The Chicago Bulls, rating 2.52 (since 1966-67) In fifth? The greatest dynasty of the modern era? Let's just keep in perspective that I'm talking about the entire history of a franchise, and not just a decade of dominance. The previous four have been dominant franchises for multiple decades. Chicago's years of greatness are limited to the years Michael Jordan played for the team. But oh how they dominated, and the bandwagon during that time was perhaps greater than any franchise has ever enjoyed. Some people say that the modern league is diluted with talent since the older era had to make room for only the very best with so few teams to distribute them to. I say that basketball is significantly more popular these days than it was when players were barely making enough to not get a summer job (which many did), and that the league never enjoyed much greater attention than it did in the 80's and 90's, spawning many young talented players by the time Jordan's teams hit their stride. Chicago built one of the most successful dynasties, winning all six of their finals appearances from 1990-91 to 1992-93 and 1995-96 to 1997-98 and breaking the previously insurmountable win total of 70 in one season in 1995-96 (grabbing 72 overall). Those six titles are split by Jordan's first retirement, leaving us to ponder whether or not they could have tied Boston's record of eight consecutive championships. In fact, we are left to wonder if they could have surpassed it after Jordan's second retirement and the team's nearly complete breakup afterward (Jordan retired three times). And to think they did it all without a truly dominant big man, which is unheard of even now. But that wasn't the only notable period in Chicago's history. They had made the playoffs nine of their first eleven seasons in the league, with two consecutive trips to the conference finals in 1973-74 and 1974-75. A youth movement starting in 2004-05 showed some promise when the Bulls collected one of the best rookie classes in modern memory. Unfortunately, that has failed to develop the way many Bulls fans have hoped, and the roster continues to turn over with new talent. Chicago's best rivalries featured the Detroit Pistons, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Utah Jazz. The one in Detroit was particularly notable, with Chicago losing three consecutive times to the Pistons deep in the playoffs before finally surmounting the Bad Boys in a passing of the torch to begin their own reign. Chicago, no one is sure what your future holds, but you gave us one of the most exciting eras of basketball and popularized the game perhaps as high as it can go. Now, on to the Bulls top 10%: Because of Chicago's unusual history, this list is the one list dominated by championship players. But the player listing is supposed to highlight the players that helped bring the most fame to the franchise and not necessarily their best players, which is why a Randy Brown can be listed above a Bob Boozer or a Ben Gordon, as ridiculous as that sounds. The weight of achievement is just too great in this case. Michael is of course the top player, followed by Scottie Pippen, and a mixture of Bulls from both the 70's and 90's. All-Bulls Team C - Artis Gilmore F - Horace Grant F - Scottie Pippen G - Michael Jordan G - Jerry Sloan B - Toni Kukoc B - Bob Love B - Norm Van Lier Top 10% out of 299, (current players noted with asterisk - *) 1. 248.810 Michael Jordan 1984-85 to 1992-93, 1994-95 to 1997-98 2. 164.127 Scottie Pippen 1987-88 to 1997-98, 2003-04 3. 79.904 Horace Grant 1987-88 to 1993-94 4. 79.384 Jerry Sloan 1966-67 to 1975-76 5. 73.243 Toni Kukoc 1993-94 to 1999-00 6. 73.145 Bob Love 1968-69 to 1976-77 7. 71.462 Norm Van Lier 1971-72 to 1977-78 8. 69.462 Chet Walker 1969-70 to 1974-75 9. 66.219 John Paxson 1985-86 to 1993-94 10. 66.164 BJ Armstrong 1989-90 to 1994-95, 1999-00 11. 64.416 Artis Gilmore 1976-77 to 1981-82, 1987-88 12. 62.180 Tom Boerwinkle 1968-69 to 1977-78 13. 60.681 Steve Kerr 1993-94 to 1997-98 14. 57.152 Dennis Rodman 1995-96 to 1997-98 15. 56.338 Will Perdue 1988-89 to 1994-95, 1999-00 16. 56.209 Ron Harper 1994-95 to 1998-99 17. 55.607 Bill Cartwright 1988-89 to 1993-94 18. 53.382 Luc Longley 1993-94 to 1997-98 19. 50.366 Stacey King 1989-90 to 1993-94 20. 50.213 Kirk Hinrich 2003-04 to 2009-10 21. 49.561 Luol Deng 2004-05 to 2009-10 - * 22. 47.854 Reggie Theus 1978-79 to 1983-84 23. 46.831 Randy Brown 1995-96 to 1999-00 24. 46.629 Bill Wennington 1993-94 to 1998-99 25. 45.974 Dave Corzine 1982-83 to 1988-89 26. 45.708 Bob Weiss 1968-69 to 1973-74 27. 44.655 Dickey Simpkins 1994-95 to 1999-00 28. 44.617 Bob Boozer 1966-67 to 1968-69 29. 43.181 Ben Gordon 2004-05 to 2008-09 30. 42.938 Dave Greenwood 1979-80 to 1984-85 Honorable Mention: 46.114 Derrick Rose 2008-09 to 2009-10 - * (Would be 25th. Needs about 1,100 minutes to make the list)
The Bulls might have won the championship the year before the first one. Scottie Pippen had a migrane headache during game 7 against Detroit in the ECF.
I wonder how that would have panned out against my Trail Blazers? Maybe Portland would not have been swept on their home court.
Sure. I think getting shoved into the basket support on every drive will give you migraine headaches.
