There are some guys throughout the years who are remembered by all fans, no matter what sports those fans follow. Michael, Babe, Hank Aaron, Jackie Robinson, Gretzky, Wilt, Payton...these guys have all transcended their respective sports and generations. If you are a sports fan, there is no way to miss those names, no matter how old you are or which sport is your favorite. Mantle, Butkus, Magic, Hull, Howe, Clemens, Montana...the names that make the sports world go round.

But then there are other guys, guys who live more in the minds and imaginations of fans for a specific sport or from a specific generation. These are guys who didn't transcend their sports, but simply embodied them in a way that only true fans could appreciate. It's easy to enjoy a 100 mile per hour fastball from Roger Clemens, but only the true baseball fan takes pleasure in watching Greg Maddux pick apart opposing batters with pitches that move around the zone at 90 mph and hit the mitt with pinpoint accuracy. It's easy to enjoy watching Randy Moss racing downfield and then leaping over double coverage to snatch a touchdown pass that would have landed in the stands, but only the true football fan can enjoy seeing Jerry Rice run a perfect slant pattern into the soft part of a zone defense.

Rocket and Randy, these guys are for anyone who turns on the tube.

But Maddux and Rice, they belong only to fans who truly understand the game.

Bulls fans know these two groups very well, because from 1984-1998 we watched two men who defined those categories as well as any two teammates can.

In the first group was Michael Jordan.

In the second, Scottie Pippen.

Michael Jordan will be remembered. He'll be remembered by Bulls fans and basketball fans of every generation from now until they stop playing the game. He'll be remembered by Americans as well as foreigners, by those who love basketball and by those who hate it. But only people who truly love the game will remember Scottie Pippen, and in that way he will be ours in a way that Michael never can be.

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I went onto the Bulls' website on November 8th, and to my delight I found that what I had been waiting for since 1998 had finally come to pass: the Bulls are retiring Scottie Pippen's number 33 jersey. Scottie is a Hall-of-Famer, a seven time All-Star, a six time NBA champion, a two time Olympian, and one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. And yet his retirement a year ago and subsequent number retiring has hardly raised interest around the league and its fans.

I'm not surprised.

Anybody can enjoy MJ. It's not hard to dig a guy who can dunk from the free throw line and make professionals look like children. But for true fans of the game of basketball, Scottie was just as much a delight as Michael was, albeit in different ways. If you know basketball and watched the Bulls during the glory days, then you knew what Scottie meant to that team. Michael may have been the star, but Scottie made everything work. It was Pippen who brought the ball up and ran the floor, allowing Jordan to conserve his energy for his half court game, and it was Pippen who routinely guarded the opposition's best perimeter player, allowing Jordan to conserve his energy for is offense. Anybody could see Jordan's value; it was obvious. There's no way to overlook the value in 30 points and a game winning shot, but it's easy to overlook the value in 15 points, nine boards, seven assists, three steals, and a blocked shot. There's no way to overlook the skill needed for a fast break dunk in traffic, but it's easy to overlook the skill needed to bang with power forwards under the glass and beat point guards to loose balls. Michael always got the glory, because he was a clutch player with an unmatched sense of dramatic timing. But Scottie didn't care what time it was, because there will never be the perfect theatrical time for taking a charge or setting a pick, and when Michael was wiping sweat from his bald head while doing a post-game interview with Ahmad Rashad, Scottie was in the locker room icing his knees after another hard-fought full-on assed-out performance.

When people try to knock Pippen, one of the points they always make is that he never won any rings without Jordan. Pippen protectors then inevitably come back with "Well, Jordan never won any rings without Pippen." I think that the true argument to be made is that they won six rings together. That's more than Magic and Kareem, more than Bird and McHale, more than Shaq and Kobe, more than any duo in NBA history apart from Russell and Cousy, Russell and Havlicek, Cowens and Havlicek or any other duo you can take from those 60's/70's Celtic teams. Yes, Michael could have won a championship without Scottie. He could have won a couple. But he would not have won six. Take Pippen off of the Bulls and replace him with a typical "second banana"-usually a scoring power forward or center-and they are no longer hands down better than Ewing's Knicks, Drexler's Trailblazers, Barkley's Suns, or Stockton and Malone's Jazz. Pair Jordan with Barkley or Ewing, and either of those two guys would need to get touches down low, meaning fewer post plays for MJ. Meanwhile, Michael would be left chasing Magic, Glide, Stockton, and Gary Payton around the court.

Only two NBA championship cores since 1979 have lacked a Hall-of-Fame center: the 90's Bulls, and the Bad Boy Pistons, although they at least had an All-Star in Bill Laimbeer. There are two main reasons why championship teams are built around dominant centers. Offensively, a dominant center is right next to the basket, which means lots of high-percentage, low-energy scoring. Defensively, they get to hang out near the basket, which means that they don't have to run much, which means that they get to save their energy for offense. Dominant perimeter scorers of the past rarely won more than one title without a big man down low. Magic had Kareem. Larry had McHale and Parish. Drexler had Olajuwon for his only ring. Dr. J had Moses Malone for his only ring. Kobe had Shaq. Nique didn't have anybody, nor did Iverson, nor did Drexler in Portland. A perimeter scorer expends a lot of energy driving to the hoop or releasing jump shots, and a perimeter defender expends a lot of energy chasing guys around the floor. If that player is going to win title after title as his team's primary scoring option, he's going to need somebody to take care of the energy jobs that he would normally have to do, and that means finding a talented and selfless wing man who can handle the ball and defend at an All-Star level without demanding offensive touches. Try naming another player in NBA history who matches that description at as high of a level as Scottie Pippen. Scottie was the Bulls' number one defender, number two rebounder, got his points in transition and on second-chance opportunities, and ran the offense. In other words, he did everything that allowed Michael to be Michael.

Don't get me wrong; I love MJ. But a person's appreciation and respect for Scottie Pippen always said more to me than his admiration of Michael Jordan. The Sports Guy Bill Simmons said it best in his Pippen Appreciation Column when he wrote:

Where you stand on Scottie Pippen depends on two questions:
1. Do you follow the NBA? I mean, do you really follow it?
2. Do you give up on anyone who has made even one stupid mistake in his life?

The first question is obvious. If you really follow the NBA in the way that Simmons does, then you understand what Scottie is about. The second question refers to Pippen's infamous 1.8 seconds, in which he refused to play the end of Game 3 of the '94 East Semis, choosing to sit on the bench rather than inbound the ball to Toni Kukoc (who, incidentally, hit the game-winner.) Should Pippen have sat out? No, of course not. But he didn't sit out because he wasn't a leader, which is what his detractors say. He sat out because in 1994, he was the leader. He was an MVP that year, leading the Bulls to 55 wins without Jordan, and when his team went down 2-0 to the Knicks and had a chance to win Game 3, he wanted the shot. Instead, Phil called a play for Kukoc, and out of frustration, Pippen sat down. He regretted it, apologized, was forgiven by his teammates, and moved on.

Bulls fans did too.

Anybody who calls Pippen a "quitter" or denies his ability to perform in big games is a short-sighted fan. In Game 6 of the '92 Finals, the Bulls entered the 4th quarter trailing Portland by fifteen. In response to that, Phil began the fourth quarter with a lineup of BJ Armstrong, Bobby Hansen, Stacey King, Scott Williams, and...Scottie Pippen. Pippen was the leader on the floor, and when Michael came back in, followed by Horace and Pax, the lead was down to three. In Game 3 of the '97 first round with the Bullets beating the Bulls 95-94 late in the fourth, Pippen ignored his bad back and drove to the hole, laying down a thunderous jam for the win. He could have pulled up for a jumper, or he could have gotten lazy, gave up the game, and helped beat Washington in Game 4. But Pippen wanted the win. And in Game 7 of the '98 Eastern Conference Finals against the Pacers, it was Pippen and Jordan who led the Bulls to the win, as they crashed the boards and got to the foul line. These are just three of the games that come to my mind. There are others.

Jordan was always known for that can't-lose won't-quit must-win look in the eyes, but Pippen had the exact same look. Scottie was a champion, a warrior, and in his own way, a leader. Pure and simple.

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One day, years from now, I'm going to take my kids to their first Bulls game at the United Center. We'll walk up to the stadium, go past the Michael Jordan statue, mix in with all of the kids and teenagers in their JORDAN 23 jerseys, take a look at the pictures of Jordan in the hall ways, and then head into the gym. We'll find our section, go to our seats, and look up at the rafters, rafters that hold six championship banners, and six personal banners. SLOAN, LOVE, JORDAN, JACKSON, KRAUSE, and PIPPEN. And while most people are looking at Jordan's banner, I'll be telling my kids about one of the greatest players in Chicago history.

"Well," they'll ask, "Jordan dunked, and Payton ran, and Banks swung, but what did Pippen do?"

And I'll smile, look at them, and shrug.

"That's easy. Everything."