Phantom of the opera

Interview

Hard drive to the left, past a couple of befuddled defenders on the perimeter but the shot’s just wide… That’s when Scottie Pippen comes in!

This wasn’t always the norm, but Pippen was usually the finisher for the Bulls when ‘His Airness’ wasn’t. Pippen was the go-to man when the chips were down -- meaning, when Jordan was having a rare bad night. Otherwise, while Jordan took centrestage and wowed the crowds, it was Pippen who was working the curtains to perfection.

Not that Pippen couldn’t or didn’t have the ability to score and turn into the highlight reel when his job let him do so, but he stood back and contributed in a way seldom seen nowadays.

In short, without Pippen it seems unlikely that the Bulls would have had strength on the markers to carry the team through to twin three-peats. Yes, Jordan enamoured all, Jordan is inarguably the greatest basketball player in the history of the sport but it’s debatable if the Bulls’ long-standing legacy would have been possible without the support of the 6’8’’ Arkansas product.

After clinching six championships with the Bulls and playing for a couple of other teams, Pippen hung up his boots in 2005 but he has never been too far from the sport. Deccan Herald catches up with the man referred to as the Silent Assasin. Excerpts:
How has life been post-retirement?

It has been good. I have been dealing with the Bulls (as an ambassador) now and it’s great. Chicago has always been like my second home, so getting used to the conditions here have been far from hard.

Can you talk us through your entry into an already star-studded Bulls line-up at the start of your career? 

The Bulls were looking for someone of my calibre, someone who could play on the perimeter real well and my trade-off went real well. I’m glad they gave me the opportunity to do something like this for a team which was on the up. It was never an issue for me to get used to the new set-up because I had a lot of self confidence and I was never intimidated by anyone in the side.

Triangle offence is probably the most feared game plan there is and you walked right into it. How was it to come to terms with something that radical?

Oh, it was quite hard to get used to! It took a while for me to adjust to that play but (coach Phil) Jackson was on it 24/7. He hounded us to perfect it and I think it’s one of the best plays in the book. He was also there to make sure we developed into players of the triangle and that assurance helped us in the long run. It was a challenge, to say the least.

How has basketball changed your life?

I have had a wonderfully special career and it’s all because of the game. To be able to accomplish all that and still be pretty healthy at this point in time is quite a feat and I would thank basketball for it. Growing up, basketball was the most popular sport around.

I had a lot of hobbies to go with it but they were all just hobbies. Basketball was the only real thing in my life. Basketball was not as big as it is now, so we did not come across too many people who we could idolise or anything. At that time, the game was so different but for me, I guess it was Kareem (Abdul Jabbar), Larry (Bird) and those guys who I really looked up to.

How different is the NBA now from when you guys used to play?

The rules are different, it is so much easier to score now than before. Also, the kind of offensive and defensive plays during the course of a game are very different.

This year’s playoffs and the possible MVP (Most Valuable Player)...

I would say the Lakers will go all the way, and as far as players go, there are loads of great players in the league now but I guess Derrick Rose, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade. These guys really earn their respect on the court and that’s what makes them the players that they are. However, it would be hard to forget (Kevin) Garnet, (Paul) Pierce and Ray Allen, especially Garnet. The kind of energy the guy brings to the court is incredible. And, of course, Tim Duncan is a perenniel.

You returned to the sport for a very brief stint in the Finland League when you were 41 years old. You’re 45 now. Do you fancy another comeback?

You know, I will always have that desire to play on, the want to go out and do it all over again. I know it’s going to be different but from time to time, you’ll see the real me that was and that should prove to the world what I am. I’ve still got it!