Scottie Pippen revealed that referees used to ask him for MJ's shoes: 'They weren't asking for Joe Dumars' shoes'

The only one that could match Michael Jordan's popularity was, well, MJ's shoe. Nike's Air Jordan sneaker was so popular that everybody wanted to have one. And when we say everybody, that includes fans, collectors, opponents and, well, even referees.

Former Sports Illustrated sports writer Jack McCallum claims that Scottie Pippen told him the story of how referees would approach him after games to ask his help in getting Michael Jordan's game-worn shoes.

McCallum was one of the NBA writers who covered the 1992 Dream Team and during that period, he interviewed the players, including Pippen.

"He told me an anecdote the first 20 minutes," said McCallum. "I will just never forget this.

"There's like ten quotes that stand out for me from doing those interviews, and one of Scottie's was: 'The referees used to ask me if I could get a pair of Michael's shoes. They weren't asking for Joe Dumars' shoes.'"

Refs secretly asked for Js

Dumars was Jordan's primary defender and was an Adidas guy. Adidas, Reebok, and Converse were Nike's main rivals during that period. But as we know, the Jordan shoe line took over the industry at the same time Mike took over the league and hasn't looked back since.

It's unclear when the incident took place. But since Pip compared MJ to Dumars, then it could have happened at the height of the Bulls-Pistons rivalry during the late 80s up to 1991 when the Bulls finally dethroned the Pistons.

After the Bad Boys, Michael's next rival was Reggie Miller. Although the two hated each other on the court, Miller once asked for a signed Jordan Bulls jersey, which he planned to donate for a charity event. That's ridiculous. But that's just how iconic His Airness was.

Even David Stern asked for MJ's shoes

But perhaps crazier than Reggie Miller asking for MJ's jersey or NBA referees begging for MJ's shoes was the story of Nike shoe designer Peter Moore, the mastermind of the Air Jordan 1, who claimed that the late NBA commissioner David Stern asked for a pair of the Air Jordan 1 right after telling him and Nike exec Rob Strasser in a meeting that he's banning the shoe from the league.

"He bans the shoe," Moore recalled. "So on the way out the door, Stern says, 'Rob, I have a favor to ask of you, and I'm embarrassed to ask it.' Rob says, 'You've already ruined my day; go ahead.' Stern says, 'My son thinks I'm a jerk. Can you get me a pair of shoes autographed for him?' That's a true story."

The Air Jordan is the most iconic shoe in the history of the industry. If some people question MJ's GOAT status, not a single soul will argue that the Jordan shoe is the GOAT of sneakers. And it's stories like McCallum's and Moore's that make the statement undisputed.