1991 Bulls and other NBA champs

[VF21]

Wow. Just wow...

Watching game 5 on ESPCL, I think they look better in retrospect than they looked at the time. And that's saying something...

I actually turned in because Vlade is on the Lakers team, but I was drawn in to just how good Chicago was. And the best was still yet to come for them...

It must be Chicago Bulls day on ESPN, because they're also going to show game 6 from 1992 (v. Portland) and game 6 from 1993 (via Phoenix).

 

[VF21]

Okay, the second game is coming on. Played in Chicago...

Portland features Terry Porter, Clyde Drexler ... and coach Rick Adelman.

And the game is played with only two officials.

 

[nebs]

I think ESPNC is showing NBA Finals up till the year 1996. At least that's when it cuts off and goes into paid programming at 2:30am. I was watching Lakers-Pistons from 1989 Earlier today.

 

[mbkings10]

I have the Chicago Bulls DVD and it has some of their classic games. Both teams from 91-93 and 96-98 had the perfect blend of role players to complement MJ and Scottie. From Paxson, Grant, Armstrong, Williams to Kukoc, Kerr, Rodman, everyone on the team knew their roles and didn't complain about it. They all had the same vision to win and that was what was so beautiful because rarely do we see a whole team that dedicated.

 

[nebs]

Oh I just checked and it picks back up at 4am with the 1997 Finals and keeps going up to the current year.

 

[VF21]

I know things are about to get bad. Portland is up by 14; and I know how the games ends up.

I'm actually interested in seeing if any of the flak Adelman took over this is legitimate or not. So far, he's animated and talking to his staff but letting his players play the game, which is something he's always done.

 

[VF21]

So, now it begins. The whistles that will eventually lead to the demise of the Blazers. And I don't see how Adelman can take the blame. Duckworth called for a ticky-tack foul. Then Drexler called for breathing on Jordan...

This is good hoops, though. Even though it's looking as though Portland is simply starting to press a little too hard, trying to put the nail in the coffin. And Adelman is standing on the sidelines, trying to calm his team down just a bit.

Drexler is amazing.

 

[VF21]

And Phil Jackson is already practicing his best "oh, please!" glares at the officials.

 

[VF21]

Portland leading by 15 at the end of three quarters.

I have to wonder how different things might have been had they gone on to win game 6 and taken game 7?

The Bulls dynasty might have gone a lot differently, Adelman might well have stayed in Portland, and the Kings might still be crawling around the bottom of the barrel...assuming, of course, there would even still be a Sacramento Kings.

 

[Sac.Kings]

The Bulls were something else, no doubt. Each player knew his role on that team and thats what made them great. That and someone named Jordan...

 

[VF21]

But it wasn't just Jordan. It was Pippen... and Paxson. But yes, Michael Jordan not only took himself to another level, he took his team with him.

 

[Gargamel]

^ Cliff Robinson was in that game. 1989-90. 16 yrs ago. He was on the Priory of Scion list under da Vinci and before Sir Isaac.

 

[Padrino]

adelman ran into what would become a legendary bulls team in '92. then he ran into what would become a legendary lakers team 10 years later...against the same coach in both instances. adelman has had a lotta great talent to work with, and he certainly has his faults as a coach, but its tough to win that ring when you run into legends. drexler, porter, ainge, robinson. that was a great team that ran into jordan, grant, pippen, and paxson, which was a team that would become legend. webber, bibby, divac, stojakovic, christie. that was a great team. those five guys, on top of a deep bench, should have been able to overcome kobe and shaq, who were a twosome that will become legend. however, shaq and kobe had help from guys like derek fisher, rick fox, and robert horry. two legends and a few role players will seal the deal over any team, even a great one like the '02 sacramento kings. and, make no mistake, that was a great team. they were so damn close...it just wasn't quite the stuff that legends are made of...

 

[VF21]

I'm now watching the 1994 Finals. And I've come to the reluctant but pretty undeniable conclusion that Robert Horry just might be the best singularly under-rated player in the history of basketball. And it's not a conclusion I've come to lightly...

Watching Horry, Kenny Smith (with hair), Patrick Ewing (before he became a caricature of himself), Olajuwan, Vernon Maxwell, Otis Thorpe and Charles Oakley just makes it obvious. (Sam Cassell, as a rookie, still looked like an alien BTW.)

Robert Horry, after all these years, still brings it and still gives it his all. I still hate him but I cannot deny his contributions to the game.

 

[Gargamel]

I'm now watching the 1994 Finals.

In a decade or so, we've run the gamut from thug defense ugly offense low scoring to minimal defense flopping gimmick offense high scoring. Both styles suck.

 

[Kings113]

I like both styles.

 

[hoopsfan]

Okay, the second game is coming on. Played in Chicago...

Portland features Terry Porter, Clyde Drexler ... and coach Rick Adelman.

And the game is played with only two officials.

And interestingly, it seemed the game was called better with 2 refs.