"I don't think he was particularly thrilled" - Jackie MacMullan opens up on Michael Jordan's reaction to Scottie Pippen and other former teammates' comments over 'The Last Dance'
Michael Jordan was back in the spotlight in 2020 when he released "The Last Dance" on Netflix. The docuseries featured Jordan in his final season with the Chicago Bulls in 1998, culminating in their sixth NBA championship.
"The Last Dance" was a success as it was one of the best shows during the height of the pandemic. It won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series at the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards. However, Jordan received backlash from some of his former teammates, especially Scottie Pippen.
"I was nothing more than a prop. His 'best teammate of all time,' he called me. He couldn't have been more condescending if he tried. Each episode was the same: Michael on a pedestal, his teammates secondary, smaller, the message no different from when he referred to us back then as his 'supporting cast,'" Pippen wrote on his memoir via GQ Magazine.
Tune in on November 8th for Scottie Pippen's LIVE GQ interview with @TylerRickyTynes gq.mn/K84ZPvc
Scottie Pippen was not the only teammate who reacted to "The Last Dance." Horace Grant, Ron Harper and Bill Cartwright also had some things to say about the Michael Jordan docuseries.
Grant, who appeared on "The Last Dance," called MJ a liar for saying that he was the source for the book "The Jordan Rules" by Sam Smith.
"As I stated to everybody, that is a downright, outright, complete lie. Lie, lie, lie. And as I stated, if MJ has a grudge with me, let's talk about it or we can settle it another way. But yet still, he goes out and puts this lie out that I was the source," Grant said.
Horace Grant called out Michael Jordan on parts of The Last Dance - "lie, lie, lie"- and Stacy King, also part of the first threepeat team, said he was upset with the Jerry Krause sections: "I was really hurt by that & I think a lot of us were." Do MJ's ex-teammates have a point? https://t.co/iHPzppg6OR
In a recent appearance on The Hoop Collective podcast, Jackie MacMullan revealed that Michael Jordan was baffled after hearing some of the comments made by Scottie Pippen and other former teammates about "The Last Dance." Jordan has maintained his silence about the matter, but it seems like "His Airness" was a little surprised.
I don't think he was particularly thrilled with the blowback from The Last Dance and some of the things that came back at him. I think some of it flummoxed him a little bit to be honest," MacMullan said.
Charles Oakley on the relationship between Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen
Charles Oakley, the former Chicago Bulls enforcer and longtime friend of Michael Jordan, made an appearance on The Bill Simmons Podcast last January to promote his new book. One of the questions asked of Oakley was the status of MJ and Scottie's relationship.
The Knicks legend revealed that Jordan and Pippen were great teammates, but were never close outside the basketball court. Oakley added that MJ would never respond to Scottie in public.
"No, I think it's over. Yeah, I think it's over. It wasn't great from the get-go... Jordan always praised Scottie, always praised Scottie. He never talked down about him, but I don't know what happened since 'The Last Dance.' He's not gonna say nothing back in the press, none of that, try to go back to Scottie," Oakley said.
Charles Oakley with your 2022 MJ-Scottie friendship update. Spoiler: it’s not good.
https://t.co/OKM5UXdlpS