Running of the Bulls?

Baseball is my game, and as far as sports are concerned, my first love. Football follows at a distant second. Now and then, I enjoy watching a basketball game, but despite the fact that I even played a little junior varsity ball (and not very well), it doesn't rank high on my TV priority list these days.

This wasn't always the case though. Being the Chicago-boy that I am, I followed the Bulls pretty closely throughout the 90's. The two three-peats, the 72-10 regular season (1995-1996), and the casts that included (in no particular order) Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Steve Kerr, BJ Armstrong, Luc Longley, John Paxson, and Dennis Rodman - all somehow melded together under coach Phil Jackson. Those were fun years to watch.

Since the breakup of the Bulls dynasty in 1998, however, I simply lost interest in the NBA. Something happened as the next generation took the court, and I'm not sure I can explain it. The game as it was played in the era of Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, David Robinson, Jordan, Pippen, Malone, Stockton, Olajuwon, and others is just not the same as the game today.

Now the Bulls are back in the Eastern Conference finals, the first time they've made it this far since the end of the dynasty. I may have to take a peek, if only out of curiosity, to see if this incarnation of the Bulls can continue their run to the NBA finals. On a side note, despite my respect for Phil Jackson, I was rather pleased to see the Lakers get swept out of the playoffs by the Mavericks.

Still, I find myself nostalgic for the old days. Days when I could plop down in front of the tube, and take in the spectacle of the pre-game introduction, knowing that good basketball was just moments away:


Now THAT was a team. We'll see if these new guys can make a claim of their own, and bring another championship back to Chicago.