, 'Wow.'
I don't really have any regrets.
I'll miss the competitive side and the camaraderie of being around the players and competing each and every day.
I have been able to live my dream of playing basketball surrounded by people I love and being cheered on by the best fans in the world.
When I look at my career, I was really about defending.
I guess guys who play on national TV get a lot of publicity.
I had watched Magic my whole career, even before my career, and so I knew the style of player that he was, and I knew what I had to do to prohibit him from being as effective on the basketball court as he had been throughout his career.
I love playing in Chicago, and the fans have been great to me.
I always dreamed of playing the NBA, but along the way, the road got a little cloudy.
I'm never going to leave my family hanging out to dry.
I was a guy that had a lot of tools and could do a lot of other things, but my main thing was controlling the defensive end of the court.
I knew I was a player that could break guys down and create for my teammates, and that is how I looked at it.
When you suffer a few losses in the playoffs, it forces you back into the gym early on.
It's an honor to have kids. It's a responsibility.
It doesn't really count as a great year if the team is not doing well.
When I say I played with the greatest, let's not forget I also played for the greatest coach of all time.
I want to thank the NBA and U.S.A. Basketball. Words can't describe my feeling. I was a small town kid from Hamburg, Arkansas, and you provided me a platform to live out my passion, the game of basketball, on the world's grandest stage.
The influence of a high school coach can be so powerful.
I want to get into the NBA and make a name for myself.
I'm proud to be considered a member of the Nike family.
If things work out for you as a team, then there are individual things that happen for you. But if you're not talented enough as a team, its hard for people to give you the recognition.
Statistics are one thing. But if you're not putting up the numbers as far as winning, they're not going to consider you for things like the MVP.
When the game is over, it's over. We leave everything on the court.
I make a lot of money, but I need to be treated right.