Reality Check

I am getting sick of Chi people demanding that the Bulls rebuild prematurely and start winning NBA rings today. If you would study a little history, there is a pattern that seems to follow the great teams in basketball.

Let's start with Chicago. The Bulls have had 2 disgraceful years since their championship and the complete dismantling of the team, and now they are just beginning to climb out of the cellar in the near future .. maybe this season.

The Celtics won the title in 86, and reached the playoffs without making much noise for about 4 years. Now look at their current state. 11 years in disgrace and running, with bad drafts, FA loss, and idiotic trades.

The Lakers last won the title in 88. They had some success until Magic left, then the team went to hell until they were tampered the hell out of Orlando to win a fabricated title with Shaq, Kobe, and Bulls personnel. But until that happened, 6 years in disgrace. Overall a good job by Jerry West to illegally win his first ring as a GM.

Detroit had a very good team with the bad boys, but as soon as the Bulls eliminated them 3 straight seasons, the franchise went to hell, reaching the playoffs only once with Grant Hill. 7 years and counting in disgrace.

The only difference between the Bulls and those other three is that the Celtics, Lakers, and Pistons gradually lost their power until they became the laughingstock of the league. Jerry Krause, seeing the inevitable, skipped the unpleasant foreplay and decided to improve the team with only 2 years of horrendus play, but with the added sensation of hope due to the many young players and draft picks.

So Bulls fans: stop crying and moaning. Because in the long run, Longley, Harper, and Pippen wouldn't be bringing home a ring any sooner then Brand, Fizer, and Mercer.

Maybe you ought to study a little history. The Bulls only eliminated the Pistons once...

I agree with the rest of your post though.

Venkatesh Natarajan

'We regret the closure of this public toilet. Please use the street.'

What was West's job title in 1980, '82, '85, '87 and '88?

It was the Pistons who eliminated the Bulls in three consecutive playoffs (1988-90). The Bulls have defeated the Pistons in only two playoff series, and one of them was in 1974.

Although the Pistons haven't well in the playoffs, they have reached the playoffs in four of the past five seasons (1996, '97, '99 and 2000)

I agree. And there also wasn't a chance in hell of winning the 7th championship.

The would have needed ALL of the following to occur to win one more: 1. Return of Jordan. He didn't care about an asterisked shortened season. He was also fighting minor injuries. There was very little to gain and a lot for him to lose. 2. Another excellent season from Pippen. I think his talented level has dropped since leaving the Bulls. 3. The return of Phil Jackson. Even if he had full support from management, I suspect he thought it was time to leave a sinking ship. The team was starting to look old, there were no top draft choices, and I don't believe he wanted to take the blame. Developing rookies might have softened the fall, but the dynasty was at an end. 4. Dennis Rodman or an equal replacement. I thought his talent was already slipping in his last year as a Bull. 5. Luc Longley. Despite his protestations about having wanted to stay with the Bulls, he was wise to be looking for a long term deal elsewhere.

Mike McGinley Hoffman Estates, IL

The idea was to *avoid* the Celitc/Laker syndrome. Hasn't happened. In fact despite Jerry's ability to see the future this team is just as bad as it would have been had the fans had the added enjoyment of seeing MJ, Pip et al compete at a much higher level than this current team ever will.

I would rather just watch good basketball, this 'added sensation of hope' isn't much fun, or much in evidence.

1989- NBA Finals 1990- 2nd Round 1991- NBA Finals.

Not bad, especially when you consider the three years after the Celtic's last title, the Piston's last title...

The Lakers 'went to hell' for three years after Magic left: 1991-92: 43 wins 1992-93: 39 wins 1993-94: 33 wins

Then the Lakers got respectable: 1994-95: 48 wins 1995-96: 53 wins

How long have you been following the NBA? You talk as if the Lakers had been wallowing down the bottom of the NBA the entire time between Magic's retirement in 1991 and Shaq's signing in 1996.

If the Lakers tampered the deal with Shaq, the deal would have been off....remember Juwan Howard's move to the Heat?

'Fabricated title'?

Where do you get the six years from? The Lakers were on a downward slope from 1991-92 to 1993-94 and then improved every year from 1994-95 to 1997-98 (drastic improvement in 1994-95) before winning the title in 2000. Six years?

Once again, how long have you followed the NBA? Jerry West's first ring as a GM?

I only responded to your comments about the Lakers because they were probably the most incorrect, however in regards to your entire post, I have three words for you...CHECK YOUR SOURCES....How can you hope to make a point when you can't get your facts straight?

Too bad you missed the point entirely. The Lakers had no gleamy future in sight, until Shaq and Kobe turned that around. If it wasn't for O'neal, the Lakers would be hovering 500 for years to come, which is what happens in a league where good play gets you penalized in the draft. So the Bulls 2 horrendus seasons were in fact rewarded with Brand and Fizer.

And you missed my point...my point is that, as I pointed out in my post (which you decided to reply to only one bit) was the fact that you clearly have no idea what you are talking about because most of the facts that you used as examples to back up your point are completely incorrect.

The Lakers did have hope in 1995 and 1996....they had a young team that was winning a good amount of games and having some (1995) playoff success. One view is that the Lakers got lucky with Shaq and Kobe, another view is getting Shaq and Kobe was a result of good management. However, it is extremely unlikely that Shaq would have ever signed if the Lakers were still 'in disgrace' as you say. The development of young players (Peeler, Lynch, Van Exel, Jones) and soon-to-be-veterans (Divac, Campbell) created a situation where Shaq would be walking into a team that had a strong up-side. Or maybe you are just simply guilty of gross exaggeration.

You just had better hope that Brand and Fizer will be the answers and the Bulls have a good season....soon! Young players that end their rookie contracts usually leave if the situation isn't looking good (e.g LA

And how many wins has the Bulls 'reward' turned into?? How much sooner will the Bulls be respectable as a result? Is it going to be substantially quicker than if the Bulls had actually fielded NBA teams the past two years??

Your only purpose was to point out that instead of the Lakers being disgraceful, they instead were mediocre, which is irrelevant to the fact that they weren't going to win a championship anytime soon (which was the intent of the post). I believe you have no idea what you are talking about when you say I have no idea what I am talking about.