Six-time NBA champion and Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen will be releasing his memoir titled Unguarded on Nov. 16, 2021. Written with Michael Arkush, Unguarded will be released through Simon & Schuster. Pippen took to social media to announce his new project, which he promises will tell his side of the story and address some of his issues with Michael Jordan’s Netflix documentary The Last Dance.
“Ready to hear my side of the story? UNGUARDED. I’m giving you a behind-the-scenes look at growing up in Arkansas, college days at UCA, getting drafted, takes on my teammates and coaches, the locker room, and the rings. Stories I’ve kept to myself for years,” the former Chicago Bulls star wrote.
Ready to hear my side of the story? UNGUARDED. You'll read my takes on playing with MJ and Rodman and being coached by Phil Jackson. From a small town in Arkansas to the big time in the NBA. On sale 11.16.21. PRE-ORDER NOW. #pippenunguarded https://t.co/ibJumtCfYy
— Scottie Pippen (@ScottiePippen) June 9, 2021
Pippen has previously voiced his displeasure with Jordan’s documentary series and made it clear it wasn’t a one-man show.
“I don’t think it was that accurate in terms of really defining what was accomplished in one of the greatest eras of basketball, but also by two of the greatest players — and one could even put that aside and say the greatest team of all time. I didn’t think those things stood out in the documentary. I thought it was more about Michael trying to uplift himself and to be glorified. I think it also backfired to some degree in that people got a chance to see what kind of personality Michael had…I told him I wasn’t too pleased with it. He accepted it. He said, ‘Hey, you’re right.’ That was pretty much it,” Pippen told The Guardian in an interview last year.
Not shying away from his comments, he also calls himself “the real leader” of the Chicago Bulls during their two three-peats. In the description of his book, Pippen makes it clear that he wasn’t Jordan’s “sidekick” either but a valuable component in the Bulls’ championship runs.
“Simply put, without Pippen, there are no championship banners — let alone six — hanging from the United Center rafters. There’s no The Last Dance documentary. There’s no ‘Michael Jordan’ as we know him. The 1990s Chicago Bulls teams would not exist as we know them…,” the book’s description states. “Pippen details how he cringed at being labeled Jordan’s sidekick, and discusses how he could have (and should have) received more respect from the Bulls’ management and the media…He discusses what it was like dealing with Jordan on a day-to-day basis, while serving as the real leader within the Bulls locker room.”
Check out the cover of Unguarded below.
