And we wondered how Scottie lost all his money

[supamari0]

http://www.truehoop.com/basketball-history-73775-tales-of-scottie-pippens-wallet.html

Andrew Lawrence of Sports Illustrated (who tells me that, along with Jon Wertheim, he's wrapping up a cover story about jock culture and how some big-time college sports programs are shaping up with a renewed focus on things like, believe it or not, education) e-mails:

News of his imminent financial demise hardly surprise. Rather, it calls to mind the absolute coolest Jordan story I'd ever been told -- courtesy of the AP's Jim Litke, the George Washington on my sports journalism Mt. Rushmore. That said, I take everything Jim says as gospel, this story especially. It starts with Jordan shooting around at practice at old Chicago Stadium when he looks up and notices the m&m race on the jumbotron. Curious, he asks one of the Bulls' staffers what's up and learns what he is seeing is actually a dry run-through of the night's in-game entertainment, in which the jumbotron and m&m race factor prominently. (I'm pretty sure this was before shooting t-shirts out of an air cannon captivated a nation.) Naturally, MJ wanted to know if the winner of the race was predetermined. Of course the 8-bit graphics betrayed the answer: a resounding "yes". So later that night, Phil calls a time out and Jordan & co. repair to the bench. As he's sitting down, he looks up at the jumbotron to see the m&m race about to start. So he nudges Scottie.
MJ: "Bet you 5 grand yellow takes this."
Pip: "Bet."
I'm told this went on for years before Scottie ever got wise...
​

 

[DocHolliday]

If that story is true, that's HILARIOUS!!!

 

[NikateeN]

Sounds a little far fetched, i dont think Pippen is THAT dumb, pretty funny stuff though.

 

[Gargamel]

Jordan is supposed to be a maniacal gambler. And I believe that Scottie is stupid enough to take such a bet. I'll buy that story for a dollar.

Remember that Scottie signed a pathetic longterm contract in 1991 that Reinsdorf refused to let him renegotiate (hence Scottie's multiple threats of leaving as a FA and whining about Toni's deal in 94). He made up huge ground w/ Portland, but he got absolutely screwed for his work in Chicago compared to deadbeats like Brian Grant and Allan Houston. If he's ever in a money crunch late in life, it'll be due to that decision in 91. I still think he'll make it tho.

 

[nebs]

lol I could see Jordan pulling that off once or twice on Scottie but not YEARS. Still, good story though.