Ranking 10 Worst Bulls starters of the Michael Jordan era
By Tyler Watts
5. Jason Caffey
The Bulls drafted Caffey with the 20th overall pick in 1995. Jordan had just returned from his baseball stint, and Chicago was gearing up for another run. They hoped the 6’8 forward could quickly make an impact after four years at the University of Alabama, but he did not even last through the three-peat.
Caffey mostly came off the bench, but he did make 27 starts over his two-plus years in Chicago. Over the 183-game sample, he averaged 5.5 points and 3.2 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game. Caffey was not starting over Scottie Pippen or Dennis Rodman, but his production left plenty to be desired.
He finished with a negative 3.1 box score plus-minus and a negative 0.8 VORP over his time with the Bulls. Caffey did not play one second in the playoffs in 1996, and he was limited to mop-up duty in 1997, despite seeing action in 17 of the team’s 19 postseason contests.
Jason Caffey was traded to the Warriors for David Vaughn and two second-round picks at the 1998 trade deadline in a move that upset the Bulls stars. The 6’9 forward has his best season in Golden State, but he was mostly a reserve over the final five years of his NBA career. The first-round pick failed to live up to the hype on the Chicago Bulls, but he is not the worst starter of the Michael Jordan era.