Pippen to Retire

by **SkipToMy_Lou** on Thu Sep 23, 2004 5:29 pm

Link: http://pittsburghlive.com/x/tribunerevi ... 54260.html

Cue the honorary ceremonies and begin the countdown for the Hall of Fame.
Scottie Pippen is telling friends he will follow through on his plans to retire after a 17-year career that featured six NBA championships, seven All-Star games, two Olympic gold medals and inclusion as one of the league's 50 greatest players.

The only details left to work out are whether Pippen agrees to forfeit a portion of the $5.3 million the Chicago Bulls owe him, and the timing of the official announcement.

Pippen could make his plans public before Oct. 4, when Bulls training camp begins.

All $5.3 million of Pippen's guaranteed salary will count against the NBA salary cap. If Pippen were to agree to forfeit some money -- a long-shot possibility -- it could help the Bulls' payroll for purposes of the luxury-tax threshold.

Pippen has met with former teammate and general manager John Paxson this off-season to discuss such details. Management has budgeted Pippen's entire salary into next season's plans but is seeking flexibility in terms of roster spots because of the number of guaranteed contracts the team has.

Pippen first dropped hints of retirement Dec. 10 as he faced yet another knee surgery. He stated his intentions more emphatically after playing his best game of the season on Jan. 31 in Portland, saying, "I can assure you that was my last trip to the Rose Garden."

The Portland game marked Pippen's final appearance last season. Chronically sore knees limited him to 23 games and six starts after he signed a guaranteed two-year deal.

He will retire with career averages of 16.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.96 steals per game. His 208 career playoff games rank second to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's 237.

Pippen also made 10 straight NBA All-Defensive teams.

by **j.23** on Fri Sep 24, 2004 4:44 am

great career for pip.. one of my favourite players ever.. he was the conssumate teammate and proved that you don't need to be the #1 man on your team to be recognized.. guy was simply a hawk on defense and pretty good offensively too.. i thought he should've won finals mvp for the first championship but whateve.. it's been fun watching him play :cry:

by **The Future** on Fri Sep 24, 2004 5:54 am

that link prety much summed it up..but heres another one too

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=rotowire-cottieippenettoetire&prov=rotowire&type=lgns

I liked him growin upp too :cry:

by . on Fri Sep 24, 2004 7:41 am

He was my favorite player along with Cedric Ceballos in the mid 90´s before I became a Kobe fan. I miss his Portland days in 2000 when he and Kobe were trashtalking all the time.

Great Player (Y)

by **hmm** on Fri Sep 24, 2004 7:46 am

....................................

by **j.23** on Fri Sep 24, 2004 10:47 am

Mr T wrote:He was my favorite player along with Cedric Ceballos in the mid 90´s before I became a Kobe fan. I miss his Portland days in 2000 when he and Kobe were trashtalking all the time.

Great Player

cedric ceballos was the shit, he kicked so much ass in LA.. i remember using him in the old NBA live series, i think it was 95 and i'd pretty much used him to dunk on everybody

by **MC Hao** on Fri Sep 24, 2004 11:57 am

how come whoever goes back to the bulls to finish his career always ends in a bad note? oakley, perdue (kind of), armstrong, now pippen?

Bluesky · by **Andrew** on Fri Sep 24, 2004 7:51 pm

It's a shame his career couldn't have ended on a better note, but he's still had a great career, one half of one of the league's best duos and an outstanding player by himself. I still think he remains somewhat underrated; part of me still feels the Hall of Fame will snub him, but I guess if former greats like Worthy and Parish (both great players but generally considered the third player in the trio) are worthy of being enshrined, Pip with his accomplishments and importance on six Bulls' championships should certainly be Hall-bound.

by **UconnDynasty** on Sat Sep 25, 2004 2:02 am

Pippen is probably the first nba player I ever learned to recognize. Not MJ. Because MJ wasn't in NBA jam when I first played it in the arcade. I remember it clearly.... Pippen/Grant.... he's on fire. Pippen's nose shape and Grant's goggles made them very familiar to me. Plus they were the default guys to pick, and the best duo. Thanks for the mems s pip

by **Micchy_boy** on Sat Sep 25, 2004 6:39 am

UconnDynasty wrote:Pippen is probably the first nba player I ever learned to recognize. Not MJ. Because MJ wasn't in NBA jam when I first played it in the arcade. I remember it clearly.... Pippen/Grant.... he's on fire. Pippen's nose shape and Grant's goggles made them very familiar to me. Plus they were the default guys to pick, and the best duo. Thanks for the mems s pip

yeah remeber that game!!! well Pippen was my favorite player during my early nba fans day. like Mr. T it change when Kobe and Walker arrive. But still one of my favorite player because he wa a versatile player both side of the court. No offense meant but it say MJ was the best but i think without Pip it maybe a different story.
also remember that blazer-lakers series esp those trash-talking of pip and kobe and pip and harper that was the best!!!

so again Pip thanks for making the NBA a great game and i know well see you soon on HoF and having a front office job soon. You can put good men down.

by **interpol83** on Mon Sep 27, 2004 10:29 am

i thnk he and jordan could land a team in las vegas bcause some team is loosing money like magics hawks and hornets are loosing money big time forbes magazine list the top ten money making team.

by **50first** on Thu Sep 30, 2004 11:37 pm

i hear pippen has a beautiful mind... wonder if he'll ever take up a coaching position.

by **BIG GREEN** on Fri Oct 01, 2004 1:24 am

pippin was never the same after jordan left..but his overall career was nice. I think he could/should have been more though.

Pippen to Retire

Pippen to Retire

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