3 takeaways from episodes 1 and 2 of The Last Dance
2. Scottie Pippen’s contract shows the good of player empowerment
The NBA currently resides in the player empowerment era, a unique time where the game’s top players wield their star power to control their destiny and bounce between as many teams as they please.
It’s an act that’s rubbed some people the wrong way, but the constant free agency moves are only part of that power.
The other lies in a superstars’ ability to negotiate just about whatever contract they want, typically resulting in a shorter deal that allows them to maximize their earnings, a long-term perspective Scottie Pippen surely wishes he had back in the 90s.
To be fair to Pippen, he makes it abundantly clear the long-term security of the seven-year, $18 million contract he signed in 1991 afforded financial security he couldn’t pass up as a way to support his family.
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Scottie Pippen was the 122nd-highest-paid player in the NBA in '97-98, but was easily one of the best players in the league. #TheLastDance pic.twitter.com/CcJ132Nbb8
— ESPN (@espn) April 20, 2020
Hard to argue with that logic, but as his stardom grew through the Bulls’ title years, the mere $2.5 million annual salary he was earning grew more laughable for one of the game’s premier two-way talents.
In 1997-98, he was Chicago’s sixth-highest paid player behind Jordan, Ron Harper, Toni Kukoc, Dennis Rodman and Luc Longley. He was the 122nd highest-earner in the league, a figure currently held by Norman Powell.
Some NBA fans could do without the constant trade requests and free agency speculation years in advance.
But at its core, player empowerment has allowed players of a certain caliber to guarantee they get paid as they should. If you ask Pippen, there’s nothing wrong with that.