In June 2017, the NBA “What If” debates reached a fever pitch on Scoop B Radio. Following my viral interview with Clyde Drexler—where he claimed the ’95 Rockets would have “beaten the Bulls like they stole something”—and Robert Horry’s assertion that Houston would have reigned supreme in ’94, I got the rebuttal from the architect of the Bulls’ defense himself: Scottie Pippen.
Today, in 2025, with the “90s Era” debate more polarized than ever thanks to The Last Dance, Pippen’s buttoned-up dismissal of the Rockets’ hypothetical dominance remains the ultimate “stop snitchin'” moment in basketball history.
Pippen’s Rebuttal: “He’s Forgetting One Thing”
When I brought Robert Horry’s claims to Scottie Pippen—specifically the idea that Hakeem Olajuwon was an unsolvable puzzle for Chicago—Pippen didn’t hesitate to remind everyone of the Bulls’ defensive pedigree.
“I think he’s forgetting that we had a pretty good team ourselves,” Pippen told me. “It’s easy to talk about what would have happened when it didn’t happen. But the facts are we were the champions before that, and we were the champions after that.”
In 2025, Pippen’s logic remains the “gold standard” for the Bulls’ dynasty: you can’t argue with the rings. While Horry pointed to the Rockets’ regular-season success against Chicago, Scottie’s focus was on the “Playoff Gear”—a level of intensity that the 90s Bulls used to suffocate opponents when the lights were brightest.
The Hakeem Factor vs. The Bulls System
The crux of the argument from the Rockets’ camp (Horry, Drexler, and Kenny Smith) was that Chicago had no one to guard “The Dream.” Pippen, however, viewed the game through the lens of the “Triangle” and collective pressure.
“Hakeem was a great player, one of the greatest,” Pippen admitted. “But we played a team game. We didn’t just let one guy beat us. We had Horace Grant, we had Luc Longley, we had a system that was designed to take away what you did best.”
Reflecting on this today, Pippen’s defense of the Bulls’ “system” is a reminder that Chicago won six titles without a dominant traditional center. They didn’t need to “stop” Hakeem; they just needed to outlast the Rockets’ supporting cast—something Pippen felt they were uniquely built to do.
The “Michael’s Absence” Asterisk
Pippen was particularly dismissive of the idea that Houston “owned” those two years simply because Jordan was playing baseball. To Scottie, the 1994 Bulls (who won 55 games without MJ) proved they were still elite, and he believed a Finals matchup would have favored Chicago’s experience.
“We were one call away from the Conference Finals in ’94 without Michael. You don’t think we could have competed for a title? We were right there.”
In 2025, the “Hue Hollins” foul call in the ’94 Knicks series remains one of the most debated whistles in history. Pippen’s 2017 comments underscore his belief that the Rockets didn’t “take” the throne; they occupied it while the kings were away.
2025 Retrospective: The Transitive Property of Trash Talk
Today, the debate continues to rage. Robert Horry still maintains that Hakeem would have “destroyed” the Bulls’ front line, while Pippen maintains that the Bulls’ perimeter defense (Jordan, Pippen, Harper) would have turned the Rockets’ shooters into non-factors.
