The judge has delivered a verdict. The Chicago Bulls fanbase is sentenced to lifetime doom, heartbreak, and pain over their treatment of Thelma Krause.
Krause? As in Jerry Krause? Correct, your honor. The widow of the late Bulls general manager that built a team that won six championships in eight seasons was booed to tears during a halftime ceremony that saw Jerry Krause inducted into the Bulls Ring of Honor.
Chicago Bulls fans booed late GM Jerry Krause during the team's inaugural Ring of Honor celebration.
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) January 13, 2024
The crowd’s reaction left Krause’s widowed wife Thelma visibly shaken.
🎥 @StephNoh | @NBCSChicago pic.twitter.com/vAGwJUoeQD
As you can clearly see, Ms. Thelma's grief is unbelievable, and the fact that the Bulls fans chose to boo Jerry Krause instead of Jerry Reinsdorf, who truly deserves the vitriol, leaves no doubt that this fanbase, spoiled by the likes of Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen (who didn't attend and now refuse to even speak to one another), deserves to suffer for eternity, and that is not an overreaction.
Jerry Krause's widow didn't deserve the harsh treatment by Chicago Bulls fans.
Let it be clear, Jerry Krause was no saint. Absolutely not. He was quite stubborn, as documented in The Last Dance. He also wanted more credit than he got, which made sense considering he was the one who ultimately made the final roster decisions, not MJ, Phil Jackson, or anyone else.
Krause also hired Tim Floyd to replace Phil Jackson after the 1997-98 season, the sixth championship season when Jackson did not return. Jordan retired for the second time, and Pippen left due to salary issues. Dennis Rodman left. Steve Kerr, who made several key shots in Bulls tenure, was gone too. That meant relying on folks like Randy Brown to pick up the slack. Yikes.
But let this be made crystal clear, especially to those sorry individuals at the United Center who showed no compassion and let their personal feelings drive judgment. The Bulls have struggled since that shot in Utah and why they struggle now, despite a brief glimmer of hope with Derrick Rose, is one Jerry Michael Reinsdorf.
Reinsdorf held the financial reins for the Bulls, and it became very clear that the biggest reason the team collapsed instead of going for Title No. 7 was that Reinsdorf was unwilling to work to keep the core together.
I hope you are happy Bulls fans. Your acceptance of lies and unwillingness to learn the truth have led to this. You deserve this and will until Reinsdorf decides to skip town, sign the franchise over to someone who cares, and bring life back to this organization.
Until then Bulls fans, you are handed over the custody of the Department of Sports Misery to serve your sentence, this session is now closed.