The world is rife with strange stories that don’t have any bearing on how we live our daily lives yet we are so desperate of knowing more about them. Take for example the relationship of former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen and his estranged wife, Larsa Pippen. 

But, wait. 

The year 2020 is about to end. The NBA offseason is busy generating intriguing plot lines. The 2020-21 NBA season is less than three weeks away from kicking off. J.R. Smith just trended heavily on Twitter because the NBA just said that it will no longer enforce mandatory testing for marijuana. So, why are we all of a sudden talking about Scottie and Larsa, who last made it to the top 500 power couple rankings about two decades ago?  Well, for one, Scottie and Larsa also managed to trend recently for reasons that can be mistaken for a telenovela script. 

Earlier this week, Larsa Pippen was spotted strolling together with current Minnesota Timberwolves guard Malik Beasley while holding each other’s hand, which essentially launched an armada of gossip-hunters. Not everyone has an encyclopedic knowledge of the life of Larsa Pippen, so it’s only fair for most to ask what happened between her and Scottie?

When Scottie Pippen met Larsa Pippen

Unlike most celebrity couples, Scottie and Larsa were relatively quiet when they were still together, but we know that Larsa was not Scottie’s first wife. When the two first met in 1995, Scottie was five years removed from his divorce from his first wife, Karen McCollum. Also, before he started dating Larsa, Scottie got engaged with Yvette De Leon, though no marriage between the two ensued.

In 1995, Scottie was already an unquestioned NBA superstar, having won three rings from the first leg of Chicago’s two three-peats. He was at the peak of his being Scottie Pippen, and falling in love with Larsa was probably the highlight of that year for the Bulls’ forward.  Two years later, Scottie and Larsa got married.

Via Bianca Rodriguez of Marie Claire:

The couple tied the knot on July 20, 1997, at the First United Methodist Temple in Chicago, without a prenup. The couple had four children together: Scotty Jr. was born in 2000, Preston in 2002, Justin in 2005, and Sophia in 2008. And if you're wondering whether any of their children got the basketball gene—their oldest son Scotty Jr. is a point guard for Vanderbilt University and was on the 2020 All-SEC freshman team.

Big Scottie Pippen spending the ‘G’s’ — on legal fees

For years, it seemed that Scottie and Larsa were going to be with each other forever. But 19 years after their marriage, the two started to have serious cracks in their relationship. In October of 2016, Scottie Pippen decided to file a divorce from Larsa Pippen, which came shortly after cops were called for the second time, over a span of two days,  to the couple’s home in Ft. Lauderdale because of alleged “domestic disturbance”, per TMZ.

Three days after Scottie filed for divorce, Larsa issued a statement, via her rep, that shed a bit of clarity on the situation.

“After careful consideration and 19 years together, Larsa and Scottie have each filed for dissolution of their marriage.”

“Although they are no longer to be married, Larsa remains hopeful that she and Scottie will always do what is best for their 4 beautiful children and jointly raise them with love and respect.”

“She would like to thank everyone for their understanding and kindly ask for privacy from the media during this difficult time of transition for her family.”

However, Scottie Pippen and Larsa Pippen both agreed to shred the documents of their 2016 divorce case in 2017. It appeared that the two have worked out their differences and were ready to continue their marriage. But even that lasted for just a year, as in 2018, Larsa took her turn of filing for divorce. According to TMZ, the case is still active, so technically speaking, their marriage is still alive, though any hopes of Scottie and Larsa rekindling their passion for each other appears as dim as the Bulls’ chances of winning a title this season.

Larsa saw the ‘Future’

It’s wildly speculated that the rapper Future was a major reason why Scottie and Larsa decided to part ways. Although that remains just a rumor, Larsa did admit that she dated Future during an interview with Hollywood Raw (H/T Complex).

Asked about their first date, she said they talked for seven hours. “He was definitely not what I thought he was going to be like. He was definitely very romantic and different than I expected him to be. … I just expected him to come out and give me like, some lyrics, and be like, ‘two damn bitches at the same damn time,’ I don’t know,” Pippen said, laughing. She went on to add, “We related on the most simple, organic way. I didn't need anything from him, he didn't need anything from me. … It wasn't how you'd think.”

If Scottie Pippen thought that the end of his basketball career would also mean that his personal life would no longer be tabloid fodder, then he’s definitely wrong on that one.