NBA legend Scottie Pippen has been on an absolute warpath over the past year.
Through various interviews and his new book, Unguarded, the former Chicago Bulls forward has been going off on various basketball players both past and present.
One person in particular Pippen felt the need to weigh in on was Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden.
Pippen’s assessment of his play speaks for itself:
“Sometimes, when I watched Harden play for the Houston Rockets, bouncing the ball up and down, I felt as if my life were passing me by,” Pippen wrote (via Sporscasting.com). “I wanted to shout at the TV, ‘For God’s sake, James, stop dribbling!’”
That said, Pippen does still believe Harden can help lead Brooklyn to a championship – if he gets in shape.
“Kevin Durant right now is an unstoppable player.”
Scottie Pippen thinks the Brooklyn Nets can win an NBA Championship without Kyrie Irving
🔊 https://t.co/yMzGDA5kYk pic.twitter.com/V202JyDL8b
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) November 9, 2021
When pressed on whether the Nets would ultimately be unable to win a title without Kyrie Irving, Pippen offered this response:
“Not if James Harden gets in shape,” he said. “I’m not going to say that they can win without him. He definitely is a guy that can help them. But Kevin Durant right now is an unstoppable player, and we started to see this last year in the playoffs. If he continues on this kind of role and starts to utilize his team a little bit better, I think they can possibly win without him.”
Interestingly enough, back when Harden was still with Houston, Kobe Bryant famously predicted that they would never a win a title. Specifically due to Harden’s playing style.
Scottie Pippen kept it real on Larsa. https://t.co/yRYNac03ry
— Game 7 (@game7__) November 11, 2021
“I’m not a fan of in terms of winning championships, I don’t think that style is ever going to win championships,” Bryant said of Harden’s style at the time.
Currently the Nets are 9-4 on the year and sit second in the Eastern Conference. Will Harden finally get that elusive first championship this season and prove all his doubters wrong? Time will tell.
Related: Lakers Reporter Calls Out Russell Westbrook For Being Disrespectful
A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
