Bulls lose to Warriors; crowd reaction spoils halftime ceremony
The ceremony celebrating the greatest players and team in Bulls history will be remembered as one of the most sad and depressing events in the team's existence.
There was high energy inside the United Center with the Golden State Warriors in town and the Bulls set to launch their Ring of Honor during halftime.
The ceremony started out OK, but then emcee Neil Funk introduced the late Jerry Krause, general manager of the six championship teams of the 1990s. The crowd booed, then the camera cut to Krause's widow, Thelma, who was in attendance and seated on the court. She broke into tears, shook her head and waved away the camera.
It was tough to imagine a more awkward and painful moment. Funk didn't have much choice but to keep going. About a minute after Krause's image on the videoboard was booed, coach Phil Jackson was greeted with the loudest cheers of the night.
About two dozen players and staff members of the 1995-96 team were on hand but never introduced. As the honorees awkwardly shuffled off the court, the building was engulfed in a quiet, negative energy. Fans who booed Krause seemed to know they screwed up, but it was too late to do anything about it.
The actual game mirrored the Ring of Honor ceremony. When Coby White drained a long 3 just before the buzzer, the Bulls ran off the court with a 75-62 lead, their best half of the season.
After the extended halftime, the Warriors throttled the Bulls 48-20 in the third quarter and finished off a 140-131 victory without being seriously threatened. There was some life left in Golden State's four-time champs, as Klay Thompson scored 23 points in the second half, while Steph Curry added 19. The pair combined to knock down 10-of-18 3-pointers after halftime and the Warriors repeatedly beat the Bulls to offensive rebounds.
At least neither Splash Brother set the NBA single-game record for 3-pointers, something Thompson did at the United Center in 2018.
The loss spoiled a good shooting night for the Bulls' top scorers. DeMar DeRozan led the way with 39 points, while White and Zach LaVine had 25 each.
Another problem with the halftime ceremony was the three most famous players from the championship years — Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman — were not there.
Jordan made a video, which was played during the ceremony, apologizing for not being able to make it and thanking the fans. Rodman posted an emotional video saying he tried to get to Chicago but was thwarted by bad weather. Rodman's video was played on the board during the first timeout of the third quarter. There was no video of Pippen.
Bulls president Michael Reinsdorf admitted Thursday the team announced the event just six weeks ago and didn't expect everyone to make it.
But this was also a demonstration about how much time has passed since 1998. Few people in the current front office have a connection or much familiarity with the glory days, and it showed.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr, a member of the 1996-98 title teams, talked before the game about how nice it was to get the team back together at a gala Thursday night, even if some key pieces were missing.
“It was fantastic,” Kerr said. “It was just great to be here with our team, so great of the Bulls to put it together. I'm very flattered they put it together around our game so I could be there. We had a wonderful night, not only at the gala, but afterwards, connecting with the team. A lot of stories, a lot of fun, so it was just a great, great night.”
Kerr said he sees former teammates now and then, but there hadn't been any sort of group meeting since a few days after the team returned from Game 6 in Salt Lake City.
“The team broke up and we knew it and we all got together one night back then and smoked cigars and drank a few cocktails and told stories,” Kerr said. “And that was 1998. It's been a while.”
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