Which team from history would have the best chance to beat the '96 Bulls in a series?

[SouBeachTalents]

It has to be a single season team, no grouping an entire dynasty together

[JohnFreeman]

86 Celtics

[Encre92]

Call me crazy but I think 2008 Celtics.

[TheMarkMadsen]

01 Lakers

[rlsmooth775]

88 pistons would rape 96 bulls

[fpliii]

01 Lakers
:rockon:

[LAZERUSS]

'72 Lakers
'67 Sixers

Close:

'85 and '87 Lakers
'71 Bucks
'86 Celtics
'83 Sixers

[The_Pharcyde]

86 celtics 87 lakers
thats the only 2 i think could compete

like phil jackson said, he had never seen a team like that, its mental state was superior to any team he coached, i dont think anyone could beat that team
72-10 in the reg season
16-3 in the playoffs, 2 losses after being up 3-0 in the finals

then the next year
69-13
16-4 in the playoffs

"diluted league, weak era, top heavy league", doesnt matter...141 wins in 2 season is impressive no matter what league you are playing in

[Marchesk]

95 Rockets with Hakeem in his prime and Drexler still very good would cause the Bulls problems.

[Collie]

86 Celtics. While the Bulls could handle teams with great big men despite their lack of bigs themselves (swept the Shaq Magic and beat the Knicks/Heat multiple times), I think the McHale/Bird/Parish frontline would prove too much.

[rlsmooth775]

Any of the spurs championship team

[SamuraiSWISH]

That I can say would give them a series:

2001 Lakers
'87 Lakers
'86 Celtics
'72 Lakers

[Marchesk]

86 celtics 87 lakers
thats the only 2 i think could compete

like phil jackson said, he had never seen a team like that, its mental state was superior to any team he coached, i dont think anyone could beat that team
72-10 in the reg season
16-3 in the playoffs, 2 losses after being up 3-0 in the finals

then the next year
69-13
16-4 in the playoffs

"diluted league, weak era, top heavy league", doesnt matter...141 wins in 2 season is impressive no matter what league you are playing in

Yeah, but put them against the 01 Lakers with a peak finals Shaq and an emerging Kobe, and the Bulls are going to be challenged. Any championship team in the past with a dominant center would cause the Bulls problems, particularly if you have a perimiter threat. Such as the 83 76ers with Dr J and Malone. Or the 95 Rockets with Drexler and Hakeem.

Seattle did win 2 games against the Bulls in that finals. The Knicks played them very tough, even though they only won one game. The Knicks just didn't have enough offensive firepower to make it more of a series.

[fpliii]

That I can say would give them a series:

2001 Lakers
'87 Lakers
'86 Celtics
'72 Lakers
How about the 92 Bulls?

[JohnFreeman]

2011 Heat maybe.

[Asukal]

86 celtics in a close series. :pimp:

[The_Pharcyde]

Yeah, but put them against the 01 Lakers with a peak finals Shaq and an emerging Kobe, and the Bulls are going to be challenged. Any championship team in the past with a dominant center would cause the Bulls problems.

Seattle did win 2 games against the Bulls, and they were very close in game 2.

yeah the 01 lakers and the 1 playoff game they lost is impressive
however from how phil jackson described those laker teams it always seemed like the locker room was uneasy
and imo in order to beat the 96 bulls, 87 lakers, 86 celtics
everyone has to be on the same page, there has to be a certain level of cohesion like the 2014 spurs
that laker team didnt play all that well in the regular season iirc 54 wins or something like that, but they got their shit together come spring

shaq and kobe would be tough.. but rodman was a great defender on shaq, and longley,wennington, brian williams, and parrish have 24 fouls between them
plus you add in that scoring pop off the bench in kukoc that the lakers didnt have

[LAZERUSS]

The '63 Celtics and the '73 Knicks deserve a shot, as well.

[The_Pharcyde]

The '63 Celtics and the '73 Knicks deserve a shot, as well.

yeah, phil jackson always talked about how other than the 96 bulls, the only other time he has felt the same feeling is with the knicks.. holzman had that team running on all cylinders, very unselfish

[sick_brah07]

01 lakers would give them a hell of a run

[deja vu]

1986 Celtics. Though I think it's 50-50.

[LongLiveTheKing]

2013 Heat

[ballinhun8]

I think the 2001 Lakers are the only 2000/10s squad that could give them a challenge.


Other than that, like others have said its the 86 Celts and 87 Lakers. The depth is crazy for both squads.

[DatAsh]

You beat them with powerful interior scoring and solid perimeter defense.

I would favor

67 Sixers
71 Bucks
01 Lakers


There are other great teams that could do it with talent that don't necessarily exploit their weaknesses, but I wouldn't really know who to favor.

[kennethgriffin]

the 96 bulls were stacked. but only for their era.

the 80's had like 4 teams better than the 96 bulls


put the best 80's pistons in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80s lakers in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80's celtics in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80's sixers in 1996 and they also win 72



so any of those 4 teams. plus maybe shaq/kobe's best lakers team

[The_Pharcyde]

the 96 bulls were stacked. but only for their era.

the 80's had like 4 teams better than the 96 bulls


put the best 80's pistons in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80s lakers in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80's celtics in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80's sixers in 1996 and they also win 72



so any of those 4 teams. plus maybe shaq/kobe's best lakers team


^such a terrible argument, literally nothing tangible about this... no numbers or anything
just saying they would win 72

"a team is stacked for their era"
the hell does that even mean
jordan rodman pippen kukoc and phil jackson isnt a power house in any era?
sheesh

also the bulls didnt even benefit from the weak teams in 96
remember the raptors and a 30 win nuggets team gave them 20% of their losses that season

[Angel Face]

vs 86 Celtics would be a good series.

[poido123]

80's celtics, shaq/kobe lakers.

That's it IMO.

[Megabox!]

2011 Heat maybe.
I actually like the 2012 heat more, Wade declined a little bit but he was still damn good. Plus the addition of Battier, Lebron being a better player and the team chemistry was much better.

[poido123]

I actually like the 2012 heat more, Wade declined a little bit but he was still damn good. Plus the addition of Battier, Lebron being a better player and the team chemistry was much better.


That Bulls team would abuse any of the Lebron Heat teams.

Just too mentally fragile to deal with hardened warriors like Pippen, Rodman and Jordan.

[HOoopCityJones]

01 Lakers.

[Spurs5Rings2014]

Any of the spurs championship team

:applause:

[comerb]

the 96 bulls were stacked. but only for their era.

the 80's had like 4 teams better than the 96 bulls


put the best 80's pistons in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80s lakers in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80's celtics in 1996 and they also win 72

put the best 80's sixers in 1996 and they also win 72



so any of those 4 teams. plus maybe shaq/kobe's best lakers team



Nobody played defense in the 80s.

[BIZARRO]

I am a Bulls/MJ fan, but the best team I ever saw was the '87 Lakers.

[JohnnySic]

'86 Celtics and '83 Sixers

[NZStreetBaller]

01 lakers. seriously whos stopping shaq on that team??

[JohnFreeman]

01 lakers. seriously whos stopping shaq on that team??
refs

[poido123]

01 lakers. seriously whos stopping shaq on that team??


Nobody. Peak Shaq was something to behold.

But games of basketball are won by a team, not a one man wrecking machine.

Teams will let Shaq get his and focus more on the others, which is what those bulls teams would of done.

Rodman has a history of getting under shaqs skin and that could come into play.

But all in all, that Lakers team has a real good shot.

[Encre92]

Nobody. Peak Shaq was something to behold.

But games of basketball are won by a team, not a one man wrecking machine.

Teams will let Shaq get his and focus more on the others, which is what those bulls teams would of done.

Rodman has a history of getting under shaqs skin and that could come into play.

But all in all, that Lakers team has a real good shot.
I have to agree. Good point on Rodman.

[ImKobe]

01 Lakers

96 MJ and 01 Kobe pretty much cancel eachother out, Shaq rapes Rodman and whoever else they try to throw at him, Scottie won't do enough.

[Encre92]

01 Lakers

96 MJ and 01 Kobe pretty much cancel eachother out, Shaq rapes Rodman and whoever else they try to throw at him, Scottie won't do enough.
:biggums:

[tamaraw08]

Call me crazy but I think 2008 Celtics.
when I think of the celtic roster PLUS thibs as defensive coordinator...no I don't think you are crazy but I heard they had the MOST losses by team who won it all needing all 7 games in the first 3 series to advance.
That is why I think most posters kept mentioning the 01 Lakers because of how they DEMOLISHED every team, sweeping Portland, Kings and Spurs (those teams were really good esp the Spurs) before dropping ONE game in OT vs the Sixers.
The irony was that their bench were WEAKER THAN the previous year. Fox and Fish had to play longer bec they lost Rice, Harper and Green

[tamaraw08]

Nobody. Peak Shaq was something to behold.

But games of basketball are won by a team, not a one man wrecking machine.

Teams will let Shaq get his and focus more on the others, which is what those bulls teams would of done.

Rodman has a history of getting under shaqs skin and that could come into play.

But all in all, that Lakers team has a real good shot.

Im not sure the 6-8 Rodman can really handle Shaq tho. Shaq tends to struggle more with huge bodies like Sabonis draping that 300lb body over him.
The irony was Kobe was so dominant that playoffs Shaq didn't have to elevate esp the San Antonio series. Shaq then finishes the job by wreaking havoc in the finals with smaller/lighter centers inthe East for 3 straight years.

[kshutts1]

There are a ton of teams that could match up favorably with the '96 Bulls, or any other past champion. But it doesn't matter. The '96 Bulls still rolled their opponents more than any other team in history. That's what we know, and that's what matters.

[fourkicks44]

Didn't Robert Parish play on the 96 Bulls team?

01 Shaq vs 96 Parish.

[poido123]

Im not sure the 6-8 Rodman can really handle Shaq tho. Shaq tends to struggle more with huge bodies like Sabonis draping that 300lb body over him.
The irony was Kobe was so dominant that playoffs Shaq didn't have to elevate esp the San Antonio series. Shaq then finishes the job by wreaking havoc in the finals with smaller/lighter centers inthe East for 3 straight years.


No, he wouldn't directly check him, rodman simply doesnt have the sheer size to hold his feet on Shaq backing in. Then again, not a lot of players did.

Rodman would be Sneaking up to Shaq out of play, pulling on his jersey, pretending to get tripped up ala Malone in the 98 finals :lol then he would whistle sweet nothings into his ear and call him a fat lardass or something along those lines...

:oldlol:

[Jlamb47]

01 Lakers
14 Spurs

[Soundwave]

01 Lakers.

Spurs would get wrecked.

[riseagainst]

01 Lakers
14 Spurs

this.

[secund2nun]

The spurs and the 2000 and 2001 Lakers. Plus the Hakeem Rockets. Rodman isn't stopping shaq Hakeem and Duncan. They will kill him.

[OldSchoolBBall]

'86 Celtics
'87 Lakers
'01 Lakers

Probably in that order. I don't see any other team beating them in a series. The 80's Celts/Lakers were just crazy stacked and manned by all-time legends, plus the Celtics had a ton of talent inside with Bird/Parish/McHale/Walton, where the Bulls were weakest. The '87 Lakers lacked that dominant interior, but on overall talent and Magic's greatness and ability to dictate tempo, I can see them winning. They definitely have less of a chance than the Celtics, though, largely because the '96 Bulls were perhaps the best team ever at controlling the tempo of games with their defense. I think they force LA into more of a halfcourt game than they'd like.

The '01 Lakers have a dominant player at SG in Kobe, who would require one of Jordan or Pippen to expend energy defensively, and of course the MDE Shaq inside, where again Chicago is weak. Their lack of depth and overall talent could bite them, though, and I can definitely see Harper doing a good enough job on Kobe to allow MJ/Pip to conserve energy.

EDIT: People listing the '14 Spurs are kidding themselves.

[tamaraw08]

There are a ton of teams that could match up favorably with the '96 Bulls, or any other past champion. But it doesn't matter. The '96 Bulls still rolled their opponents more than any other team in history. That's what we know, and that's what matters.

One missing key piece from those teams was a great coach.
01 Lakers also had Phil.
the 87 Lakers had Riley etc etc.

[Micku]

No, he wouldn't directly check him, rodman simply doesnt have the sheer size to hold his feet on Shaq backing in. Then again, not a lot of players did.

Rodman would be Sneaking up to Shaq out of play, pulling on his jersey, pretending to get tripped up ala Malone in the 98 finals :lol then he would whistle sweet nothings into his ear and call him a fat lardass or something along those lines...

:oldlol:

Rodman basically kept Shaq from backing down in 96 and got him out of position a few times. And Rodman would fight for the rebounds, which will eliminate second chance points. You can check some of the defense played against Shaq here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg3BiOw4TWo#t=02m23s

With that said, I think 01 Shaq was bigger and might be stronger. Even back then when the Bulls faced 96 Magic, they couldn't stop Shaq. They could only contain a couple of things.

Anyway, 86 Celtics may have the best chance to beat them. And maybe the 01 Lakers or 85 or 87 Lakers.

[MiseryCityTexas]

Kareem's Bucks, Magic and Kareem's 86-87 Lakers team, Most of the 60s Celtics teams.

[MiseryCityTexas]

76-77 Blazers could probably beat the 72-10 Bulls also or at least take them to 7 games.

[DatAsh]

Rodman basically kept Shaq from backing down in 96 and got him out of position a few times. And Rodman would fight for the rebounds, which will eliminate second chance points. You can check some of the defense played against Shaq here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg3BiOw4TWo#t=02m23s

With that said, I think 01 Shaq was bigger and might be stronger. Even back then when the Bulls faced 96 Magic, they couldn't stop Shaq. They could only contain a couple of things.

Anyway, 86 Celtics may have the best chance to beat them. And maybe the 01 Lakers or 85 or 87 Lakers.

I remember players at the time calling Rodman the strongest player they'd ever played against.

What's weird is that Rodman in his book talks about how he rarely ever boxed out, since he wasn't strong enough. :confusedshrug: