Comments on: Stan Van Gundy: Heat roster better than any of Jordan's Bulls rosters

By: ASDF

ASDF — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 20:58:14 +0000

lebron james seems like an ok guy, but he just comes from that “new school” generation Y weird mentality that most people over 30 don’t get. It’s like we preached BS to them hoping that they would get that it was bs, but just things that we had to say to keep the cultural police happy. A funny thing happened along the way though…they actually bought into the crap and now we have to deal with what we have created…
I haven’t exactly refined this theory, but hey it’s the internet, right?,

By: Michael Ramirez

Michael Ramirez — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 19:19:17 +0000

Wade, Lebron and Bosh are certainly talented players, but talented players doesn’t necessarily equal talented team….. The MJ Bulls were a talented TEAM and they had superior leadership and coaching!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 16:48:47 +0000

Pippen was probably the best on the ball defender the league has ever had.
I may agree that Wade, Lebron, and Bosh form a better core than Jordan ever had, but can you imagine Wade, Lebron, and Bosh playing AGAINST the Jordan Bulls? I’d bet on the Bulls 10 games out of 10, as of right now. Maybe they will show me different, but as of right now, gimme the Bulls any day.

By: mike

mike — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:46:56 +0000

I like this post the most of all the ones I read. And to insert some calamity, John’s point is what I’d use to separate Lebron from Kobe. The former may have (and this is highly debatable) a more complete offensive game, but Kobe will move a mountain to get over a tree stump. And I think it’s safe to say Lebron needs to do better on defense to earn his ‘next-one’ credentials. Kobe’s defense seems to be on par in today’s game with how Jordan fared in the league during his time. So looking forward to LA vs. MIA. Also, let the meme begin: every time Miami loses, the headlines must say, “missing in action.”

By: David R

David R — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 06:40:08 +0000

You talk about points. What Jordan, Pippen and Rodman did was take away those points. Head to head Jordan and Pippen top Wade and LeBron total points. Basically Jordan and Pippen get closer to their regular season average while keeping LeBron and Wade BELOW theirs. And Bosh will be lucky to score A POINT against Rodman.
What made those Bulls teams great was not the individual talent player for player but the pure awesome chemistry that they had as one team. Either 3 peat team had incredible talent. That 72 win team with Edwards, Longley and Wennington at Center. Individually they were nothing but combined they were a force. Jud Buechler, Dickey Simpson, Jack Haley, Jason Caffey and Randy Brown not your household names. Players like Ron Harper, Steve Kerr, Tony Kukoc and John Salley were good players but not superstars. With Jordan, Pippen pushing the offense and Players like Kerr and Kukoc making you pay for doubling either Jordan or Pippen. And you laugh at Rodman, he couldn’t score a point if his life depended on it. But if you wanted someone shut down and every rebound available. HE WAS A GOD. I cannot count how many times I would sit back and just laugh at Rodman and how he was shutting someone down. Name me one player in todays game that knew his role better than RODMAN.. NO ONE. IMO he was the greatest rebounder and defender ever to play the game. But EVERY BULL knew his job. And they crushed everyone. 85-13 for the season. This was a machine. As perfect of a team as you will ever see on a basketball court.
I don’t think James, Bosh, and Wade will be able to mesh into a single unit like the Jordan Era Bulls.
Just so you know. Even if they were to win 82 games. They still would not have been as great as that team the Bulls had. These are a bunch of Superstars who can’t win a title on their own (Minus Wade) Joining forces to get a piece of hardware on their finger. Forget the challenge of winning one for your home team, Yeah I am talking to you QUEEN LBJ. The Bulls were built with Chemistry in mind. The Heat is built to get a couple superstars a ring cause they can’t get it on their own.
Dream Team Regular season. 68-14 @ best.

By: Vanes

Vanes — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:27:37 +0000

I think the heat will beat Bulls records.

By: Brandon

Brandon — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 01:37:08 +0000

I think the comparison to Pippin should actually be Lebron. They both have a more all-around style of point-forward play. And Lebron is definitely better than Pippin, atleast on the offensive end.
Wade isn’t better than Jordan, but he’s about as close as you get short of Kobe, and Wade’s style is more Jordanesque. And Bosh is definitely a far more all-around talented player than Grant/Rodman… although I’m not as sure if he will be as impactful as Rodman’s defensive and rebounding presence in the playoffs.
I’d give them the Heat the edge in the Grant era, but not the Rodman era.
Kukoc+Harper is really were the 95′ Bulls pull away. People forget how good Harper was, since he ended up roleplaying that Bulls organization… he was a 20ppg guard and a solid defender when he was w/ the Clippers.
Plus those Bulls were just an amazingly dominant defensive team, and while I think the Heat will be good defensively, dominant doesn’t come to mind.

By: john

john — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:05:03 +0000

crafty, like a used-car salesman. you are comparing one year. get the career average: its 24.9 (wade) to 13.8 including playoffs. pippen was an exceptional talent; he deserves credit for being good but he is not to be mentioned with james and wade who have carried teams for nearly a decade. league mvps and finals mvps are not to be compared with supporting cast players. this is not logical. finally, pippen’s career is over. its in the books.
wade, james, and bosh are in their prime—experienced, skilled, driven and on the same team. these are great talents. no need to slander them. lets see what happens.

By: phishfan

phishfan — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:04:59 +0000

Geez. All these haters from other teams BEGGED to have either Bosh, Wade and especially Lebron. Miami got all Three 3!!!!
They kept Haslem, and got great outside shooters in House and Miller. Anthony is an excellent defender. This team will not only be an offensive juggernaut, but a defensive force as well.
Now you are all lying to yourselves. Someone mentioned that LA and Boston are not “picking” the Heat to win it all. That is the dumbest comment ever. What do you expect them to say?
Although the games still have to be played, barring injury Miami will be a dynasty and the other teams really don’t stand a chance.
The heat have a rough equivalent of 2 Kobes!
We’ll see what happens. I have been a Heat fan since the days of Rory sparrow and Rony Seikaly – so I am not a bandwagon jumper.
Some of these fans that were begging and would be celebrating wildly if they had landed anyone of the 3, especially Lebron – are no hypocritically downplaying the superb trio for the ages.
One more thing, why is Carmelo not being hated the way Lebron is even when his situation is probably worse. LBJ served his “sentence” in Cleveland. Carmelo is still under contract.
I have never seen so much hypocrisy. All the sweeter when the Heat have their victory parades.
Riley is a genius…Go Heat!

By: ray ray

ray ray — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 18:40:53 +0000

MJ and Wade would cancel each other out?!? Come’on man! You were making sense until you said that. Jordan was bigger, stronger, more athletic, smarter, killer instict, etc… come’on

By: Notfol

Notfol — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 15:41:21 +0000

In a position to go undefeated? I doubt it. The Bulls were a better team, but they also benefited from the addition of recent expansion teams in the league. I think SVG & his brother ‘Jeff The Mortician’ are trying to mess with heads.

By: Notfol

Notfol — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 15:26:54 +0000

You’re talking about Pippen’s later years. The 93-94 season was Pippen’s one year where he led a team in his prime.
Pippen’s 93-94 stats:
22 points, .49% FG, 8.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.9 steals
Wade’s stats from last year, when he happened to be the same age as Scottie during 93-94:
26 points, .47% FG, 4.8 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.8 steals
I think there’s a case to be made that Pippen was nearly Wade’s equal on offense, while far surpassing him on D.

By: Zed

Zed — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 11:32:57 +0000

Miami is not just in a position to win 70 games; they stand to make history and go undefeated in the regular season. There’s no way to defend against a two-headed monster at the wings; the Jordan/Pippen combo proved that to every basketball fan with eyes and intelligence. Phil is mulling it over and sweating profusely. But, it’s not all bad – his great coaching career will end in crushing defeat.
However, there is a little wrinkle in Pat Riley’s otherwise perfect plan of getting his revenge. His name is Carmelo. If that dude is allowed to go east to Orlando then we would have to rethink the whole equation. Orlando will have created their own superpower to challenge the Heat and Boston for the right to meet Kobe and the Lakers. If Pat Riley doesn’t pull strings, whip out his magic wand to make certain that that doesn’t happen, that Carmelo stays in the Western conference, then the Heat’s clear path to complete dominance will be blocked. But, that’s how heroes are born. All we can do is wait to see it all unfold. I can’t wait!

By: davidly

davidly — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 11:06:47 +0000

Let’s see: So he’s saying that the Heat’s starting PF is better than the Bulls, then, sixth man? What about Worm?
And in more “comparing the 96 Bulls bench to the Heat’s starters” news: Considering the fact that Kerr is still the all-time NBA three-point leader, it’s a joke to compare him to… what’s the name of the guy he was comparing him to again?

By: aussie fan

aussie fan — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 04:21:30 +0000

this is crazy – surely they should win at least one game before the are compared to such a great team??
my hope is they dont win one in the first 3 years – it will be interesting to see if they then persaveer or it gets broken up. it wont be easy to win in the east – the lakers will get at least one easy series again and have a deeper team this season than either of the last two!!!

By: Jack

Jack — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 02:36:53 +0000

lol wade better than pip? lmao!

By: Desi_B

Desi_B — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 02:33:30 +0000

R U really that stupid or are you just kidding? Wade scored 34 because boston did not care about anyone else on his team. It is about winning championships. look that up on your facto meter and tell me how many Wade, Bosh and Lebron have together. The NBA has only had two maybe three teams without a dominant big man win championships. 1st of course are the Jordan Bulls. You could make a case about the Celtics but they did not dominate the middle but they certainly controlled it. The last are the current Lakers. As THE Laker fan I am hear to tell you without Bynum Healthy beating the Celtics in 7 games is going to be tough. and yes we will be playing the bigger better Celtics from the east again.

By: Desi Battle

Desi Battle — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 01:57:42 +0000

SVG is why the Magic can’t get over the hump. Have you herd what is coming out of Boston and LA? neither team is saying anything about Miami being great. Does this mean he thinks his Orlando team is better also? maybe he shud quit and follow the heat season. The Lakers are still the best team in basket ball followed by the bigger Celtics and then the Heat. Magic would be there but there coach is too busy in Miami. Fire him already and get someone that understand the game. He has the biggest weapon in the league and does not know how to use him.

By: dobaldz

dobaldz — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:45:57 +0000

obviously SVG,like his brother, hates MJ for so many reasons. I remember there was a time he gave a strong opinion that “MJ was not the best NBA player ever” and even mentioned the likes of Bill Russel and others to justify his opinion which i believed only his brother agreed. Poor loser

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:45:32 +0000

bobby…your points are all valid…BUT wade and jordan canceling each other out? Cmon…Jordan would have owned wade. And this is from a DWade fan….

By: Mal

Mal — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:07:54 +0000

Gotta set one thing straight. Pippen DID lead the bulls to the Eastern Conf. Finals without Jordan. Let’s face it, without that bogus foul on Pippen in NY, it woulda been bulls vs houston that year. Now lets look at Bosh. How far did he get? nowhere. how far did Wade get without shaq? nowhere again. Lebron has shown to be a best a quitter with no killer instinct. Kobe edges Lebron as best player for that reason. So for all those so called “facts”, just shut the hell up. I see people taking shots at Pippen, but he’s a hall of famer with six rings and plenty of individual accolades. Food for thought. If anybody played behind Jordan, who could average more than 25 points a game. No damn body. Jordan was show stopper and Pippen the perfect compliment. The least a true basketball fan could do is give Pippen credit for his accomplishments. How the hell could he be the premier player on a team with the ultimate player on hand. People, think before you speak. btw, I concur with never comparing lebron to MJ. haha.

By: john

john — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 22:22:07 +0000

i also like james at the point with miller at the 3 and haslem the sixth man, fast breaking style of the la 80-90′s, mixed with the pat rily defense of the knicks and heat. wade and james must set the tone. they still need a james posey type player to fill out the roster. get rid of charmers; arryo/house be the point sub off bench. again it is what miami has a chance to do that i speak of not the past. it is silly/unwise to think that slow 6-0 players from the 50′s, 60′s, 70′s players could compete with 6-8 players with more talent and abilities (evolved by learning from the past)at the same positions today. James (2-time mvp) is an improvement on anything pippen saw in the 90′; so too is wade and bosh.
it is unwise to allow emotions to dominate objective facts. miami has a chance to run wild on the league for 5 years if they stay healthy. they are just that good. 70+ wins and titles are their possibilities. it is probable that they achieve both yearly. even las vegas has them winning the title over even the lakers. boston is old/done. orlando is dumb, chokes at the freethrow line and has cowardly vince. chicago has only noah with basketball IQ— the rest of that team is still getting folk to take SAT exams at memphis; la is very good and will be a test. but miami with james at the point causes all kinds of match up problems if they are running similart to the way the 80′s lakers ran philly of the court without kareem for the title. i don’t see la keeping up.

By: john

john — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 21:54:04 +0000

i merely present statistics/facts in line with history. this miami team must prove itself. but they have the raw materials to do great things for the next 5 years or longer if healthy. wade and james carry teams, pippen and rodman never could; they were second teir very good players—-not in the league with mvp james/wade. james is a 2-time league mvp before 25 and wade is already a finals mvp. pippen never and rodman never were. wade and james are also on the all defensive team and miami was number 3 in defense even last year. they will have a chance to win 70 each year if healthy, and necessary.
chicago had great teams; jordan was the best ever. it remains to be seen what miami will do. but they have great talent now. jackson is the greatest coach of all time—by far; miamis coaching if riley is not the coach is clearly out classed—but phil was beaten by the pistons and the celtics with average coaches.
my comment was that miami has 2 of the three greatest players in the league today. marginalizing them or deluding oneself by saying they are no good is ignorant and childish. the bulls never played against players with james, wade, and bosh skills on the same team. jordan at his best against the pistons was not enough for nearly 5 years. so he was not perfect. jordan was never shut down. no one has shut down wade or james, they get to the rack at will under the present rules and are more than strong/fast enough under other rules. in fact james is the most talented/strongest all-around basketball player ever according to jerry west.
we will see what they get done in the next 5 years.

By: hardtimes

hardtimes — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 21:52:17 +0000

First of all Michael Jordan played against a way better teams than there are today with tougher rules. There were way more superstars in that era than today’s era. Everyone knows that. There was a superstar on every team. So your statement about Jordan not playing against players like Lebron is ridiculous. Mike played against and dunked on a way better cast of centers in the league back then. Players like Olajuwan, Ewing, Sampson, Mourning, Mutumbo, Parish, Malone, and Kareem. And that is just a few. How many dominant centers is in the league now? Maybe 5 if we are lucky. So think about what you are saying before you comment.
And on VanGundys comment. He has to be trying to put to much pressure on the Heat. He said Wade was better than Pippen. Well Pip led the Bulls to the Conference Finals without MJ. Wade has not done nothing without Shaq. So how can you say that he is better than Pip. And the Bulls starting lineup was Ron Harper, Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, Longley and Kukoc for 6th man. Miami has Chalmers, Wade, James, Bosh, and Ilgaskus with Miller for 6th man. Plus the Bulls had a young bench and Miami’s bench is old. And Kukoc would whoop Miller any day. Even Riley knows that Bulls team was better.
So either Stan is as dumb as we think he is or he is trying to put more pressure on the Heat because Lebron and Bosh has shown they dont handle pressure well. Which is another reason that Bulls team is better.

By: Drew

Drew — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 21:37:01 +0000

In terms of actual talent level, the Heat are better than Jordan’s Bulls. Whether they are a better TEAM is up for debate and will be borne out in time. The Bulls had a perfect makeup of one great superstar, one very good sidekick, and great role players. They did it all without a single dominant big man in all those championships. That is why I think much is being made of the Heat’s lack of dominant centre. How much do they need their centre to do? They will be fine. I believe they will win at least 70 games. Jordan is still the greatest player of all-time hands down in my mind, but he never had this collection of talent on his teams. We’ll see if the Heat can mesh.

By: J-Train

J-Train — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 17:55:36 +0000

The Phil Jackson factor is a very good one. He is obviously better at coaching championships and handling superstars than about any coach in history.
It sounds like to me that Stan Van Gundy is searching for some job security here. The last time i checked, this guy coaches a team that plays against the Heat. It would take a lot more nerve and chance for him to come out against the Heat and tell how confident he was in his team’s chances against the team. By him saying the Heat are better than any of the Bull’s championship teams, he’s taking pressure off himself and his team. If the Heat mop the floor with the Magic, everyone can say they expected it to happen.
Anyone with any sense could not even compare the Bulls teams and this team. Lebron and Wade are superstars, granted. Wade has been fragile at times in his career however. Chris Bosh is a good player, but is nowhere near being a top tier superstar. He is just a good player from a small market team.
Plus, anyone that calls Wade or Bosh as good as Pippen obviously has very short term memory. Scottie Pippen was most likely the second most talented player in the NBA during the majority of his career being second only to Jordan. He was a 6’7 player that could penetrate, shoot, rebound, pass, and was the best defensive player in the league. He was named as one of the 50 greatest of all time while still playing. Those guys couldn’t hold his jock strap.
This is all being over hyped and overplayed because there is such a lack of big stories and big stars in the world of the NBA. The fact is that people just don’t care that much about professional basketball anymore and they are willing to do anything to change that.

By: T. Rogers

T. Rogers — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 16:52:08 +0000

I am sure someone has already mentioned this. I just don’t want to go through every post. But the Bulls had one HUGE advantage (even if you overlook MJ which was another HUGE advantage) Phil Jackson is light years ahead of Eric Spolstra (sp?). Riley is the GM. He won’t be on the bench night in and night out. He won’t be there during the tight games. Why don’t we let Miami go 40-3 (like Chicago did) before talking about them winning 70 games.

By: Gooch

Gooch — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 10:22:30 +0000

I’m an old School Knicks fan and had followed the bulls run thru the years extensively.
First off. The Defense the League was playing then was going to Iraq just to get in the paint.
Could you see Wade or Lebron getting the same points in the 90′s era basketball? They would still score theirs but have to work a lot harder.
If the Bulls played in this day and age in their prime, I think they could easily break their 72 win season.
Heck I don’t see the Heat beating Hakeem’s Rockets either. LOL

By: Wesley

Wesley — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 09:56:14 +0000

In the first paragraph: “But expectations some comparisons and expectations are getting a little ridiculous.”
What? “But expectations some comparisons…”?
Did you mean “But with expectations come comparisons…”?
Though the writer should be attentive to that, I understand he’s trying to turn out work quickly. But who’s the editor on this site? Is there one?

By: Derrick

Derrick — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 08:27:49 +0000

Just say “No” to the crack!