Chicago Bulls Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen was just as productive in real life as he was on the basketball court.
Pip helped Michael Jordan win six NBA championships, putting them in a tie with Bob Cousy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for 10th place on the league’s all-time list. Outside the court, Pippen was a father of eight children, including two who have already passed away. While his championships came while playing for one city, his children were a product of four different relationships.
While Scottie has always been proud of his six rings, he hasn’t been the same about all his children. Pippen initially denied paternity to a couple of his kids, including Taylor, Pip’s child from ex-partner Sonya Roby. The Bulls legend ended up giving financial support to Taylor, but in a 2016 interview, she said she doesn’t know what Scottie is like as a father because he didn’t want to meet her.
“He never wanted to meet me. He decided that it [would be] like that, and I prefer not to think about the matter too much,” said Taylor to Spanish outlet El Mundo as translated by People.
Pippen refused to have a relationship with Taylor
Sonya Roby was a model when she met the then-Chicago Bulls superstar. The couple had a relationship, and Roby gave birth to twins -Taylor and Tyler on July 20, 1994. Tyler, however, died nine days after birth at Mercy Hospital in Chicago.
Scottie initially denied being the twins’ biological father, but after a DNA test in October of that year proved otherwise, Pippen admitted paternity in court and agreed to pay child support. Although he was granted visitation rights after the court gave full custody of Taylor to her mother, Pip did not commit whether he wanted to have a relationship with his daughter.
“I was born and raised near Chicago, you can imagine how many questions I have been asked about my father,” Taylor added. ” I know how much my last name weighs, I know that people expect a lot from me, but, after all these years, I have learned that Pippen is just that, a last name.”
More than just Pippen’s daughter
Taylor was born in a northern Chicago suburb called Munduelin and studied at Carmel Catholic High School before graduating with a degree in Accounting. In college, she was a volleyball star for Southern Illinois University, where she was an MVC First Team All-Conference selection.
“I was known as Scottie Pippen’s daughter in sports, but that made me more determined to be good at sports because I didn’t want that. I just wanted to be Taylor Pippen…. I don’t want to have any type of handouts. I don’t want to be identified as just that. It is a part of who I am, absolutely, but I’m a lot more than that. I want to be Taylor Pippen before I am Scottie Pippen’s daughter,” said Taylor in a 2023 podcast appearance.
Taylor ended up as a professional volleyball player in Spain in 2016. However, she returned to the U.S. and is now a very successful banker. On her LinkedIn page, she is listed as a vice president for JP Morgan & Chase Co. It’s unclear what relationship she currently has with her dad, if at all. However, Taylor’s IG account has a 2022 photo of her with Scottie and half-sister Sierra, whom Scottie also initially denied siring.