Over 20 years after the historic Bulls dynasty, people are still captivated by its

influential existence. The players of that team from Michael Jordan, Scottie
Pippen, Steve Kerr, Horace Grant, Ron Harper, Dennis Rodman, and others
prove that team excellence matters in achieving multiple championships. The
Chicago Bulls team of the 1990’s represents the complex nature of the sports
industry filled with greatness and controversies. The greatest NBA player in
history, Michael Jordan, was a part of this team. The Last Dance documentary
outlined the truth about the time. It is important for us to realize that the
Chicago Bulls reminds us the power of human athleticism and the importance
to grow human consciousness at the same time.
The United Center of Chicago has always been a stadium where legends performed on a monumental scale.

The Table of Contents

1). The Prologue
2). The Beginning
3). The Rise of Michael Jordan
4). Early Struggles with the Pistons
5). The Era of the First 3-Peat (including the
1992 Dream Team)
6). Tragedy and Retirement
7). Michael Jordan: “I’m Back”
8). Coming Full Circle with a Historic 1995-
1996 Season
9). The End of the Bulls Dynasty
10). The 21st century Era
11). The Conclusion
The Bulls Dynasty from 1991 to 1993 and from 1996-1998 was one
of the greatest sports team dynasties in history. The Chicago Bulls
was a pure part of the 1990's culture, and it has inspired current
athletes in 2020. The greatness of the 1990's Bulls will not be
forgotten. The greatest NBA player in history, Michael Jordan, will
always be respected for his contributions to basketball. Yet, as the
Last Dance documentary has documented, there were imperfections
revolving around Jordan, the rest of the Bulls team, and the Bulls
The Bulls team relied on teamwork,
management. Both players and managements including coaches defense, and offensive firepower.
disagreed on contracts, player rotations, and other matters. Debates,
around what has happened, still exist to this very day. Past hurts even flourish decades later. That is the
messed up part of that situation. Michael Jordan's $100 million investment to fight racism should be
commended. Yet, Michael Jordan made the serious error for a long time for being very much quiet on
important political issues when he was the most popular athlete of his time. Muhammad Ali sacrificed his
career to oppose the Vietnam War and stand up for poor and working class black Americans. The sad reality
of Nike using child exploitation in making Nikes, and these other things make us to put the situation into
context. We can both praise Michael Jordan's greatness in basketball while not justifying his mistakes outside
of the court. Two things can be true. The 10 part series of the Last Dance in my view was to the point, fair,
and it outlined events that many people didn't know about. My views on Michael Jordan never changed. I
knew most of the important information in the documentary. I respect Jordan's basketball accomplishments
while disagreeing with his mistakes.

The lesson of the documentary is that we shouldn't place men as idols. We should recognize that it is our
responsibilities to not only speak the truth, but to live the truth in treating people right and developing our
social consciousness in making the world better. No one should let past hurt consume their souls. With
massive economic inequality, police brutality, and racism, there is no excuse for adults and anyone else to not
take a stand on political issues. Almsgiving, standing up for the people, and community developments make
sense. At the end of the day, we can't use "all costs" to get justice if all costs means to do things in an evil
fashion. We have to be moral about our intentions. The Bulls Dynasty was a representation of the great
selfish lengths that capitalism had has been involved in exploiting human lives at the expense of integrity. It
also showed ironically how teamwork, not selfish individualism, will cause greatness to be abundant. Michael
Jordan certainly deserves his credit along with his teammates too in establishing a historic sports franchise.
There are those who want to scapegoat Michael Jordan for the corporate exploitation of sports in general.
That is wrong. While Jordan isn't perfect, the corporate exploitation of society existed long before Michael
Jordan was ever born. Michael Jordan is the victim of this system (like all of us) not the cause of it. The
Chicago Bulls is the only NBA franchise to win multiple championships while never losing an NBA Finals
series in their history. The era of the Bulls Dynasty (from 1991-
1991-1998), saw the Bulls share rivalries with the
Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat, and the New York Knicks. Since this is the 25th year
anniversary of Michael Jordan coming back to the NBA, it is fitting that this information is shown to the
public. We want basketball to flourish in the future without a system that permits imperialism, racism,
human exploitation, and other blatant injustices. There certainly will never be another Bulls Dynasty ever
again.
In the beginning, the Bulls Team
by 1983 was struggling massively.
The Chicago Bulls was created on
the date of January 16, 1966. The
team was not in the playoffs back
then during the early 1980's. Artis
Gilmore was a legendary Bulls
player during the early years.
Attendance was low. Yet, the
NBA in general reached into new
heights. Legends like Kareem,
Moses Malone, Bob
Lanier, George Gervin, Bernard
King, Dennis Johnson, and Dr. J.
flourished massively. Also, new
talent was abundant by the early
1980's like Magic, Ralph
Sampson, James Worthy, Mark
Aguirre, Isiah Thomas and Bird.
Basketball is a staple of American
culture, but the game of basketball
was invented by the Canadian
James Naismith. Today, it is an
international sport of excellence.
The player that helped to make
the Chicago Bulls a household
name is Michael Jordan. Michael
Jordan was born in 1963 at
Wilmington, North Carolina.
Wilmington is home to a lot of
racism that Jordan admitted to
experiencing while he was growing
up. His competitive nature was
inherited from his parents, James
Jordan and Deloris Jordan. As a
child, he played sports as a means
for him to build character and
express himself. Him playing
basketball against his brother
Larry Jordan often ended up in
fights. At first, Michael Jordan was
losing to his older brother, and
then he started to beat him. This
inspired him to play magnificently
in high school, college, and
beyond. Michael Jordan was once
cut from the basketball team in
high school. Yet, he grew taller
and improved his skills to start on
the high school basketball team.
He played for North Carolina for
many years under legendary coach
Dean Smith. Michael Jordan won
the National NAACP
Championship and grew into
more heights of skills and
popularity. He also played for the
1984 USA Olympic Team where
he was the best player on the
court. Jordan and the rest of the
USA Olympic team were beating
NBA All-Stars back then. Bobby
Knight was the coach of the
Olympic Team back in 1984 at
Los Angeles, California. Many
were already calling Jordan the
best basketball player in the world
by the early 1980's.
Michael Jordan came to the
Chicago Bulls by the 1984 NBA
Draft. That draft included some
of the greatest players in
basketball history like Hakeem
Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, Sam
Perkins, John Stockton, Alvin
Robertson, etc. The first player
selected was Hakeem Olajuwon
for the Houston Rockets, then
Same Bowie for the Portland
Trailblazers, and third was
Michael Jordan. Many people
were skeptical about Michael
Jordan's skills because of his size.
There were many doubters like
Eaton and Walt Frazier. Yet,
Michael Jordan proved to be an
outstanding basketball player
during his Rookie Season. He
inspired crowds with his
highlights, and he caused the
Bulls to go into the NBA Playoffs.
He scored almost 30 points a
game, and he was named Rookie
of the Year of the NBA. He was in
the NBA All Star Game back in
1985. While this was going on,
Jordan signed a contract with
Nike that propelled the Nike
company to achieve record profits.
Back then, Nike was a track and
field shoe. Concord and other
shoes dominated the basketball
market at first. With Michael
Jordan's charisma and talent, Nike
sales exploded. As early as
November 17, 1984, Michael
Jordan released his signature line
of sneakers in a game against the
76ers. The red, black, and white
shoes violated league policy. Nike
paid the fine for Jordan. The Air
Jordan I was available to the
public in 1985. Michael Jordan
won 2 Slam dunk contests in
1987 and in 1988.
After the 1985 Playoffs, Michael
Jordan continued to play until his
broke his leg in the early part of
the Bulls' 1985-1986 season.
Michael Jordan was in pain, but
miraculously, he trained until he
was healed 100% before the 1985-
86 season was over. Jerry Krause
wanted Michael Jordan to sit out
the whole season (in order for a
better draft pick to come about),
but Michael Jordan wanted to play
as soon as possible. This was the
first signs of the disagreements
between Krause and Jordan
including other players that
ultimately ended the Chicago
Bulls dynasty as we know it.
Michael Jordan once played for 14
minutes a game when he came
back. In 1986, Jordan made 63
points against the Boston Celtics,
but he lost the Playoffs to the
Celtics again. He would grow and
be the best player in the NBA by
1988. In 1988, he won the Slam
Dunk Competition, the NBA
Scoring leader (having 35.0 ppg),
the NBA MVP Award, the
Defensive Player of the Year, the
NBA All-Star Game MVP, and
other accolades. He was the most
popular player in the league.
Michael Jordan continued to excel
in the sport of basketball, but one
team would be a road block for
years to come. That team's name
would be: The Detroit Pistons.
The Detroit Pistons would
prevent the Chicago Bulls from
reaching the Promised Land of
the NBA Finals by using the
Jordan Rules. The Jordan Rules
was about using aggressive
defensive tactics against Jordan
that made sure that his other
teammates would bear the burden
to win games. By the late 1980's,
Michael Jordan gained many great
players who were Scottie Pippen
(from Arkansas), Bill Paxton,
Horace Grant, Bill Cartwright,
and Bill Hodges. This team
struggled mightily against the
Pistons in the beginning. The
Pistons won 2 straight
championships in 1989 and 1990
against the Lakers and the
Trailblazers respectively. They
were nicknamed "The Bad Boys"
because many of their players
would be violent and provoke
fights on the basketball court. I
will give Michael Jordan credit to
taking that punishment from the
Pistons and never retaliating all of
the time. Isaiah Thomas, Bill
Laimbeer, Dumars, Mahone, and
others dominated the Bulls from
1988 to 1990 during the NBA
Playoffs. After losing a close series
in 1990, the Chicago Bulls team
started to change. By this time,
Phil Jackson (in replacing the
previous coach Doug Collins) was
the coach of the team. Jerry
Krause inspired Phil Jackson to be
the new head coach of the team.
Phil Jackson embraced zen
Buddhism (including meditation),
and he gave honor to Native
American culture. Phil Jackson
was a basketball player for the NY
Knicks, and he coached a
basketball found in Puerto Rico.
Phil Jackson and Tex Winter
wanted to use a more team
orientated style of play in order to
win more games. This game plan
is called the Triangle Offense,
because players would act as a
triangle to pass the ball around
the court. Jordan was convinced
to accept this plan, and it worked.
In 1989, Michael Jordan wrote a
20 page love letter to the actress
Amy Hunter (in showing the
regret of Jordan's affair with her).
It sold for $25,703 at an auction
by June of 2020. Jordan was with
Juanita Vanoy at the time, and
they both married on September
2, 1989. Amy Hunter is a famous
African American actress who
worked very hard in her
occupation (in starring in the TV
series Pacific Blue plus movies like
The Kingdom and The Scorpion
King). For the record, I don't
condone cheating. Both Amy
Hunter and Michael Jordan
moved on to excel greatly in their
respective fields. We wish both of
them the best. By 1990, the
Chicago Bulls went to the NBA
Eastern Conference Finals and
lost again to the Detroit Pistons.
Also, the Bulls team started to
work out more in the Summer of
1990 to be stronger physically and
mentally. By the 1990-1991
season, the Bulls excelled greatly.
The Chicago Bulls became a
much better team than previous
years. Jordan passed the ball more.
Scottie grew as a leader. Horace
had the skills and strength to
defend and shoot the ball. Paxson
shoot the 3s greatly. The Chicago
Bulls won 61 wins which was a
franchise record until 1996.
Michael Jordan won the 1991
Jordan vs. Magic was the theme of
the 1991 NBA Finals. Magic was
already on the mountaintop as a
legend and an ambassador of the
game. Michael Jordan was a great
player back then, but he didn't
have a ring yet. Therefore,
Michael Jordan wanted to achieve
that greatness in order to solidify
more of his basketball career. The
Bulls lost the first game against
the Lakers. The Bulls came back
to win 4 straight games. Michael
Jordan switched his hands in
midair to make the shot during
Game 2 of the series. Paxton
made plays along with Pippen and
others. The series was the passing
of the torch from Magic to
Jordan. It was the start of a new
NBA MVP award and he held the
trophy with his first wife, Juanita.
By the 1991 Playoffs, the Bulls
finally beat the Pistons in a sweep.
The Pistons team walked off the
court. That move caused Jordan
to never forget what has occurred.
Me, personally, Jordan should
era of the NBA. By game 5, the
Chicago Bulls won their first
championship on June 12, 1991.
People celebrated. Michael Jordan
cried, as he held the trophy, with
his parents and his first wife
Juanita Jordan by his side.
Chicago would never be the same.
August 8, 1991 was when the
Gatorade Be Like Mike
commercial debuts. The 1991-
1992 Bulls team would probably
be the best athletically talented
Bulls team of the entire dynasty.
Michael Jordan and the rest of the
Bulls dominated the league in
scoring plus defense. The team
worked as a cohesive unit. During
the 1992 NBA All Star game,
people celebrated Magic Johnson's
have forgiven the Pistons as that
was almost 30 years ago. The
Chicago Bulls encountered the
legendary team of the Los Angeles
Lakers in the 1991 Championship
series.
courage involving his fight against
HIV/AIDS. The Chicago Bulls
beat the NY Knicks in a tough 7
game series in 1992. Jordan's
game 7 performance against the
Knicks was his best performance
of his NBA career in my opinion.
Jordan inspired Horace Grant in
the series to be more emotionally
strong to handle the games. The
Bulls faced the Portland
Trailblazers at the 1992 NBA
Finals. Jordan made multiple 3s in
one game to prove that he could
make 3s. This was on June 3,
1992 at Game 1. Jordan scored six
3 pointers during the first half. He
made 35 in the first half alone
(Michael Jordan made the shrug
too). Clyde Drexler was a great
player in his own right, and the
Bulls won their 2nd
championship.
By the Summer of 1992, Michael
Jordan was the most popular
player on Earth. Ironically,
Jordan's popularity would soon
reach into more heights. The
Dream Team was formed, because
the previous college USA Olympic
team in 1988 lost the gold medal.
That team was made up of
collegiate athletes, so people
wanted that to change. A tape
proved recently that Michael
Jordan didn't want Isiah Thomas
to be part of the Dream Team.
Isiah Thomas deserved to be on
the team, he was qualified, he
won championships, and Isiah
Thomas was a great basketball
player. Back then, Bird, Magic,
Pippen, and other player didn't
want Isiah Thomas on the Dream
Team because of many issues from
team rivalries to other matters. To
his credit, Magic Johnson
apologized to Isiah Thomas face
to face like a man. The Dream
Team played in many places
before going the 1992 Barcelona
Olympics. The Dream Team
helped to internationalize the
sport of basketball. That is why
Toni Kukoc soon was on the Bulls
Chuck Daly was the David Robinson is Charles Barkley had
Head Coach of the taking a free throw humor and skills on the
Dream Team. Mike during his time on Dream Team. He had
Krzyzewski was the the Dream Team. aggressive gameplay,
Assistant Coach of the David Robinson is and he ironically was
Dream Team. He one of the greatest the highest scoring
returned in 2008 to be NBA Players of all member of the 1992
the Head Coach of the time being a winner Dream Team too.
Redeem Team. of many
Championships plus
a Hall of Famer.
team. Kukoc played greatly in a logo, because Jordan represented
game against the Dream Team Nike. Charles Barkley, Karl
ironically enough. The Dream Malone, Michael Jordan, David
Team's practice in Monte Carlo Robinson, Larry Bird, Chris
was hard. Jordan was playing Mullin, Clyde Drexler, Patrice
against Magic. Each man had Ewing, Magic Johnson, John
their teams. Magic was reluctant Stockton, Christian Laettner,
to leave the throne, but Jordan Scottie Pippen, the Assistant
came back in the game to prove Coach Lenny Wilkens, and Coach
that Jordan was the new best Chuck Daly deserved their medals
player in the league. The Dream via determination and hard work.
Team easily won gold at the 1992 The Chicago Bulls would go
Summer Olympics after defeating through their toughest basketball
Croatia with the score of 117-85. challenges of their first 3 peat by
Michael Jordan celebrated by the 1992-1993 NBA season. The
using the flag to cover the Reebox Bulls won many games.
Also, Michael Jordan was tired
emotionally and secretly desired
to retire as early as late 1992. Not
to mention that scandals about
the Bulls persisted. The book
called the Jordan Rules, which
was written by Sam Smith, said
that Jordan was aggressive to his
teammates and acted like a tough
guy. Jordan accused Horace of
feeding the author information
for the book. Horace to this day
denies that allegation. The book
exposed the gambling of Jordan,
which many people didn't know at
the time. Michael Jordan did
gamble (Jordan, under oath,
admitted that the $57,000 check
sent to convicted cocaine dealer
James Bouler, was a payment over
gambling losses), and the NBA
found no illegal gambling acts by
him. The Bulls carried onto defeat
the Knicks during 1993 Playoffs.
Jordan's gambling in Atlantic City
was scrutinized by the media, but
the Bulls stuck together to defeat
the Knicks. On January 8, 1993,
Jordan reached 20,000 points. At
the 1993 NBA Finals, the Bulls
faced the Phoenix Suns. Charles
Barkley won the 1993 MVP
award, and this motivated Jordan
to compete. The Suns team
pushed the Bulls to 6 games, but
Jordan has 55 points in Game 4
of the series in a 111-105 victory.
By game 6, Paxson's three pointer
with 3.9 seconds left allowed the
Chicago Bulls to have a 99-98
victory in Phoenix. The Bulls won
their 3 peat in 1993 which Bird
and Magic never did. It was the
Bulls' first three peat. Michael
Jordan felt a great sense of relief
from the battles on and off the
court. Jordan said the following
words: "...Winning this
championship is harder than
anything I've ever done before in
basketball, with all the ups and
downs. I've gone through this
season and the mental approach
that I've had to take into each
game. We never gave up hope,
and now that this team has
become part of history, it's a very
gratifying feeling for me..." He
won the NBA Finals, and he was
the peak of his basketball career.
Later, Michael Jordan would face
some the biggest challenges of his
life, and he would still prove to be
the greatest once again.
By the Summer of 1993, Michael
Jordan experienced a a horrible
tragedy. His father, James Jordan,
was found murdered at the North
Carolina/South Carolina border.
James was traveling. Many people
expected the Bulls with Jordan to
fight for a fourth straight
championship, but that wouldn't
be so. James Jordan was a great
supporter of Michael and the rest
of the Bulls team. When things
would come about, James Jordan
was the peacemaker for the Bulls
franchise. That is why the General
Manager Jerry Krause wept when
hearing of his passing. On
October 5, 1993, Michael Jordan
threw the first pitch at a Chicago
White Sox game. Later that night,
many sources confirmed that he
will retire from basketball during
a press conference the next day.
Jordan soon escaped from the
baseball stadium quickly via a car
after the media tried to talk to
him about the situation of him
retiring.
Michael Jordan immediately
retired by October 6, 1993 at the
age of 30. By this time, a vast
majority of people viewed Jordan
as the greatest of all time. The
media was in full force by the time
of announcement. Ironically, he
made a prediction that he could
come back being a future
challenge down the road. Jordan
played for the AAA baseball team
of the Birmingham Barons (of the
Minor Leagues). Crowds of people
were there. He struggled in the
beginning, and he finally did
above .200 which was miraculous
for a new player at his age. July 30,
1994 was when Jordan made his
first home run of his pro career.
November 1, 1994 when the
statue of Michael Jordan in
bronze was unveiled. His mother,
Deloris was by his side. The 1993-
1994 Chicago team had their
nucleus of Horace, Pippen, BJ
Armstrong, Kukoc, and Paxton.
The 1993-1994 Chicago Bulls was
just as good as any team in the
NBA. Scottie Pippen was the new
leader. Scottie Pippen won MVP
for the NBA All Star Game in
1994, and he was 2nd in steals.
Pippen propelled the Bulls deep
into the 1994 Playoffs. The
Chicago Bulls time had great
players like Horace Grant, B. J.
Armstrong, Cartwright, Perdue,
Peter Myers, and Toni Kukoc that
created a great nucleus in early
1994. That is why the Bulls team
won 55 games in the 1993-1994
season.
The Bulls lost to the Knicks in a
close series during the Eastern
Conference Semifinals. The series
 would last for 7 games. The
Knicks would go on to lose to the
Houston Rockets as the Rockets
(led by Hakeem and other players)
would win their first NBA
Championship in 1994. The Bulls
would struggle in the early 1994-
1995 season. By this time, the
Bulls would leave the Chicago
Stadium and move into their
current home of the United
Center. In late 1994, John
Paxson retired. Grant, Cartwright,
and Scott Williams were lost to
free agency, so Ron Harper was
the new guard on the team. Jud
San
Antonio
Spurs, 5
Golden
State
Warriors,
6
Boston
Celtics,
17
Chicago
Bulls, 6
LA
Lakers,
16
NBA Teams with the Most
Championships
Buechler was the small forward, (before it was torn down).
and B J. Armstrong was on the
team including sharpshooter Steve Michael Jordan lived during the
Kerr. Centers Luc Longley and MLB strike, and he refused to play
Bill Wennington came to the as an alternative player. Jordan
Chicago Bulls roster. On played pickup games with BJ
September 1994, Michael Jordan Armstrong. Later, Jordan decided
participated in a Scottie Pippen to comeback in the NBA by
charity game. Jordan scored 52 March 1995. He decision would
points to lead his team to a 187- change the basketball world
150 victory. Jordan made 24 of 46 forevermore. On March 18, 1995,
shots. As he left the floor, the Michael Jordan sent a fax saying,
crowd of nearly 20,000 gave him a "I'm Back." Many human beings
standing ovation. He then, cheered at such of an
bowed, waved to the fans, and announcement.
kissed the floor of the old stadium
The Most NBA Points (as of August
of 2020)
The NBA Points (as of August of 2020)
38,387
36,928
34,241
33,643
32,292
In 1994, Scottie Pippen won the 1994 All Star Game MVP.
He always was a great player. During the time where
Michael Jordan retired for the first time, Scottie Pippen
became the great, sole leader of the Chicago Bulls team.
Pippen is a 6 time NBA champion, a 7 time NBS All Star,
he won 2 gold medals in the 1992 and 1996 Olympics at
Barcelona and Atlanta respectively, and he was chosen as
NBA’s top 50 players in 1996.
On March 19, 1995, Michael
Jordan and the Bulls faced the
Pacers in Jordan's first comeback
game. Michael Jordan made 19
points, and soon made 55 points
at Madison Square Garden in
another game (on March 28,
1995) against the New York
Knicks. The score was 113-111.
Jordan led the Bulls to have a 9-1
record in April. The Chicago
finally came into the Playoffs. The
Bulls struggled against the
Orlando Magic because of many
reasons. Michael Jordan was not
in total basketball shape as he just
came back from baseball. The
Chicago Bulls lacked an internal
defensive player like Horace
Grant who played for the Magic
back then. The 1995 Bulls and
Magic series (the Magic had
players like Shaquille O'Neal,
Penny Hardaway, Horace Grant,
Nick Anderson, etc.) ended with
the Bulls losing (after the Bulls
beat the Magic in Game 2 in a
104-94 score. Jordan wore 23
instead of 45 during that game).
The Bulls' defeat in 1995 inspired
the Chicago Bulls to regroup to be
one the best teams in history by
the next season. Michael Jordan
immediately worked out. He
made the film Space Jam in 1995,
while Jordan was playing
basketball with some of the best
NBA Players at the specialized
gym built by Warner Brothers. B.
J. Armstrong was gone from the
Bulls because of the expansion
draft. Krause traded Perdue to the
San Antonio Spurs for the
rebounding player Dennis
Rodman. The Bulls signed Dennis
Rodman on October 3, 1995 as a
catalyzed to help the Bulls
rebound and defend better.
Dennis Rodman made the Bulls
to be expressive in many ways.
Rodman, as a rebel, dyed his hair,
was unapologetic on his eclectic
personality, and was an
outstanding basketball player. Phil
Jackson, Michael Jordan, and
Scottie Pippen motivated Dennis
Rodman, because all men were
champions and knew what the
ultimate goal was: winning a
championship.
With Dennis Rodman, Michael
Jordan, and Scottie Pippen, they
made history as part of the
Chicago Bulls 1995-1996 team.
Other players during this time
were Harper, Longley, Kerr,
Kukoc, Wennington, Buechler,
and Randy Brown. They made the
2nd best team record in NBA
history, and they played offense
plus defense in a high level.
Rodman did the rebounding.
Pippen was a great defender and
offensive facilitator. During the
first game of the 95-96 season, the
Bulls beat the Hornets in a score
of 105-91. Michael Jordan scored
42 points, 6 rebounds, and 7
assists. During the next game, they
defeated the Boston Celtics. The
Bulls scored 35 points in the 3rd
quarter as they pulled away against
the Celtics, 107-85. 6 Bulls players
scored in double figures in this
win. After losing to Seattle to fall
to 10-2 in later November of
1995, the Bulls won 31 of its next
32 games including 14 during an
undefeated January 1996. On
January 16, 1996, Dennis
Rodman had his first and only
career triple double. He had 10
points, 21 rebounds, and 10
assists against the Philadelphia
76ers. Rodman was controversial.
He head-butted a referee after his
ejection on March 16, 1996.
Rodman was suspended for 6
games and fined $203,926.
Michael Jordan was back to defeat
opponents. He was the 1996 NBA
All-Star Game MVP. Jordan
excelled on every level, and he was
the NBA MVP in 1996. The Bulls
had a record of 72-10 breaking the
previous record of the 1971-72
Lakers of 69-13. They sweep the
Orlando Magic, and defeated the
Seattle Supersonics in 6 games.
The 1996 NBA Finals series
wasn't easy. Gary Payton was an
excellent defender, and Sean
Kemp was explosive offensively.
Steve Kerr was also a potent 3-
point shooter. It was fitting that
the Chicago Bulls would win the
4th championship on Father's
Day. Michael Jordan was
emotional, because it would be his
first championship without his
father with him physically. His
first wife and his children
celebrated his accomplishments
along the way. Michael Jordan was
emotional and praised the
Chicago Bulls organization. The
Bulls, by this time, was like a rock
star team like the Beatles. They
traveled everywhere. Fans came to
them. For a time, Rodman was
more popular than Pippen and
even Jordan. On August 21, 1996,
Dennis Rodman wore a wedding
dress to a book signing in
Manhattan, New York City. This
caused international media
headlines. The book that Rodman
promoted was "Bad As I Wanna
Be" which was his autobiography.
He was carried in a horse-drawn
carriage. Rodman said that the
idea was partially inspired by
Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. The
Chicago Bulls won again for a 5th
title on 1997.
The Chicago Bulls during the 96-
97 season excelled with a record
of 69-13. This year wasn't easy
either. Luc Longley and Toni
Kukoc were injured. Dennis
In 1997, history was made. On June 21, 1997, the first WNBA game was played between the Los Angeles
Sparks and the New York Liberty. Lisa Leslie and Rebecca Lobo are in the image above. After 23 years, the
Jordan had a triple double in the
1997 All Star Game. During the
same All Star Weekend, Steve
Kerr won the AT&T Shootout.
Also, he faced the Knicks and the
Heat throughout the 1996-1997
season. Michael Jordan led the
league in scoring with 29.6 ppg
and set an NBA record with 2,000
points for the 10th time in his
career. Even as early as 1997,
some in Bulls management
wanted to break up the Bulls. This
Rodman and had injuries and
suspensions for controversies. On
January 15, 1997, Rodman kicked
a cameraman (whose name is
Amos). He was suspended for 11
games. I remember this when I
was in the 8th grade of middle
school. On January 21, 1997, the
Bulls defeated the NY Knicks
during a game. This game was
interesting as it was labeled the
con man game. NY coach Jeff van
Gundy accused Michael Jordan of
using friendship on the court as a
tactic to defeat opponents more
greatly. Michael Jordan, of course,
took offense to that. Jordan has
WNBA is here to stay.
didn't happen thankfully. On May
13, 1997, MJ dunked over Hawks
player Dikembe Mutombo and
then waved the finger. The Bulls
faced their strongest opponent
during that year with the Utah
Jazz during the 1997 NBA Finals.
At Game 1, Jordan made a buzzer
beater with 31 points. During
Game 2 of the 1997 NBA Finals,
Michael Jordan had 38 points, 13
rebounds, and 9 assists at 34 years
old. Dennis Rodman made a late
the right to be angry, because just
because you're friends on the
court doesn't mean that you use
that as a tactic to score points.
Competition is competition
regardless. MJ treated his
opponents the same regardless of
friendship. Michael Jordan had 51
points in the game. Later, George
Karl of the Seattle Supersonics
said that Jordan was playing to
not get hurt in being a
jumpshooter. Michael Jordan
responded by shooting 45 points
against Seattle on February 2,
1997.
3 pointer to put the Bulls up 97-
85 at Game 2. The Utah Jazz won
2 straight to make it 2-2. By Game
5, Michael Jordan made 38 points
in 44 minutes while being
completely sick during that game
(winning 90-88 on June 11, 1997).
Malone, Stockton, and other
players gave the Bulls fits, but the
Bulls won in 6 games in 1997.
Game 6 had the Steve Kerr having
the game winning shot with only
5 seconds to play. Jordan had 39
points in Game 6. After that
season, it was clear that the
"There has to be some sense of loyalty. To me, to Phil, to Scottie, even to Dennis...You want to look
at this from a business standpoint? Then have some respect for the people who laid the groundwork."
During the Summer of 1997, the
Bulls played teams in Paris, France
to participate in a World
Basketball Championship
tournament. Jordan played many
games and won the Tournament
making the Chicago Bulls
officially the best team on Earth.
By this time, Bulls management
had a huge debate on the future
of the Bulls. Krause was adamant
that Phil Jackson would not be
the coach of the Bulls in 1999.
Michael Jordan said that if
Jackson wasn't the coach, he
wasn't going to play for the Bulls.
Scottie Pippen was hurt and
delayed surgery until later,
because he wanted to rest. Pippen
also had a terrible contract. A
compromise was reached where
Phil Jackson would coach for only
the 1997-1998 season. The real
beginning of the end was
approaching.
-Michael Jordan
blame for this controversy is not
even Krause per se, but Jerry
Resinsdof. Jerry Reinsdorf could
have easily allowed Phil Jackson to
coach for multiple years, change
Scottie Pippen's contract to be
fairer, and make other changes.
Yet, Kruase was blamed mostly by
many. During the beginning of
the 1997-1998 season, the
Chicago Bulls struggled heavily.
Pippen was gone, because he had
surgery and had to recover.
Michael Jordan had to pull most
of the weight to win games during
that time. Later, Pippen wanted to
be traded. This was stopped later
on. Pippen was a victim of a bad
contract for years, so he was
understandably disappointed.
Also, Dennis Rodman played with
more intensity to compensate
Pippen's absence. By the end of
1997, and the start of 1998, the
Bulls started to rebound. Rodman
also took a long vacation in Las
Vegas with his then girlfriend
Carmen Electra. Jordan had to get
him in Las Vegas to take him to
practice. At practice, Rodman ran
fast and was rejuvenated. By
February of 1998, there was the
NBA All Star Game. At that
game, Michael Jordan won the
NBA All Star Game MVP being
one of the oldest players (MJ was
days away from 35 at the time
during the 1998 All Star Game) to
have done so. Also, he scored on
the then young player Kobe
Bryant. Kobe Bryant would later
be one of the greatest players in
history. Kobe learned a lot from
Jordan and other players. The
competitive spirit of Kobe Bryant
was always there.
The image on the left was on February 8, 1998 when Jordan played against Kobe (who had 18 points) during
the 1998 All-Star Game. The East won with the score of 135 to 114. Michael Jordan (who had 23 points) was
the best player on the court on that date among legendary players at the same time. The image on the right
showed the last shot that Michael Jordan has ever took as a Chicago Bulls player on June 14, 1998.

On March 27, 1998, there was the
Bulls playing the Atlanta Hawks
in the largest crowd in NBA
history with 62,046 people.
Michael Jordan scored 34 points
to win the game in the score of
89-74. The game took place at
the Georgia Dome, because so
many people came to watch the
teams play basketball. People
demanded so many tickets that
the Hawks put an extra 8,000
seats on sale, even though they
offered no view of the court.
Michael Jordan won his fifth
NBA MVP award on May 18,
1998 at the age of 35 tying Bill
Russell (who is a courageous civil
rights legend and the first black
man to coach a NBA Team
which was the Boston Celtics) for
2nd most of all time. Bill Russell
always sent great respect to
Michael Jordan's contributions to
basketball. The Chicago Bulls
defeated the Charlotte Hornets
during the 1998 Playoffs with BJ
Armstrong on the Hornets team.
They would face the Indiana
Pacers with Larry Bird as the
coach. The Pacers had Reggie
Miller, Dale Davis, Derrick
McKey, Antonio Davis, Chris
Mullin, Rik Smits, and other
players. They took the Bulls to the
limit in 7 games.
This was when Michael Jordan
dunked on many Indiana Pacers
players during Game 1 of the NBA
Eastern Conference Finals on May
17, 1998. (From The Associated
Press).
The Pacers was the toughest
challenge that the Bulls faced
during the 1998 Playoffs. Yet,
Jordan, Kukoc, Pippen, Harper,
Kerr, Longley, and other members
of the Bulls team stood up to
defeat them. The Bulls literally
worked as a team. The Chicago
Bulls' players were tired facing the
Utah Jazz again in the 1998 NBA
Finals. The Bulls lost the first
game. They won the 2nd game.
Dennis Rodman was fined by the
Bulls in this series for going into a
WWE event instead of going
into practice. Later, by Game 6,
Scottie Pippen had a hurting
back. Yet, Pippen continued to
play courageously. Michael
Jordan stole the ball from Karl
Malone to shoot the final shot
in the series. The Chicago Bulls
won their 6th NBA Finals
Championship. Michael Jordan
came to be further validated as
the greatest player in NBA
History, who was 35 years old in
1998. Jordan told Phil Jackson
that he had faith. Scottie Pippen
was crying, and Steve Kerr said
that the victory was so
unbelievable. Rodman showed the
DX sign to the Utah crowd. At a
hotel, Michael Jordan played the
piano with some media present.
People cheered in Chicago. A
NBA lockout shortened the 1999
NBA season. Phil Jackson was
soon gone. Therefore, Michael
Jordan officially retired again on
the date of January 13, 1999 with
his first wife Juanita Jordan by his
side. The Bulls kept Kukoc.
The 21st century era had
glimmers of hope. Before that
time, the early 2000's have shown
the Bulls struggling massively.
Bulls management during the
2000-2001 season wanted to
recruit Tim Duncan, Grant Hill,
Tracy McGrady, and Eddie Jones.
They failed to do so. Duncan re-
signed with the San Antonio
Spurs. Hill came to Orlando.
McGrady and Jones played in
their own hometowns. By the
2000 NBA Draft, the Bulls had
Marcus Fizer and Jamal Crawford.
Pippen came to the Rockets and
the Blazers. Rodman came into
the Lakers. The Chicago Bulls
team never made it to the playoffs
again until the 21st century. The
The Bulls was a young team in
2000. By this time, the Chicago
Bulls finally came into the Playoffs
(during the 2004-2005 season).
That was the first time that the
Bulls came into the Playoffs in 7
years or the last time Jordan,
Pippen, Rodman, and Jackson
were together. The Chicago Bulls
had a record of 45-37 during the
2004-2005 season. Michael Jordan
played for the Washington
Wizards from 2001-2003. He
made records as the first 40 year
old man to score over 40 points.
rebuilding process of the Chicago
Bulls never materialized until a
long time.
He made 51 points at the age of
38. Michael Jordan almost won
the NBA All Star Game in 2003.
The Chicago Bulls had resurgence
from 2004 to 2007. Ben Gordon
and Luol Deng played great. The
Derrick Rose era was from 2008-
2016. Derrick Rose is a great
player, but he had many injuries
in his career. Right now in 2020,
the Chicago Bulls continues to be
in a rebuilding state.
With the events going on in the world now, we recognize the truth. The same rivalry, tensions,
contradictions, accomplishments, joy, historic changes, etc. found in the Chicago Bulls dynasty has existed
worldwide. Legends existed throughout basketball. The Last Dance documentary (which was released on
April 19, 2020. It was planned to come out in June 2020, but it was pushed back because of the coronavirus
pandemic. I have watched all ten episodes of the Last Dance) confirms that a necessary balance between
players and management is key in the establishment of a stronger program. The big mystery is whether the
Chicago Bulls would have won more championships if they weren't broken up. I do believe that since the
1999 NBA season was shorten and Dennis Rodman would be inspired greatly (since Rodman left the Spurs
in 1995 previously over issues with the Spurs team) that the Bulls would have a great chance to defeat the San
Antonio Spurs in 1999 (if the Bulls stayed as a team). The Last Dance documentary lasting 10 episodes
described Jordan's greatness and his imperfections. I don't agree with how Jordan treated Scott Burrell
regardless if Burrell liked it. Many parts of the Last Dance documentary described Jordan as a country man.
Michael Jordan is from the South just like Pippen and others on that team. He talks just like my relatives
from the country too.
Likewise, I do agree with Michael Jordan showing courageousness in the basketball court, helping out friends
(like the late Gus Lett including other human beings), and working in many programs that has helped many
human beings. The Chicago Bulls organization now is rebuilding, and the Chicago Bulls 1990's era is always
part of legendary basketball history. We can't omit the great contributions of Jordan, Pippen, Horace, Kerr,
Rodman, Cartwright, Kukoc, Harper, Paxon, Hodges, and other people who made the Chicago Bulls dynasty
what it was. Today, the NBA is in great hands with players like Lebron James, Anthony Davis, Giannis
Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, Paul George, Jimmy Butler,
Jayson Tatum, Brandon Ingram, Pascal Siakam, Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid, Russell Westbrook, James
Harden, Kawhi Leonard, Luka Doncic, and other human beings. Michael Jordan came a long way from
saying, in a joke, that Republicans buy Jordans too to going out to publicly condemn police injustice. Leaders
like WNBA player Renee Montgomery has spoken up for black lives too. Still, our society has a long way to
go in witnessing true justice for all. Life is about learning lessons. The Most High God, in his infinite
wisdom, would want us to not repeat the mistakes of the past in order to make the future better. Now, you
know the truth. Today, basketball athletes are filled with incredible talent spanning sexes, races, nationalities,
backgrounds, and cultures. What unify us are our shared humanity and our duty to fight for freedom. In that
sense, the world will be better.

(Photo credit: JoshFlynn/Twitter)

The WNBA always have stood up for justice too. Say Her
Name as well.
By Timothy