Pippen, Condemned from All Sides

"This is the NBA playoff conference semifinals! A replay of Houston versus the Lakers!"

"Kobe's 0.5-second game-winner! Selected as today's best play!"

"Kobe put up 51 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, and 4 turnovers! He was the MVP of this game!"

"Let's look back at this shot! Barkley completed an alley-oop near-buzzer-beater, putting his team ahead with 0.5 seconds remaining!"

"This was a do-or-die shot! Make it, and it turns the impossible into reality! Miss it, and they lose home-court advantage—not to mention it would be the Lakers' first playoff loss this season!"

"Kobe's clutch gene was on full display! In midair, he whipped the ball out with an incredibly quick motion!"

"Let's watch it again and again! From Kobe catching the ball in the air to releasing it! It took 0.43 seconds! He threw it out almost the instant it touched his hands!"

"It went in! Kobe had worked another miracle!"

"Houston's players couldn't accept the result! Barkley angrily went to argue with the referees! But after reviewing it repeatedly, the officials upheld the original call!"

"Pippen suffered a groin tear in the locker room! His status for the next game is questionable!"

Jordan turned off the television.

"Scottie, you've actually fallen this far." Jordan felt some regret for his former teammate. He had become the kind of player who resorted to malicious fouls to wear down opponents. Jordan had never imagined that Pippen would one day become like this.

Pippen's actions drew condemnation from all sides after the game. Even Jordan, his former teammate, found them deeply disgraceful.

Although Kobe had not suffered any injury—instead, Pippen himself had torn his groin, or something in the middle of it—anyone with eyes could tell that Pippen had done it deliberately!

And Pippen did not deny it.