Hooped Up

NBA great Scottie Pippen scored nine points for Finland league leader Torpan Pojat which beat Honka 98-85 on Saturday.After a slow start, Pippen improved in the second half, smoothly grabbing nine rebounds and giving out several unselfish passes.

“It was great, I did not know what to anticipate without a game for the last three years,” the 42-year-old Pippen said. “My conditioning is not at the top level but I played with a great team and had a lot of fun.”

Canadian Press

Scottie Pippen will play a basketball game in Sweden for the Sundsvall Dragons in January.The former Chicago Bulls great will join the team in northeastern Sweden for the Jan. 11 game against rival Akropol. The deal came about because Bulls assistant coach Mike Wilhelm is friendly with Sundsvall Dragons chairman Anders Ohrn.

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Hooped Up

Former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen plans to end a long-running dispute with his former financial adviser with a $1.5 million court settlement today, his lawyer said.

Pippen had sought more than $20 million from Robert Lunn, a financial guru who at one time had numerous wealthy, well-known clients.

The former Bulls star alleged Lunn steered him to bad investments, failed to account for funds and diverted money to himself. Other former clients also sued Lunn, claiming he looted their investments, loaned their money to friends and associates, and lied about it.

Chicago Sun-Times

Lakers coach Phil Jackson says he has talked to 41-year-old Scottie Pippen about making a comeback with the team.

“I did get in touch with Scottie,” Jackson said before the Lakers played the Suns on Sunday, “but it was just preliminary talk about how he’s doing, where he’s at and how he feels.”

Jackson coached Pippen while both were with the Bulls during their title years. Jackson said Pippen is interested in coming to Los Angeles.

“I would say he kind of talked about the parameters of what he thinks he can do to help,” Jackson said.

Yahoo

Scottie Pippen was a courtside visitor to the Heat game Friday. During the All-Star weekend in Las Vegas, Pippen, the former Chicago Bulls star, caused a minor stir when he announced he would try to make a comeback and wanted to contribute to a playoff team. “I haven’t decided if I’m coming back yet,” he said. “I may not, if it’s not the right situation.” Pippen said that “a few teams have called,” and Cleveland was one of them. But Miami, the team closest to his Fort Lauderdale house, has not shown interest.

New York Times

Scottie Pippen is seriously considering a comeback and hopes to play for a contending team in this season’s playoffs, the Chicago Tribune’s Sam Smith is reporting.

Pippen, who turned 41 on Sept. 25, says he’s in better condition and health than at any time in the last five years.

Pippen will give an indication of where he is physically when he teams with the Bulls’ Ben Gordon and the Chicago Sky’s Candice Dupree in the “Shooting Stars” contest part as part of Saturday night’s All-Star festivities.

“I’m thinking of trying to come back for the playoffs,” Pippen said. “Something like the last two months of the season, somewhere I can come back and play limited minutes to start, play point forward for someone and build toward the playoffs. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for the last three months.”

Pippen last played for the Bulls in the 2003-04 season, when knee problems limited him to 23 games. He said he’s considering the right situation and plans to talk to some teams and players during the weekend.

“Being out of the game, my body feels great,” Pippen said, adding that his body fat is at an all-time low 5 percent and he’s at his top playing weight of about 220 pounds.

“Taking this break, it feels amazing. I’m looking at somewhere I could play maybe 15 minutes. I’m not trying to be a big-money guy or anything, [just trying to] get with a team I can help in the playoffs.

“My knee is good,” Pippen said. “I’ve been working out regularly, doing drills. I see my body like guys like Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar, who played till he was 42) and Robert Parish (who played until just short of 44). My body is lanky and flexible like theirs. That gives me some hope I can do it.

“I’m moving good. I feel pretty fast and you don’t forget the game. I watch and see so many young guys who don’t know how to run a team and I feel I could help someone.”

Chicago Tribune