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For Bulls fans, the bridge between the 1980s and 1990s is the unforgettable 1991 NBA Finals, when, somewhere in the second half of Game 5 versus the Los Angeles Lakers, father turned to son, daughter to mother, and Bulls fan to Bulls fan, all asking, in genuine bewilderment: Can this really be happening? Are we about to win an NBA title?
Yes, they were. And in an extraordinary Christmas, birthday, and first day of summer all rolled into one, the Bulls would deliver five more titles before the decade was ended.
Such success, after the near-misses of the early-to-mid 1970s and the frustrating, two-steps-forward, one-step-back of the late 1980s, put an entirely different spin on Chicagos rivalries for the 1990s. Particularly when it came to winning in the playoffs, the Bulls had a stretch of success not seen before or since.
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The Magic versus Michael match-up in the 1991 NBA Finals was special, but the Bulls rivalries with a pair of Eastern Conference foes are what really made the teams decade of dominance one for the ages.
I wanted hungry guys who were willing to subvert their egos to win, says Riley, now the president of the Miami Heat. I needed them to trust me, and my promise was I would deliver them to prominence. We never quite made it as far as I wanted because of Chicago, but that was the deal I made with my guys, and it worked pretty well for several years.
In fact, Rileys motivational work was so effective that the underdog Knicks actually won the first playoff game between the two teams, 94-89, in the 1992 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series was a back-and-forth affair, the first of three straight postseason matchups that would last at least six games.
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We didnt really like them, says Patrick Ewing, the star of those Knicks teams and now an assistant with the Houston Rockets. They were in our way, and we wanted to get past them and win a championship. They had had enough success already, in our minds. People might not have liked it, but we were willing to do anything to get there.
Unlike the Bad Boy Pistons, who did succeed to the tune of two championships, the Knicks failed to win a title in the 1990s, even in the two seasons the Bulls were Michael Jordanless. One key difference between Detroit and New York was that Detroits bruisers were ableif not willingto play an uptempo game. Their backcourt of Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars, as well as super sixth man Vinnie Johnson, could set fire to the nets.
Riley actually further perfected Bad Boys play by grinding the game to a slower pace than ever. It may have been a precursor to the physical play thats dominated the NBA for the last decade or so, but it made for painful games to watchand play.
The next yearwithout a then retired Jordanmarked the lowest point of the Bulls-Knicks rivalry, from Chicagos standpoint. After an unbelievable 55-win season that saw Pippens all-around play and Phil Jacksons mentoring step to the fore, the Bulls suffered two setbacks in one semifinal series. The first came at home in Game 3, with the Bulls already down two games to none.
In what would become the 1.8 game, Pippen famously and inexcusably opted out of the game and sat on the bench after Jackson designed a play for rookie Toni Kukoc to take the last shota three-pointer which he nailed for the buzzer-beating win. Pippens reputation was immeasurably damaged with both Bulls fans and teammates alike.
Nonetheless, the Bulls continued to fight through the series and found themselves leading near the end of Game 7 in New York when Pippen was whistled for a phantom foul by veteran referee Hue Hollins, giving Knicks guard Hubert Davis two free throws and reversing the course of the game. Although the call later was famously mocked by referee supervisor Darrell Garretson, Chicagos shot at a fourth straight title was dashed.
In the later 1990s, the Knicks faded, losing one gritty, physical series in five games versus the Bulls in 1996. By then, Chicagos most prominent rival was Indiana, who had slipped into the Central Division favorites role in the absence of Jordan.
In the regular season during the second Jordan era of 1995 to 1997-98, Indiana played the Bulls a somewhat respectable 5-9 and finished second in the Central in two of the three full seasons. It also beat out the Bulls for the division by five games in Jordans return season of 1994-95. But the two teams didnt meet in the playoffs until 1998, the final season of Chicagos NBA Finals runs.
The Pacers, chronically overlooked in comparison to the star-studded Bulls, had been swallowed up in the endless hoopla over the Bulls making their Last Dance together as a team. Reggie Miller went so far as to protest that the Bulls considered the Pacers a speed bump on their way to a sixth title.
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Of course, Miller and the Pacers had let their golden opportunity slip away by failing to make the Finals in 1994, when Jordan was on a minor league baseball diamond, learning to hit curveballs. But the resilient squad, helmed by onetime Boston Celtics postseason ace Larry Bird, appeared to be every bit Chicagos equal.
In a classic seven-game series for the 1998 Eastern Conference championship, the Bulls and Pacers battled tooth and nail for every rebound.
And thats how the series played out. It was ugly, with a continuous stream of he-said, he-said poor mouthing over foul calls. But, discounting Chicagos Game 5 blowout of Indiana (106-87 at the United Center), the series was decided by an average of four points per game.
Game 6 was particularly controversial. Jordan tripped with 2.6 seconds left, but no foul was called. And worse, Bulls nemesis Hollins whistled Pippen for an illegal defense with less than two minutes to go, an unheard of call even in the closing minutes of a regular season game.
We were upset at the way the Bulls were treating us, says current Nets guard Travis Best, whose four points in the last half-minute iced Game 6 for Indiana. They had every call go their way for how many years, and suddenly they were complaining about a few calls that didnt? It was easier for them to argue with the refs than it was to give us credit for playing them hard, and we didnt appreciate that.
In Game 7, the Bulls came out nervous, belying the fact that, for all their postseason triumphs, they had faced only two prior elimination games in their championship era. Bulls fans and players alike were uncommonly quiet at the United Center, where there was apprehension in the air. The Pacers met that silence with aggression, springing to a 20-7 lead.
The game was tied at 79, with five minutes remaining, when Chicago surged forward for the win. By the end, the rival might have been new, but the result was typical for the Bulls: Jordan shot poorly but finished with 28 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, and two steals; Pippen added 17 points and 12 rebounds; and Kukoc was the unsung hero, scoring 21 on 7-of-11 shooting. The Bulls would go on to win in the Finals and complete their second threepeat, but only after their most difficult Conference Final yet.
The Bulls, a team born in 1966, came of age quickly. Their struggle to win the big games as they grew up was painful for both players and fans alike. But the same team that had been so vulnerable in its youth finally did break through to prominence, in a most dominating fashion. It was New York and Indianas sorry destiny as 1990s rivals to have to break through against that backdrop of utter dominance.Tyrus Thomas Mix
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This Article was taken from BULLS.COM
