Pippen had his best statistical year in 1994 but could not lead the Bulls to the championship.
The 1993-94 season was the Chicago Bulls' first after Michael Jordan's surprise retirement to pursue a baseball career. With Mike gone, the leadership role was turned over to MJ's famous sidekick, Scottie Pippen.
Pip had long wanted to get his chance to prove himself as he had played in Mike's shadows throughout his NBA career. That season, Scottie balled out and showed the world he was a capable star while leading the Bulls to a 55-27 record, 3rd best in the East.
After sweeping the Cleveland Cavaliers in Round 1 of the playoffs, the Bulls faced the New York Knicks for the fourth straight year. But during their series against the Knicks, Pippen's MVP-like season took a huge hit after he subbed himself out of the final 1.8 seconds of Game 3 because coach Phil Jackson drew up the final play for Toni Kukoc instead of him.
Kukoc made the shot, and Pippen drew plenty of flak for his actions. Meanwhile, Jordan was in Birmingham, working on his baseball career. But he was following his former team's games throughout that postseason.
"Poor Scottie," Mike said. "I kept telling him it's not easy being me. Now he knows."
Pippen was always the Robin with Mike around
The Arkansas native was a fantastic player, but great as he was, Scottie was always the Robin with Mike around in Chicago. As many would say, Jordan was the best player ever to do it. So, while the two played together, it was MJ who was always the Batman.
However, with Jordan no longer there in 1994, Pippen finally got his chance to be the leading man on the team. And as said earlier, he did not disappoint. Pip proved that he was more than just an elite, complimentary player. And according to Scottie, he proved that he could be MJ's equal.
"It was the first time for me to be the clear-cut star. I didn't always have a chance to rise when Michael was there, especially in my first three years. But by him stepping away a little bit, it gave me a little room to grow. And when he came back, it gave me an opportunity to stand beside him instead of standing below him." said Pippen.
Scottie had his best year ever in 1994
Pippen ranked 8th in the NBA in scoring that season with 22.0 PPG. He was also 2nd in steals at 2.93 SPG, 19th in assists at 5.6 APG, and 23rd in rebounding at 8.7 boards per contest. He finished as the top vote-getter for both the All-NBA First Team and All-Defensive First Team. Pippen was also the 1994 NBA All-Star Game MVP.
"Scottie was an unbelievable leader that year, probably deserving of MVP in the league," said head coach Phil Jackson. "That was a year in which he had shown everyone the quality level that he could play at and his team played very well, very unselfishly."
Unfortunately, Pippen buckled during the most important game of the season. Sure, Kukoc won that game for the Bulls, but the Knicks ended up winning the series. Scottie learned the hard way that with great power comes great responsibility. He was obviously not ready for that.
