Ex-American Basketball Player Pippen Sees Bitcoin Crossing $180K: Here’s Why

Scottie Pippen, an American former basketball player turned Bitcoin evangelist, expects BTC to hit greater heights in the current cycle.

His recent prediction comes as several leading market analysts suggest the Bitcoin bull run might have ended. For instance, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju, who had previously insisted that the bull run remains intact, recently switched his sentiments, asserting that on-chain metrics indicate the run is over.

In his latest disclosure, Pippen shared a daily BTC chart comparing the previous bill run from 2020 to the current one. Interestingly, data from the chart confirms that Bitcoin has been following the trajectory from the 2020 market uptrend.

Bitcoin Following 2020 Trajectory

Particularly, after consolidating at $9,000 between June and July 2020, Bitcoin observed an impressive price explosion in late July. This helped it breach the $10,000 resistance to reach a peak above $12,000. However, the crypto firstborn faced resistance at this top, consolidated for a few weeks, and then collapsed in September 2020 to below $10,000.

This bearish turn of events persisted for multiple weeks, with some suggesting that the bull run might have ended. Interestingly, an impressive run from late October set things back in motion. This allowed BTC to push toward greater heights, sustaining the rally for another year until the $69,000 ATH in November 2021. 

Pippen’s chart shows the former basketball small forward expects this pattern to repeat. “I know a thing or two about history repeating itself,” Pippen quipped in his disclosure on X.

The chart indicates that Bitcoin saw its initial surge when it rallied from November 2024 to January 2025, hitting a new peak above $109K. This is comparative to the massive run the asset observed from July to August 2020. Now, the current pullback and consolidation resemble Bitcoin’s struggles from September to October 2020.

If the asset continues to follow this trajectory from 2020, Pippen’s chart predicts it could face a few more weeks of range-bound movements. However, it predicts a gradual recovery campaign from July 2025, which would see Bitcoin eventually transcend the previous ATH of $109K.

Bitcoin to $180K: Other Industry Leaders Agree

While the former American basketballer failed to provide any definite price targets, his chart suggests a possible run beyond $180K. Interestingly, last November, when BTC had yet to cross the $100K milestone, VanEck’s Matthew Sigel predicted that the asset could reach $180K. He also asserted that BTC was following its 2020 trajectory. 

Also, in December 2024, controversial Messari founder Ryan Selkis projected that Bitcoin might cross $180K. In his remarks, he revealed that he would not “think about” selling his Bitcoin holdings until the premier crypto asset reached $180K. 

Meanwhile, at press time, Bitcoin currently changes hands at $85,743, up 3% over the past 24 hours. Pippen is not the only one who thinks the bull run is still intact. Market veteran Gert van Lagen believes BTC could sustain the bull run from here, recently setting a higher $300K target from an inverse head and shoulders pattern.