Neither Michael Jordan nor Scottie Pippen attended the Chicago Bulls’ inaugural Ring of Honor Gala on Thursday and will not attend Friday’s ceremony.
Jordan and Pippen, two of the most outstanding players in franchise history, were originally to headline the ceremony announced on December 12. This will be the first time they return to one of the Bulls’ arenas since retiring. However, there has been an ongoing feud between them since they played together, so they didn’t make an appearance.
Jordan sent a video message via the Bulls’ X (formerly Twitter) account, thanking the team for the invitation and saying he was “frustrated” that he couldn’t attend. Jordan did not explain why he was not included in the video.
Pippen made no comment about his absence.
“I’m excited for everyone to be able to come, but we announced this six weeks ago,” Bulls president and CEO Michael Reinsdorf told the Chicago Sun-Times. “People have scheduling issues, so this is just our way of saying thank you to the players and staff, so that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
Former Bulls star Dennis Rodman also didn’t show up. Former Bulls guard and current Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was able to attend as his team plays the Bulls in Chicago on Friday.
Jordan and Pippen were the two core figures of the Bulls dynasty in the 1990s, winning six championships and being selected to a combined 21 All-Star Games. Since retiring, the two Hall of Famers have spoken publicly about the tension and conflict between them.
Based on Pippen’s 2021 memoir “Unguarded,” the 2020 ESPN Movies documentary series “The Last Dance” focused on their ’90s dynasty, which was the focus of recent contention between the two players.
“They eulogized Michael Jordan but did not give enough credit to me and my proud teammates,” Pippen wrote. “Michael should bear a large portion of the blame. The producers gave him editorial control over the final product. rights. Otherwise the file would not have been released. He is the leading actor and director.”
In May, Pippen said playing with Jordan was “terrible” during an interview on the Stacey King podcast “Gimme Hot Sauce.”
“I watched Michael Jordan play before I came to the Bulls,” Pippen said. “You guys saw him play. It was horrible to play with him. It was all one-on-one, and the shooting was terrible. All of a sudden, we became a team and we started winning. Everybody forgot who he was. . He’s a player who’s really not at the top of his class. “It’s scoring. “
Meanwhile, Jordan and Pippen remained tied off the court today as Jordan’s son Marcus Jordan, 33, is set to marry Pippen’s ex-wife Larsa Pippen, 49. However, the two are not yet engaged.
Marcus even said he wanted Michael to be the best man at their wedding.
Larsa separated from Scottie in 2016 after nearly two decades of marriage, and later divorced in December 2021.