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The return of Michael Jordan to the Chicago Bulls in March 1995 was undoubtedly one of the most dramatic and documented events in the history of sports. In respect to this dramatic comeback, it may never have taken place if the Chicago Bulls had been serious in their intent to trade Scottie Pippen, allow me the oppotunity to surmise.
Having left the game of basketball, and coming back to join the Chicago Bulls took a great deal of convincing from Jordan to Pippen staying with the franchise. Jordan was the one who had made the franchise tag signed by the organization, and thus, no lunged trade, which the Bulls had almost completed with the Seattle supersonics for Kemp, was completed.
This move was strategic because it enabled Jordan to return to the NBA in the year 1994, and he did so in the latter part of the season.
Jordan Reflects on Trade
Looking back at the potential trade during the 2008 All-Star Weekend, he has told J.
A. Adande of ESPN that he may have remained in retirement had the Bulls carried out the said trade. “I could have played with Shawn,” he said. “But then Scottie would not have been as comfortable for me”.
This issue regarding Pippen’s future with the Bulls was also a reason for his near-defection in February 1995. Pippen was ready to quit Chicago after hearing the allegations of being traded to Seattle. The L. A. Clippers, moreover, even went as far as providing the Bulls with two first-round draft picks and a future swap pick option.
However, when Pippen’s friend Ron Harper told him that he should not go with the Clippers because it was like “being in jail,” he changed his mind. Shortly after the unsuccessful bid by the Clippers to obtain Pippen, Jordan, then retired from baseball in rather controversial circumstances paving the way for his return to basketball.
Winning three consecutive championships between 1996 and 1998, Jordan and Pippen reached the Top of the Playoff bracket and defeated the SuperSonics in six games during the 1996 NBA Finals.
English (US)