October 1, 2021
The Chicago Bulls stalwart tells all--and then some. Hall of Famer Pippen opens with a long complaint: Yes, he's a legend, but he got short shrift in the ESPN documentary about Michael Jordan and the Bulls, The Last Dance. Given that Jordan emerges as someone not quite friend enough to qualify as a frenemy, even though teammates for many years, the maltreatment is understandable. This book, Pippen allows, is his retort to a man who "was determined to prove to the current generation of fans that he was larger-than-life during his day--and still larger than LeBron James, the player many consider his equal, if not superior." Coming from a hardscrabble little town in Arkansas and playing for a small college, Pippen enjoyed an unlikely rise to NBA stardom. He played alongside and against some of the greats, of whom he writes appreciatively (even Jordan). Readers will gain insight into the lives of characters such as Dennis Rodman, who "possessed an unbelievable basketball IQ," and into the behind-the-scenes work that led to the Bulls dynasty, which ended only because, Pippen charges, the team's management was so inept. Looking back on his early years, Pippen advocates paying college athletes. "Don't give me any of that holier-than-thou student-athlete nonsense," he writes. "These young men--and women--are athletes first, not students, and make up the labor that generates fortunes for their schools. They are, for lack of a better term, slaves." The author also writes evenhandedly of the world outside basketball: "No matter how many championships I have won, and millions I have earned, I never forget the color of my skin and that some people in this world hate me just because of that." Overall, the memoir is closely observed and uncommonly modest, given Pippen's many successes, and it moves as swiftly as a playoff game. Basketball fans will enjoy Pippen's bird's-eye view of some of the sport's greatest contests.
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October 15, 2021
Six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen made headlines by expressing his disappointment with The Last Dance, the docuseries that focused on the Chicago Bulls' last championship season in 1998. The furor that followed his critical sound bites on Michael Jordan and the team's coach, Phil Jackson, set the table for this memoir, which isn't quite the tell-all account it's been purported to be. Yes, Pippin is unequivocal in his disdain for the "sidekick" label so often assigned to him by the media, but he also lavishes praise on Jordan's talents (even calling him "basketball's Baryshniknov"). He also fully credits Jackson for transforming the Bulls from a one-trick-pony show (give the ball to Jordan and clear the side) into a multifaceted team emphasizing ball movement. His true ire, however, is saved for the Bulls' egomaniacal general manager, the late Jerry Krause, and tightfisted owner Jerry Reinsdorf. Along the way, Pippen and coauthor Arkush capably reprise Pippen's youth as the youngest of 12 children in a family ripped by tragedy and follow his unlikely ascent to basketball greatness. There's some whining here, to be sure, but all in all, Pippen offers an intriguing take on one of the NBA's greatest dynasties. \HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Expect all the sports talking heads to be in full cry when this much-hyped memoir hits the shelves.
COPYRIGHT(2021) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
December 1, 2021
In this autobiography, former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen telegraphs his pass--in this case a takedown of Michael Jordan, he of the carefully cultivated perfect image and the man in whose shadow Pippen played during the Bulls' dynasty. He acknowledges Jordan's greatness, but there is always a but. Jordan scored 50 points in this game or that one, but he needed 40 shots to do it. Jordan demanded perfection from his "supporting cast," but often crossed into harshness in doing so. While Jordan is his focal point, Pippen writes about many others with the same passive aggressive approach. For instance, he writes that coach Doug Collins excelled at X's and O's, but couldn't unite a team; Phil Jackson was a great coach, but his new-age ideas were too out there for Pippen; and on and on, as Pippen tries to settle every score. All this is valuable insider information, but a shame in a potentially heart-warming tale of a hometown hero. VERDICT Basketball fans might disagree with Pippen's aggrieved tone but will want to give reading time to this story of a small-town hero and a big-time team.--Jim Burns, formerly at Jacksonville P.L., FL
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