Chicago Bulls: Kerr feels the dynasty teams were ‘supposed to end’
Former Chicago Bulls guard Steve Kerr had an interesting take on all of the dynasty teams that were making runs in the 1990’s.
The recent premier of the 10-part his ABC/ESPN/Netflix documentary series spotlighting all-time great shooting guard Michael Jordan and the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls title-winning team “The Last Dance” showcased just how great those dynasty years were. But it also showcased how it all ended for those great dynasty Bulls teams of the 1990’s.
One of the toughest parts of The Last Dance was witnessing how it all ended for the Bulls, with former general manager Jerry Krause and owner Jerry Reinsdorf deciding not to bring back the most important parts of that core beyond the 1997-98 campaign. Krause was already trying to rebuild the Bulls while they were still winning NBA Championships in the mid-to-late 1990’s.
So it shouldn’t really come as a surprise to anyone that he was doing his best to break up the core of Jordan, Hall-of-Fame forward Scottie Pippen, legendary head coach Phil Jackson, etc. following that last title in 1998. They might’ve been able to push for a title during the 1998-99 season, but none of those three returned for the Bulls.
Former Jordan and Pippen teammate, sharpshooting guard Steve Kerr, recently opened up on the matter on an episode of “All the Smoke” with former Golden State Warriors guard Matt Barnes. Kerr spoke on how he’s not all that disappointed about how the Bulls were broken up when they were because it was all supposed to “come to an end” anyway around that time period.
It is true that the Bulls had an aging core at the time and that it was going to come to an end before too much longer. But if nothing else, it feels like they had a real shot to make some noise again and potentially win another title in 1999 if Jordan, Pippen, Kerr, Dennis Rodman, Toni Kukoc, etc. were back together for one more season.
And who knows what would’ve happened if Jackson were allowed to stick around and coach beyond the 1997-98 season. Jackson was a tremendous head coach that won just one less title with the Los Angeles Lakers than he did the Bulls.
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Kerr wound up winning five NBA Championships over the course of his NBA career (three with the Bulls and one with the San Antonio Spurs). And he’s won three as a head coach, during his time with the Warriors. All of the six titles that Jordan got came with the Bulls in the 1990’s.