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Chicago Bulls legend Scottie Pippen convinced former general manager Jerry Krause to trade up for him in the 1987 NBA Draft, after Pippen put together “the best workout” that Krause had ever seen.
At the time, Pippen set a record in the three-ball drill, which was designed to measure lateral movement and desire.
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In his memoir, Krause talked about what the Bulls had to do to get Pippen.
“We had the eighth and 10th picks in the draft. I learned that Sacramento, picking sixth, told everyone they were set on taking North Carolina point guard Kenny Smith,” Krause detailed. “But I also found out they had cornered Pippen and asked him a bunch of questions and that Smith, who had a questionable knee in college, had taken [medical] tests for every team from Nos. 6 to 12 but us and Sacramento.
“Figuring Sacramento at No. 6 was lying and would take Pippen, I knew we had to move up to No. 5 owned by Seattle,” Krause added. “The Clippers were picking fourth. Seattle general manager Bob Whitsitt had a player he wanted at No. 5. If the Clippers took that player, our deal — swap picks No. 5 and No. 8, give them a second-round pick in the 1988 draft, agree to switch a first-round pick at their option in one of the next two drafts and give them two free exhibition games — was on.
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“Jerry Reinsdorf was on the phone with the Clippers and I was on another phone with Whitsitt when Reinsdorf told me, ‘The Clippers are taking Reggie Williams, a 6-7 guard from Georgetown.’ I told Whitsitt, who told me Williams was the guy he wanted and thus our deal was on. I told him to draft Pippen for us,” Krause stated. “I never knew what happened in the Sacramento draft room but they took Smith. At No. 8, we took Olden Polynice, a center from Virginia, for Seattle and called the league to say we had a trade.
“The rest is history.”
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Pippen, a six-time NBA champion with the Bulls, played 17 seasons in the NBA. He was a part of the NBA All-Defensive first team for eight straight seasons and the All-NBA first team three times. Pippen was a seven-time All-Star and was the NBA All-Star Game MVP in 1994. Both Pippen, and Michael Jordan were the key pieces for the ‘90s Bulls teams.
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