Category: Bulls History

Chicago alum Nate Robinson on the trend of NBA players doing their own media

“As players, and I could probably speak for every player that’s ever played, we just got tired of the media saying stuff about us,” said Robinson.

Chicago Bulls alum Nate Robinson recently opened up about how he and other former NBAers have been taking to the airwaves themselves to cover the sport they rose to fame in with their own podcasts and YouTube channels.

Robinson recently sat down with HoopsHype’s Sam Yip to talk about that growing media trend, and what has been driving it. “As players, and I could probably speak for every player that’s ever played, we just got tired of the media saying stuff about us and saying stuff about our craft and what we do, and they’ve never done it,” said the former Bulls guard.

“So now that we can be our own media source, it’s way better,” he added. “Because we actually did it, we actually put in the work, we actually have done the things that we’re talking about.”

Pointing to his own work, Robinson said “I’m a student of the game and I know what’s up, and I encourage more players to do it because then that’s more opportunities and more jobs and more knowledge for us to have.”

“They always want to change your words. They always want to make you sound like you said something that you really didn’t. Now we can be our own source, we are the source, and I love that.”

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Chicago alum Joakim Noah on the growth of overseas basketball and his Bulls legacy

Noah recently opened up in an interview about his time with Chicago and the growth of the sport abroad.

Back when he was winning national titles with the University of Florida, it was clear that former Chicago Bulls big man Joakim Noah would carve a career out for himself at the next level, and he found fame with the Bulls, who drafted him ninth overall in the 2007 NBA draft.

Noah would go on to make two NBA All-Star teams (2013 and 2014), All-NBA First Team (in 2014), All-Defensive First Team (2013 and 2014), All-Defensive Second Team (2011), and several other honors while playing for the Bulls. A Chicago legend in his time with the team, the New York City native recently took some time to sit down with the hosts of the “Point Forward” podcast, Evan Turner and Andre Iguodala.

The trio of former NBAers shared their thoughts on the league of today as well as Noah’s career in Chicago, among various other topics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbX7og2N_og

To hear what they had to say for yourself, check out the clip embedded above, or click here to play it on YouTube.

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Former Bulls MVP Derrick Rose almost retired at end of last season

Former Chicago Bulls MVP Derrick Rose nearly retired this past offseason.

Over the years, the Chicago Bulls have had some legendary players suit up in the red and black. Obviously, there are the Michael Jordans and Scottie Pippens of the world, but since the turn of the century, no Bull has been more of a fan-favorite in Chicago than Derrick Rose.

Chicago selected Rose, who grew up in the city, with the first pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. In his very first season with the Bulls, Rose helped lead the Bulls to a playoff spot, and by his third year with the squad, he became the youngest player to ever win the MVP award.

The love Chicago has for Rose exists to this day, even though the Bulls decided to trade him to the New York Knicks in 2016. And while Rose is still in the league, playing with the Memphis Grizzlies, he almost retired at the end of last season.

“Around that time I was still trying to figure out if I still wanted to play,” Rose told Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. “Just trying to figure out my route, if I wanted to stay or leave.”

Rose has dealt with some injuries this season, and the Grizzlies have spiraled toward the bottom of the West due to missing so many players for extended periods of time.

However, the former Bull has appeared in 18 games for Memphis this season. In those contests, he’s averaged 8.5 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 44.7% from the floor and 35.1% from behind the three-point line.

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Lot of Michael Jordan’s game-worn sneakers sets new record for auctioned kicks

It pays to be a sneakerhead, evidently.

It pays to be a sneakerhead, evidently. A set of six pairs of sneakers worn by Chicago Bulls Hall of Famer Michael Jordan has netted a historic return at an auction by Sotheby’s, according to recent reporting by Forbes’ Mary Whitfill Roeloffs.

Per Whitfill Roeloffs, the set netted a record $8 million, setting a new record for the sale of NBA game-worn sneakers. Known as the “Dynasty Collection”, the shoes were worn in His Airness‘ championship-winning games in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 and 1998. A set of photographs signed by MJ were also part of the lot auctioned off by Sotheby’s.

According to Sotheby’s, the sale broke the prior record of game-worn shoes for a pair of sneakers also worn by Jordan that had sold for $2.2 million.

The collection now stands as the second-most valuable game-worn NBA memorabilia, with a jersey worn by Jordan having set the record at $10.1 million in 2022.

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Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce honor Chicago Bulls icon Michael Jordan

His Airness is a perennial G.O.A.T. candidate whose legacy is unparalleled.

Chicago Bulls Hall of Fame guard Michael Jordan shocked the world when he retired for the first time after winning his sixth title with the Bulls in 1998. Future fellow Hall of Famers Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett were among the flabbergasted fans of his game who were incredulous he walked away from the game.

Both were just getting started in the league at that time of their respective careers, Pierce of course with the Boston Celtics and Garnett with the Minnesota Timberwolves. A quarter-century and another retirement later, His Airness is a perennial G.O.A.T. candidate whose legacy is unparalleled.

KG and the Truth talked about their later matchups against the all-time great and their respect for his career on a recent episode of the Showtime Basketball “KG Certified” podcast.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear what they had to say about MJ’s legacy with the Bulls and more.

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Is LeBron James really a rival of Michael Jordan’s?

If you ask Bleacher Report, he absolutely is, at least in LeBron’s eyes. 

Is LeBron James really a rival of Michael Jordan‘s given their careers did not actually overlap? If you ask Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes, the Chicago Bulls star absolutely is, at least in LeBron’s eyes. “After all, no player—active or otherwise—is more consistently used as a point of comparison for James than Michael Jordan,” writes the B/R NBA analyst.

“The ongoing and likely unresolvable GOAT debate never pits James against Curry, Pierce or anyone else,” adds Hughes, who notes such Hall of Famers don’t hold the public interest in terms of articles comparing other such luminaries to His Airness. “The James-Jordan discussion, on the other hand, rages on in barber shops, bars, and studio shows.”

“LeBron’s significantly longer (and uninterrupted by baseball) career gives him an edge in most counting stats,” Hughes reminds us. “Jordan, though, has the higher scoring average, more rings, more MVPs, a Defensive Player of the Year award and the distinction of never losing in the Finals.”

“If you think it’s difficult to compare players who dominated such different eras and whose cases force a tricky balancing act between longevity and peaks, you’re right,” adds the B/R expert.

“It’s why, unlike virtually every other rival of James’, Jordan remains the one that can’t be dismissed.”

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Was the booing of Jerry Krause a turning point in his Chicago Bulls legacy?

Did ‘The Last Dance’ poison his legacy? Is this a chance to right that wrong?

Was his booing at the Chicago Bulls‘ recent “ring of honor” ceremony a turning point in Jerry Krause’s legacy with the team he helped win six NBA titles? The world was horrified as his widow watched fans of the storied ball club treat her deceased partner with disrespect, but the incident also cast an intense light on how he came to be seen so negatively.

Namely, as the villain of Michael Jordan’s Netflix documentary “The Last Dance,” which cast the Bulls GM in a negative light at Jordan’s supposed behest. And while it is not clear whether His Airness personally asked for such a frame for his former boss, a generation of fans certainly became accustomed to seeing Krause as the bad guy for doing what ownership asked of him.

The folks behind the “CHGO” YouTube channel put together a clip exploring this unexpected outcome of an embarrassing moment for the team with historian Jack Silverstein.

Check it out above!

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Kenyon Martin on why Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan was so hard to guard

Jordan was a cover that required Herculean strength and laser focus to stay with, never mind contain. 

When it comes to the toughest of defenders in NBA history, Kenyon Martin is a name that will likely come up in most circles. And the man knows a thing or two about guarding some of the toughest covers in league history. The man made a name for himself on the defensive end of the court, having guarded the likes of Shaquille O’Neal, Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and even Chicago Bulls Hall of Famer Michael Jordan.

Regarding the latter, K-Mart had a ton to share in a recent interview with the folks behind the “Buckets” podcast, with Martin breaking down in detail why His Airness was so hard to guard during his wide-ranging chat.

K-Mart encountered MJ on the court during his comeback days with the Washington Wizards. But even in that sunset period of the perennial G.O.A.T. candidate, Jordan was a cover that required Herculean strength and laser focus to stay with, never mind contain.

To hear the details of guarding MJ for yourself, check out the clip above.

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Never, ever wear Adidas around Bulls legend Michael Jordan

It does not matter if you are the best player in the NBA, or a famous pugilist with an undefeated record.

It does not matter if you are the best player in the NBA, or a famous pugilist with an undefeated record — whatever you do, do not show up for a meeting with Chicago Bulls Hall of Famer Michael Jordan wearing Adidas sneakers. Just ask former super middleweight and light heavyweight champion Andre Ward.

The former top boxer recently recounted how sporting a pair of Adidas went for a Jordan Brand employee who got called out by His Airness during a business meeting Ward was in attendance of back when he himself was an active Jordan Brand athlete. Speaking on a recent episode of the Showtime Basketball “All the Smoke” podcast, Ward shared his account of the dressing down that hapless employee was on the receiving end of, all because of his fashion choices at work.

To hear Ward tell the tale himself, as well as what it was like to be a Jordan Brand athlete in the sport of boxing more generally, check out the clip embedded below.

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Former Pacers star Roy Hibbert on the Bulls’ ring of honor’ debacle

The embarrassing event has had all sorts of NBA icons speak out.

The Chicago Bulls’ recent “ring of honor” ceremony to honor a number of key figures from the storied ball club’s past went sideways in a very embarrassing fashion. Mainly focused on celebrating the people behind the team’s six titles in the 1990s under Michael Jordan, few of the honored attended the event.

But former Bulls GM Jerry Krause’s widow did, and got to watch the crows boo her late husband for her troubles. The egregious faux pas has since become one of the biggest stories in the NBA media over the last few days, with everyone from local reporters to Gilbert Arenas weighing in.

Now, we can add to that list of people former Indiana Pacers star big man and current Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Roy Hibbert, who took some time to talk about that blemish on Bulls history in his own, eponymous podcast.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear his thoughts on the debacle at the “ring of honor” for yourself.

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