Chicago Bulls: Ranking the Best Players by Position in Team History
By Phil Watson
The Chicago Bulls were the NBA’s third attempt to put a team in the Windy City, launching in 1966-67 after the Chicago Stags played for four seasons (1946-47 through 1949-50) before folding and the Chicago Packers/Zephyrs lasted just two (1961-62 and 1962-63) before relocating to Baltimore.
The third time was the charm.
Owned by former National Basketball League player Dick Klein, who also served as the Bulls’ general manager for the team’s first six seasons, Chicago made it work this time. Klein was the first former player to be a principal owner, playing one season with the Chicago American Gears of the NBL.
The Bulls brought in Chicago native and former NBA star Red Kerr to coach the team and landed some quality players in the expansion draft in the spring of 1966, including Los Angeles Lakers forward Bob Boozer and Baltimore Bullets guard Jerry Sloan. The team drafted 10th overall in the first round and selected guard Dave Schellhase out of Purdue, who lasted just two seasons with the Bulls and never was a regular member of the rotation.
Chicago enjoyed some solid early success. Their 33-48 record in 1966-67 still stands as the best ever posted by an expansion team and they made the playoffs in Year 1. In fact, Chicago made the playoffs in nine of the franchise’s first 11 seasons, winning 50 games for the first time under new coach Dick Motta in its fifth season, 1970-71.
It wasn’t until the 1990s, however, that the Bulls would finally reach the NBA Finals after four losses in the conference finals (1974, 1975, 1989 and 1990). Led by coach Phil Jackson and legendary Michael Jordan, Chicago won six titles in eight seasons from 1991-98 before the front office decided to blow it up and rebuild.
The end of the 1990s and the early 21st century were the worst of times for the franchise, which set a record for futility in 2000-01 by going 15-67. The six seasons the Bulls missed the playoffs from 1999 through 2004 is the longest such stretch in team history.
Currently, Chicago is on a run of five consecutive playoff appearances dating to 2008-09, but the team hasn’t reached the NBA Finals since winning the last of its six titles in 1998. In 47 seasons, the team has made the playoffs 32 times—an impressive record of early and sustained success. The team has had 21 coaches in all, 14 of whom served at least one full season, with Jackson the leader in both longevity (nine seasons) and wins (545-193 from 1990-91 through 1997-98. Bill Cartwright (151 games from 2002-04) and Pete Myers (three games in two stints in 2004 and 2008) are the only former Bulls to go on to coach the team.
So who are the best players by position in the history of the Chicago Bulls?
NOTE: Players must have appeared in 250 regular-season games with the franchise to be considered for this list.
Small Forward: Scottie Pippen (1987-98, 2003-04)
The Bulls acquired Scottie Pippen in a draft night trade from the Seattle SuperSonics in 1987 and never regretted the decision. (Photo by Steve Lipofsky/
)
Scottie Pippen was one of those prospects out of nowhere, a forward from tiny Central Arkansas, an NAIA school at the time. The Seattle SuperSonics picked Pippen fifth overall in the 1987 NBA Draft and on draft night, swapped his rights with a 1989 first-round pick to the Chicago Bulls for Olden Polynice, a second-round pick in 1988 and a 1989 first-rounder.
Smart move. Pippen went on to become a seven-time All-Star and seven-time All-NBA selection, including three times being named to the first team. He also made eight All-Defensive teams for the Bulls and led the NBA in steals, steals per game, steal percentage and defensive rating in 1994-95. Pippen was a key part of all six title teams in Chicago.
In 12 seasons in Chicago, Pippen averaged 17.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game.
Pippen is the franchise’s second-leading scorer with 15,123 points and is also second with 4,494 assists, 1,792 steals and 856 games and third with 664 3-pointers, 5,726 rebounds and 774 blocked shots. He is third in team history with 2.1 steals per game and seventh 5.3 assists per game.
His 4.0 steal percentage and 6.7 defensive win shares in 1994-95 are franchise single season records.
Here are some of Pippen’s highlights as a Bull:
In January 1999, Pippen was traded to the Houston Rockets for Roy Rogers and a 2000 second-round draft pick and he returned to the Bulls as a free agent in July 2003. He was waived in November 2004 and retired from the NBA, but he did make a brief comeback in 2008, playing in Finland and Sweden. He also played with the Portland Trail Blazers in his career and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. Pippen is currently a senior assistant to Bulls’ president and chief operating officer Michael Reinsdorf.
Apologies to: Chet Walker, Toni Kukoc, Orlando Woolridge, Luol Deng.
Power Forward: Mickey Johnson (1974-79)
Mickey Johnson, shown on a 1978 Topps card, put up gaudy numbers at tiny Aurora College in Illinois and turned into a solid pro.
Mickey Johnson was an unknown commodity coming out of Division III Aurora College in Illinois, where he averaged 26.1 points and 20.9 rebounds in his four-year career. The Portland Trail Blazers took him 56th overall, in the fourth round, in the 1974 NBA Draft and then shipped him to the Bulls that September for a third-round pick in 1975.
It turns out the guy was pretty good, after all. After a year to get his feet wet in the NBA, Johnson emerged as a big-time performer. In his five years with the Bulls, Johnson averaged 15.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, numbers made better by the fact that as a rookie, he played just 7.7 minutes a game and averaged 3.8 points and 2.5 boards.
Johnson participated in a slam-dunk competition that was put together by CBS Sports and aired at halftime of its Game of the Week broadcasts during the 1976-77 season. Here is his matchup with Alex English of the Milwaukee Bucks:
In July 1979, Johnson signed as a veteran free agent with the Indiana Pacers, with Chicago receiving Ricky Sobers as compensation, and he also played for the Milwaukee Bucks, New Jersey Nets and Golden State Warriors before retiring after the 1985-86. In 2011, Johnson failed in a bid to win election to the Chicago City Council, representing the city’s 24th ward. He was also basketball coach at Chicago’s Malcolm X College for five years in the 2000s.
Apologies to: Horace Grant, Bob Love, Dave Greenwood, Charles Oakley.
Center: Artis Gilmore (1976-82, 1987)
It took five years for the Bulls to get Artis Gilmore, shown on a 1981 Topps card, into uniform, but once he arrived after the ABA-NBA merger in 1976, he didn’t disappoint.
The Bulls took Jacksonville center Artis Gilmore in the seventh round of the 1971 NBA Draft, but it would be five years before he would actually suit up for Chicago. Gilmore played the first five years of his career for the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association. Chicago selected him in the dispersal draft in August 1976 after the two leagues merged.
Gilmore went on to become a four-time All-Star for the Bulls and was named to an All-Defensive team in 1977-78. Gilmore didn’t have great range as a shooter, but he seldom ventured outside of his comfort zone, making what he took. He led the NBA in field-goal percentage twice while with Chicago, hitting 67 percent of his shots in 1980-81 and 65.2 percent in 1981-82. For his NBA career, he is the most accurate shooter in history at 59.9 percent. Gilmore also led the NBA with a 124 (points per 100 possessions) offensive rating in 1981-82.
In parts of seven seasons with the Bulls, Gilmore averaged 19.3 points, 11.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots per game, while shooting 58.7 percent.
Gilmore is the Bulls’ all-time leader with 1,029 blocked shots and is also fifth with 5,342 rebounds and seventh with 9,288 points. His 58.7 field-goal percentage and 2.1 blocked shots per game are the highest in franchise history, his 11.1 rebounds per game average is third and his 19.3 points per game average is eighth. In the advanced metrics, Gilmore’s true shooting percentage of 63.1 percent is also a franchise best.
Gilmore holds single-season team records with 220 blocked shots and 2.7 blocks per game in 1981-82 and 67.0 field-goal shooting in 1980-81. His 70.2 true shooting percentage in 1981-82 and effective field-goal percentage of 67.0 in 1980-81 are also franchise single-season highs.
Here is a mix of highlights from Gilmore’s long career:
In July 1982, Gilmore was traded to the San Antonio Spurs for Dave Corzine, Mark Olberding and cash. The Bulls brought him back in June 1987, sending a second-round draft pick in 1988 to the Spurs, but he was waived the day after Christmas in 1987. He finished that season with the Boston Celtics and played a year in Italy before retiring from basketball in 1989. He is currently a special assistant to the president at Jacksonville University and does radio color commentary for the school’s basketball broadcasts. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011.
Apologies to: Joakim Noah, Dave Corzine, Tom Boerwinkle, Tyson Chandler.
Shooting Guard: Michael Jordan (1984-93, 1995-98)
Michael Jordan was the third overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft by the Bulls. He won a record six Finals MVP awards and is arguably the greatest player in NBA history. (Photo by Steve Lipofsky/
)
Were you expecting Bob Hansen? The Bulls caught a break when the former North Carolina star and national collegiate player of the year fell to them with the third overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft.
What Chicago got was arguably the greatest player in NBA history. Jordan was a five-time NBA MVP with the Bulls, was a 12-time All-Star, was named Rookie of the Year in 1984-85 and Defensive Player of the Year in 1987-88 and was named Finals MVP a record six times. He was named All-NBA 11 times as a Bull, 10 of them on the first team, and was a nine-time first-team All-Defensive selection. He was also a 10-time scoring champion and is the NBA’s all-time leader at 30.1 points per game for his career, and led the league in steals three times. His advanced metrics are off the charts, as well, seven times posting the best player efficiency rating in the NBA and retiring with the highest PER of all-time at 27.9. Eight times Jordan had the highest usage percentage in the NBA and is also the league’s all-time leader in that category, and led the league in win shares nine times, and in offensive win shares and win shares per 48 minutes eight times each. He is the NBA’s all-time leader in WS/48 at .250.
In 13 years in Chicago, Jordan averaged 31.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.5 steals per game and shot 50.5 percent.
He is the Bulls’ all-time leader with 29,277 points, 5,836 rebounds, 5,012 assists, 2,306 steals and 930 games and is second with 828 blocked shots and fourth with 555 3-pointers. He is also the franchise leader with 31.5 points and 2.5 steals per game, is sixth with 5.4 assists per game and his 83.8 free-throw percentage is 10th. His 29.1 PER is the best in franchise history, as is his 33.5 usage percentage, 145.8 offensive win shares, 58.7 defensive win shares, 204.5 overall win shares and .274 win shares per 48 minutes.
He holds single-season team records with 3,041 points (one of just two players, along with Wilt Chamberlain, to score 3,000 points in a season), 37.1 points per game and a 38.3 usage percentage in 1986-87; 259 steals, 3.2 steals per game, 31.7 PER, 15.2 offensive win shares and 21.2 overall win shares in 1987-88; .321 win shares per 48 minutes in 1990-91; and a 7.2 turnover percentage in 1996-97.
Here are some of Jordan’s many highlights as a Bull:
Jordan actually retired twice as a Bull, the first time in October 1993 before returning in March 1995 and then a second time in January 1999. He made a second return from retirement with the Washington Wizards in September 2011 before retiring for the final time in April 2003. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009. Jordan is currently the majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats.
Apologies to: Reggie Theus, Ben Gordon, Quintin Dailey, Jerry Sloan.
Derrick Rose was the first overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by his hometown team and by his third season, the Bulls’ point guard was the NBA’s Most Valuable Player. (Flickr.com/Keith Allison)
Point Guard: Derrick Rose (2008-12)
Derrick Rose was the first overall pick by the Bulls in the 2008 NBA Draft and it didn’t take long for him to make his mark.
Rose was Rookie of the Year in 2008-09 and was the NBA MVP in 2010-11. He is a three-time All-Star and was first-team All-NBA in 2010-11.
In four seasons in Chicago (he missed the 2012-13 season with a knee injury), Rose has averaged 21.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game.
He is already ninth on the franchise’s all-time list with 1,911 assists. His 6.8 assists per game is third-best and his 21 points per game is fourth.
Rose put together one of his signature games in 2012 against the New York Knicks, scoring 32 points and logging six rebounds and seven assists:
Rose is fully healthy and is expected back to start the 2013-14 season. He is signed through 2016-17.
Apologies to: Norm Van Lier, Kirk Hinrich, B.J. Armstrong, John Paxson.