It's always an ungrateful job to compare eras and generations of players who never actually faced each other on the court. Most people believe that Michael Jordan would easily average 40 points per game today, while Toni Kukoc's numbers would be similar to Luka Doncic 's.
However, as much as the game has evolved in terms of physicality and athleticism, basketball IQ has never gone out of style. And one player who had both was certainly Scottie Pippen . One of the most physically prepared players of all time, in an interview with Spanish media outlet El Pais, reflected on how he would perform in today's era and whether he'd have the potential to be the best player in the league.
"I'd do very well. The game has changed, sure, it's more up and down now — but my style fits that kind of play even in the '80s and '90s. I don't think it would be a big challenge," Pippen exclaimed . "Yes, I think so. There's no reason to think otherwise. If I worked as hard as I did back then, I believe I'd easily be among the best."
Many believe that traditional floor generals have slowly started to disappear, to the point where they almost don't exist anymore. Rick Pitino even claims it's unlikely we'll ever see that kind of player again , given the way the game is played today as back in the day, players like John Stockton, Isaiah Thomas or Magic Johnson would completely run the offense. Today's pace-and-space era has led the NBA to a point where guards no longer necessarily have to bring the ball up the court or orchestrate the offense.
In that kind of setup, players like Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo , who can score, rebound, assist, run the break, have become the focal points around which teams are built today. Meanwhile, the role of the traditional post-dominant centers has also vanished, something that was very much present during Pippen's era. Today, the court is more open than ever, and the level of physicality in the post is not even close to what it was during the hand-checking era.
All that has brought us to the point where the league is today — versatile players like the six-time champion with the Chicago Bulls now completely control the tempo of the game. This was something that could be seen only in trenches in the '90s, but as LeBron James recently pointed out, it was precisely because of players like Pippen and Kukoc that the game slowly started to evolve.
If we take a look at Pipp's season when MJ retired for the first time, he was one win away from leading the Bulls to the Eastern Conference finals. He finished third in MVP voting while averaging 22.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 2.9 steals on 49.1 percent from the field while playing 38.3 minutes per night.
Still, even though Pippen truly could do everything on the floor, shooting remained his biggest weakness, as he averaged just 32.6 percent from three over his career. And in today's pace-and-space era, it would be interesting to see how Pippen would adapt. At one point, Pip even discussed the increased demands of today's NBA compared to his generation .
"I think that watching these players, the stamina, the pace of the game, this is a tough game. To keep up with this pace and, you got to be able to make shots, so if you're not making shots, you're going to sit over there with the coach," Pippen said .
"I think this is a tougher era to be successful in because you need to shoot the basketball, and the bottom line is that there are guys that can get to the hole and create opportunities. The guys that shoot the basketball from range are much more valuable in today's game," he added.
The Central Arkansas product is well aware that the game has completely shifted to the perimeter. There's no doubt that a player with Pippen's caliber would have worked on his shot, which was far from elite, to a respectable level, but it's still intriguing to consider how that might have influenced his role in today's game.
To put it into perspective, Kawhi Leonard 's playing style and physique are often compared to Pippen's. In college, Leonard was a terrible shooter, but once he developed his three-point shot and perfected his mid-range game, many considered him the best player in the league when he was actually healthy.
Scottie's place in history is cemented, and looking from that angle, with his winning mentality, work ethic, physical preparedness and, most importantly, basketball IQ, which separates stars from superstars, there's no doubt that Pippen would be among the best players in the league today.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Oct 6, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
