1995-96 Bulls vs. 2015-16 Warriors. Who ya got?!
That’s the question that all NBA fans are asking right now, especially since it’s looking more and more like this year's Golden State team could (maybe?) challenge the 72-10 record that the ’95-’96 Bulls put together. As ESPN pointed out after the Warriors advanced to 15-0 on the season last night, Golden State has actually been better through 15 games than Chicago was, as least as far as stats are concerned:
But still, the debate rages on with everyone—including some former Bulls players like Dennis Rodman—picking sides and talking up the team they think would win.
There’s one person who won’t do it, though: Steve Kerr. He was, of course, on the ’95-’96 Bulls team. He’s also the head coach of this year's Warriors team, even though he’s currently on the shelf with a back injury. So over the weekend, ESPN asked him his opinion on which team would win in a game if they played, and he was, predictably, on the fence about it.
“My initial thoughts are that it is literally impossible to even compare, because the rules are so different and the eras are so different,” he said. “We would overload the strong side on [Michael] Jordan, and they would call illegal defense; and they would put their hands all over [Steph] Curry, and the refs would call a foul. That make sense?”
Sure does. But c’mon. You have to pick someone, Coach. You’re the only one who can settle this debate once and for all! Give us a final score for a hypothetical game between the two teams!
“No comment,” he told ESPN. “I refuse to comment on the score of this hypothetical game that would never happen.”
The only thing Kerr knows for sure? That he probably wouldn’t have played much in a game between the two teams.
“I would have had a nightmarish time playing against the Warriors because I wouldn’t have been able to find anybody to guard,” he said. “Nobody can guard Steph, so I would have had an impossible time trying to do that. So I don’t even know where to begin on that front.”
He also thinks the game would have probably ended on a buzzer beater, because, well, if we're just out here making stuff up anyway, why not?!
“I believe it would hinge on a step-back Steph Curry 3 over Michael Jordan at the buzzer,” he said. “And we’ll never know if it goes in or not.”
Ha. You can check out the entire interview here. If you can’t tell, Kerr isn’t a big fan of speculating about a game played between two teams that existed two decades apart, but his Q&A is still a really good read.
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[via ESPN]
