Bulls Best

Best of the Bulls since 1984

In 1984 my family moved to Chicago. That was also the year the Chicago Bulls drafted Michael Jordan, and the year I became a die-hard fan. I have compiled my “Best of the Bulls,” a 12 man roster of players who have played for the team since then. Keep in mind that players are eligible for this team based on the merit of who they were when they played for the Bulls, so no George Gervin for his ‘85-'86 swan song at Chicago Stadium. Also, I have tried to compile a team, not just a group of individual players. I tried to imagine how they would work together.

The Starters:

Point Guard:
Derrick Rose
Rose is a beast in every way. He wants nothing more than to win, and he will work his ass off to make it happen. Everything about this kid is great. At 23 he has already outdone any previous Chicago point guards by a mile. On top of his incredible game, his humility and personality are like nothing I have ever seen. He is truly unique. He was the league’s youngest MVP and he has a new rule in the collective bargaining agreement named after him. The fact that he is from Chicago is icing on the cake.

Shooting Guard:
Michael Jordan
Duh. Jordan was the best player ever. End of story. He may be a dick, but that helped make him the player he was. Six titles wouldn’t have happened without him. I could list all of his other accomplishments here, but it’s unnecessary. Anyone that claims Lebron or Kobe are superior players are either twelve years old or they live in Miami.

Small Forward:
Scottie Pippen

No tippin’ Pippen was more than the perfect compliment to Jordan, he was one of the best twenty players to ever play basketball (Bill Simmons rated him 24th). He redefined his position, especially from a defensive standpoint. People forget that Pippen almost led the Bulls to the Finals while Jordan was playing baseball. The term “point forward” could have been invented for him. He was a joy to watch. Some people may dismiss him by asking what he would have accomplished without Jordan, but I ask what would Jordan have accomplished without Pippen?

Power Forward:
Elton Brand
The first three picks were no-brainers. This one is probably controversial. Brand played his first two years in the league in Chicago (the beginning of the lean years), averaging a nearly identical 20 and 10 in those seasons and splitting the 2000 ROY with Steve Francis (where is he now?). He was then traded away for Tyson Chandler. Since leaving Chicago, Brand has had a solid but unspectacular career. Brand earns the starting nod for his ability to score from the post. There have been some solid fours in Chicago, but most of them excelled in other areas. I figured the team should have one viable post option, and that is where Brand comes in.

Center:
Joakim Noah
Woah! What am I thinking? Let’s face it, there haven’t been many franchise centers in Chicago. Luc Longley held down the anchor for the last three championships. Ben Wallace was mostly a bust. Tyson Chandler didn’t reach his full potential until leaving town. Curry? Puh-lease? I like Noah. Sure, his numbers are down this year and he may never average more than 12 points a game, but he is athletic, plays defense, hustles, rebounds, and his teammates like him. He is a goofball and he probably spends his offseason smoking blunts at the beach in the French Riviera, but he is a winner. Two NCAA titles in Florida prove that.

The Bench:

Toni Kukoc
Kukoc pretty much got shat on and overlooked during his six and a half years in Chicago. That was mainly due to the fact that he was a foreigner and Michal Jordan is a dick. Let’s not forget that Toni was an essential part of three championship teams. He had a unique and complete offensive game and he was a pioneer who helped make the game global. He may not have had what it takes to lead a team on his own, but he did average nearly 19, 7, and 6 after the deconstruction of the championship teams.

Dennis Rodman

The Worm was a colossal douche-bag. His appearances on reality shows and in the police blotter since his retirement have shown that he remains as such. That much was known about him before the Bulls picked him up for their final three rings. He played offense like a disabled spider and he was a constant pain in the ass with his clearly damaged persona, but he was probably the greatest pound-for-pound rebounder in league history. His smothering defense also complimented Jordan and Pippen perfectly. There is room for him on the bench.

John Paxson
BJ Armstrong hit a greater percentage of his 3 pointers. I was surprised by that fact. The Bulls had a hard time choosing between the two from ’89 to ’94 and I’m finding it difficult as well. They were very similar players and there is only room for one of them on the roster. Paxson gets the nod for being on the floor to hit the game winning shot in game six of the ’93 finals. Paxson was the ultimate role player. He was the Bulls’ second best player during Jordan’s early seasons. He was also a feisty locker room presence who was willing to stand up to Jordan (because Jordan was a dick). He was a class act and a consummate professional, a role he has continued in the Bulls front office.

Horace Grant
Grant came to Chicago in the draft that also netted Pippen. These were the seeds that would grow into a title tree (groan). Grant was a strong all around player. He was their best rebounder during the first three-peat and a solid defender. Grant also had the ability to drop key jumpers. He never made waves and I don’t recall anything about his personality beyond the goggles and the fact that his twin Harvey also had a good NBA career, but I’m assuming he didn’t last fifteen years in the league by being a jerk.

Bill Cartwright
I remember Cartwright mostly for his elbows. I’m sure those weapons were responsible for more than a few concussions, but nobody cared about that in the late eighties. He was an ungainly clod but he was effective. When the Bulls traded Charles Oakley for Cartwright, that was the hair-brained scheme that put them over the hump. It was never pretty watching Cartwright, but he got the job done. I once delivered a pizza to his house. His wife was not very happy that it took me 45 minutes. He didn’t do well as a coach for the Bulls, but his players were terrible. We will put aside those facts. He gets the nod over Tyson Chandler for the backup center spot.

Luol Deng
Deng is that constant presence that you don’t appreciate until he’s gone. He is like hot water. You take it for granted but you rely on it. This is his eighth season with the Bulls and he has amazingly never made the all-star team. How is it that the current Bulls team is one of the three best teams in the league and they only have one star? It is simply not the case. Deng is a star and a pro and a fill-in-the-blanks-all-around player.

Kirk Hinrich
This is the last slot on the active roster. I thought about giving the team a three-point specialist (Hodges, Korver, Kerr) or another wing player (Ron Harper, Jalen Rose, Artest) but I opted for another guy to fill in the blanks with his all around game. Kirk can play both guard spots. He is a strong defender, and a team first guy. He was arguably the best player on the roster from ’04 – ’08. Acquiring Hinrich was what allowed the Bulls to rebuild from the doormat they had been since Jordan’s retirement into the contender they are today. It’s too bad he can’t be around now to enjoy winning it all. It’s also too bad that he couldn’t consistently hit shots from downtown.

Honoratble Mention: (roughly in order)
Jalen Rose, Charles Oakley, Ben Gordon, BJ Armstrong, Ron Harper. Tyson Chandler, Ron Artest, Taj Gibson, Ben Wallace, Brad Miller, Cliff Levingston, Jay Williams, Randy Brown