Draymond Green was one of many who watched The Last Dance that had an opinion on how the Chicago Bulls treated Scottie Pippen. The Golden State Warriors forward did not hold back from criticizing Michael Jordan, who had been critical of Pippen for delaying his back surgery, which caused him to miss part of the 1997-98 season.
Pippen explained that the reason he didn't address his surgery right away is because he didn't want to spend his summer in recovery.
Green could not see past the fact that Jordan openly chastised his co-star for his decision-making:
Via USA TODAY Sports:
“Me as a teammate, if Scottie Pippen does that, I'm not going to be mad at Pip,” Green said in an interview with Uninterrupted's “WRTS: The After Party.” “Because I understand what you're doing, and at the end of the day, I'm rolling with you. Because when it all boils down to it, clearly that (Bulls) organization showed they're going to take care of themselves. They're not going to take care of (the players).”
“And so I was kind of a little disappointed when Mike, still to this day, is like ‘Scottie was wrong.' Like, no. You roll with your dogs, because they ride with you,” Green argued. “(Jordan's) making $36 million, and (Pippen's) making $2 (million), yet you're saying when you mention (Michael Jordan's) name there's no way you can not mention Scottie Pippen's name? And he's just supposed to sit there? That don't make sense. It's very easy to say, like, ‘no, you should be good' (when) your house is huge, you got $36 million coming in, and this man got $2 (million). That's crazy.”
Episode 2 of the 10-part docuseries highlighted Pippen and his relationship with the Bulls organization.
Pippen signed a seven-year, $18 million extension during his third year, nullifying the next two years of his rookie-scale contract and setting him up for the better part of the decade. As the last few years of his deal closed in, he started to resent the Bulls for not making nearly enough as his value suggested.
However, he was warned of the consequences, as chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told him he could come to regret taking the money so early.
Jordan was making roughly $33 million in his last season with the Bulls, more than 10 times what Pippen made in a front-loaded contract. Green might have an issue with how Jordan viewed things, but this was the same Jordan who pushed through a potentially career-threatening injury to finish his second season in the league — never demanding something he wouldn't do himself.
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