Pippen: 'I don't have a problem' with calling Jackson racist

Scottie Pippen accused his former Chicago Bulls head coach Phil Jackson of being racist.

In an interview on "The Dan Patrick Show" Monday, Pippen said the coach made a racially motivated decision when he drew up a play for Toni Kukoc in the final moments of a 1994 playoff game.

"Why would Toni, who was a rookie, get the last-second shot, and you put me out of bounds? That's what I mean 'racial,'" Pippen told Patrick, clarifying the comments he made in a recent GQ interview.

With the score tied in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals versus the New York Knicks, Pippen refused to play the final 1.8 seconds after Jackson called on Kukoc, a 25-year-old rookie out of Croatia, to take the go-ahead shot. Pippen - the third-place finisher in MVP balloting that season - watched from the sidelines as Kukoc nailed the 22-footer for the win.

Patrick pressed Pippen's characterization of Jackson's play call as a "racial move," asking if he was "calling Phil Jackson a racist."

Pippen responded: "I don't have a problem with that."

Pippen also bashed Jackson's decision to write a book about the Los Angeles Lakers' 2003-04 season after leaving the team, noting the Hall of Fame coach's criticism of Kobe Bryant. Jackson eventually returned to the Lakers' sidelines in 2005, coaching Bryant to an additional two championships in six seasons.