TOP 10 BULLS MOMENTS

  1. John Paxson's three-pointer in 1993 to beat the Phoenix Suns
  2. Michael Jordan's incredible layup in the 1991 Finals against the Lakers
  3. The Shot
  4. Michael Jordan's return to the Bulls and the hype leading up to it
  5. Michael Jordan's record number of 3-pointers in a half in a NBA Finals
  6. Michael Jordan weeping on the ground with the game ball after they win the 1996 Finals
  7. Bulls sweep defending champions Pistonsin the Eastern Conference Finals
  8. Bulls draft Michael Jordan out of North Carolina
  9. Bulls make their 70th season win to break the 69 win record of the 1971-72 Lakers
  10. Scottie Pippen dunks over Patrick Ewing in the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals
  11. Other moments

1. John Paxson hitting the three-pointer in 1993 to beat the Phoenix Suns and give the Bulls their third consecutive NBA championship.

"Without question, John Paxson's three-point jumper is the most memorable moment in Bulls' history. I was living in San Jose, Costa Rica, at the time and had spent the entire basketball season converting various friends to the greatness of NBA basketball in a country where soccer is the most popular sport. I was at home with my future wife and we were watching Game 6. As the Bulls went down by a few points at the end of the game, my wife was nearly in tears.

As a basketball coach myself, I explained that there was plenty of time for the Bulls to score and send the game into overtime or even win it. As Paxson hit the shot I remember yelling, 'Paxson daggers them' over and over! The crowd in Phoenix went deathly quiet and Horace Grant finalized the victory with the final block that killed the Suns. I will be telling my kids of the Bulls' third championship for years to come."
-- Mark L. Luther, Buenos Aires, Argentina
"My favorite moment is Paxson's three-pointer; because I live in Brazil, it happened past midnight, but I started shouting and the neighbors started complaining and throwing things at me. It was kinda fun."
-- Rodrigo Tavares Leitao, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2. Michael Jordan's incredible layup in the 1991 Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Michael went up with the ball in his right hand, changed his mind in the air and switched the ball to his left hand and laid the ball in on the left side of the basket.

"Michael Jordan switching hands and leading the Bulls to their first championship against the Lakers in '91. The switch hands 'spectacular move' made Marv Albert leave his seat and made all Bulls fans realize a championship was on its way to Chicago."
-- Chris Butler, San Antonio, Texas

3. "The Shot": Michael Jordan buried over the outstretched hands of a beaten Craig Ehlo as the Bulls eliminated the Cavaliers in Cleveland during the First Round of the 1989 playoffs.

"I would have to say the shot Mike made over Ehlo during the first playoff series back in the late '80s. I was only in middle school when I saw that game and back then, I was not allowed to watch TV on weekdays. Well, I went into my room acting like I was studying and secretly turned on my pocket TV and caught the fourth quarter when Mike was taking over! The final seconds were so exciting and I was so amazed by the shot that I burst out and screamed, 'YES, we won!' and I was grounded for a month or so. I happily served my time. I am so glad that I watched it. That was the greatest performance I have ever seen in my entire life."
-- James Jazmataz, N.Y.
"I'm from Guatemala, but had the chance to go to one Bulls game, and thank God it was Game 5 of the series against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland. With less than five seconds left and the Bulls finding themselves behind by one, Jordan dribbled to the free throw line and elevated in a perfect jumper over Craig Ehlo. It went in, winning the game and the series. I had the privilege to be there, therefore it is, to me, the most memorable moment that I've experienced with the Chicago Bulls."
-- Jason Steele, Guatemala
"My favorite Bulls memory was when Michael Jordan hit the game-winning shot over Craig Ehlo to knock the Cleveland Cavaliers out of the 1989 Eastern Conference playoffs. I believe that this moment was when the Bulls first showed the basketball world that they would be a force in the upcoming years because they, as the #6 seed, upset the #3 seeded Cavaliers in Cleveland. That also helped start the rivalry between the Cleveland fans and Jordan because after that game, every time that the Bulls would go to Cleveland, he would be booed constantly when he had possession of the ball. That helped to motivate him for the game up there in which he scored 69 points."
-- Ron Movtavon, Lexington, Ky.

4. Michael Jordan's return to the Bulls after flirting with a professional baseball career and the hype leading up to his return.

"My favorite Bulls moment is a tie. One of them is watching ESPN, the week leading up to when Jordan returned. The hype was unreal. They would show him driving to practice every day, but he wouldn't say anything, and when he finally said 'I'm back,' my whole house went crazy. The other happened when I was on vacation at Myrtle Beach, and I stayed in every night to watch the Finals in 1991. It was all worth it to see Jordan crying while he held the first championship trophy in Bulls history."
-- Shawn Gray, Mt. Hope, W. Va.
"My favorite Bulls moment has to be, hands down, Michael Jordan's first game back from his retirement. It was the only Bulls game that I had goose bumps just watching the starting lineup introduced. The entire game was like a second chance for all of us Chicago Bulls fans to truly appreciate 'His Airness,' because now he is back to allow us to see him perform for another year or two. Never had the two words 'I'm back' caused so much excitement."
-- Mark Sili, Boston, Mass.

5. Michael Jordan making an NBA Finals' record for three-pointers in a half against the Portland Trail Blazers during the 1992 NBA Finals.

"The greatest Chicago Bulls moment has to be Michael Jordan's first-half performance against the Portland Trail Blazers, which eventually led to their second championship. MJ was everywhere that night. It was almost as if he was flying to the basket and dropping in threes from the cheap seats. It was truly amazing."
-- Aaron Kobb, Elkhart, Ind.
"My favorite Bulls memory is of Michael going crazy hitting five or six threes in the first half of a Finals game against the Trail Blazers. The look on his face as he shrugged has always stuck in my head."
-- Dave Podemski, West Lafayette, Ind.

6. Michael Jordan weeping on the ground with the game ball on Father's Day after the Bulls capped off a 72-10 regular season by defeating the Seattle SuperSonics during the 1996 NBA Finals.

"My favorite Bulls moment was Michael Jordan laying on the floor clutching the game ball from the '96 Championship game. I think I cried as hard as he did right then."
-- Mary Day, Streator, Ill.

7. The Bulls' sweep of the defending champion Detroit Pistons in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals and the spectacle of the defeated ex-champions walking off the court without shaking the Bulls' hands.

"My favorite memory was when the Bulls beat the Detroit Pistons in the 1991 NBA Playoffs to pave the way to their first title. The reason it is my favorite is because I hated the dirty play of the Pistons at that time and it was extremely gratifying to see Chicago, not only win the series, but to humiliate Detroit in a sweep."
-- Jason Coleman, Chico, Calif.

8. The day that the Bulls drafted Michael Jordan out of North Carolina with the third overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft.

"The day Michael Jordan was drafted by the Chicago Bulls, because he has meant so much to so many kids around the world not just by his actions on the court, but the way he carries himself off the court."
-- Hughie Gilgunn, Mt Prospect, Ill.
"NBA draft day 1984 will be the most memorable moment for me because it gave rise to the greatness the Bulls have enjoyed. That was the year a skinny, extraordinarily talented young man from Wilmington, North Carolina became a Chicago Bull. Hey, anybody seen Sam Bowie?"
-- Myron O. Brown, Sr, Arlington, Va.

9. The Bulls' 70th win over the Bucks in Milwaukee to break the previous record of 69 wins set by the Los Angeles Lakers' 1971-72 team.

"My favorite Bulls moment was when they won their 70th game in Milwaukee. That was when they were probably the best team put together ever. It looks like this year they could be even better though. I didn't think there was any room for improvement, but hey, like they say, 'there's always room for improvement.'"
-- Jeff Braun, Deerfield, Kan.

10. Scottie Pippen dunking over Patrick Ewing in the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals.

"It was the sixth game of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the New York Knicks. The year was 1994; Mike Jordan was still trying to hit a baseball at the time. The Chicago Bulls trailed the Knicks three games to two. The game was in the new United Center. The Bulls had already begun to pull away from the Knicks in the fourth quarter. Scottie Pippen was the man thrust to the throne in Jordan's semi-retirement. The Knicks shot the ball, the Bulls got the rebound and someone kicked the ball out to Steve Kerr, who, just at the right moment, passed left to an anxious Scottie Pippen who was flying on the wing.

Pippen grabbed the ball and threw down one of the most incredible slam dunks I had ever seen. Scottie's hang time was longer than anyone else's that I could remember. What made the dunk so special was that he slammed the ball way, way over the outstretched arms of the Knicks' Patrick Ewing, whose feeble attempt to block the shot made him look quite foolish and made the dunk look even more spectacular."
-- Terry Shropshire, Akron, OH

And here are some other memorable moments, each great in its own way:

"The cameraman on the floor scoots up to Scottie Pippen sitting on the bench. Scottie smiles and extends a leg out to the camera, revealing the bottom of his Air Jordans, and the silhouette of Michael in flight. Pippen points to the silhouette and smiles, then beckons with his finger, 'Come on back, Mike, come on back.' I knew then there was no question. Jordan would return."
-- Joshua Siegal, Chicago, Ill.
"The first would be in October of 1995 when the Bulls traded Will Perdue for Dennis Rodman. I knew from that moment that the Bulls had found the piece that they were missing in their championship puzzle. A player who would unselfishly do all the blue collar grunt work like no other power forward in Bulls' history. Besides, his uniqueness truly set Chicago on its ear and took some of the superstar pressure off of Michael, especially off the court.

The second would have to be January 14, 1997 when Dennis got his 10,000th rebound making him only the 24th player in the history of the NBA to achieve that mark. I was greatly moved that the Bulls took a timeout to recognize this great accomplishment. In all of Dennis' career, I have never seen a team show its appreciation for what he does so well in such a way. I believe that he was very moved as well and I cried watching the recognition that he received from the world's greatest fans and team."
-- Gayle Finney, Michigan City, Ind.
"My favorite moment is the shot that 'almost' went. The 1991 Bulls are playing the Lakers, and Magic Johnson commits a breakaway foul on MJ to stop the dunk. He grabs MJ's arm with both hands by the wrist (from behind, of course). Michael cuffs the ball against his wrist, and underhand-flips the ball from near half court for the three. The ball hits the rim, but rattles out. Magic just shakes his head in disbelief that MJ could get such an accurate shot off while being fouled."
-- John B Neill, Austin, Texas
"My favorite Bulls memory is when MJ was in his second year. It was in the third quarter when my wife said, 'Why is number 23 doing everything?' My wife at the time had never seen or participated in a single sporting event in her life, from grade school on, but she was able to recognize the impact MJ had on the game as well as the fans."
-- Rich Quitanilla, Denver, Colo.
"I have several, but the one that really sticks out is in the championship game against the Lakers in 1991. Michael was being guarded by Sam Perkins. Jordan moved toward the baseline for what appeared to be a jumper. When Michael jumped, he was about three feet from the three-point line. This might seem like some exaggeration on my part, but believe me it isn't. As Sam jumped up to reject the shot, Michael seemed to move from a vertical to a horizontal direction toward the basket for the dunk. I have never seen anything like that and probably never will again."
-- Illie Dawson III, Kinston, N.C.

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