[Basketball News]

Only one team in NBA history has reached the 70-win plateau: the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls. Are they the best team ever?

The 72-Win Bulls: The Best Ever?

[azrael492]

I want to say yes because of the 72 wins, but I think the '80s Lakers would have given them a run. It would be great to see that game.

[legend]

I would not rank that team in the top five ever. There are Celtic. Lakers, 76ers, and even Pistons teams ahead of them in my book.

[MJHMarc]

How about the Lakers with Jerry West, Wilt Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor?

[Amtekoth]

I lived in Chicago back then and never missed a game on TV during either of their 3-season runs. Actually went to a game...standing room only! But every single game that season, I remember feeling, "Oh God, this is where we blow it!" (I'm such a pessimist). And we kept on winning. The Lakers played us tough, as did Utah.

Man, that was a great time to be a Bulls fan.

As for greatest all-time? Probably top-5. The problem with matching them up against the earlier teams is that the rules changes (in either direction) would change how the teams played the game, thus throwing off what helped make those teams so special.

A lack of a consistent post-up presence automatically disqualifies them as the best team ever. Because when you think of other all-time great teams like the 1985-86 Celtics with McHale and Parish... the 1984-85 lakers with Kareem, the 2000-2003 Lakers with Shaq...even the 2003, 2005 Spurs with Tim Duncan...how would the Bulls have countered that inside play... yeah..they had Jordan posting up once in a while, but he wasn't posting up all game...whereas the players mentioned on these other teams drew consistent double-teams throughout the entire game...as opposed to the 1995-96 Bulls, which was mostly a jump-shooting team... the advantage will always go the great team with an inside presence throughout the course of an entire game, and also down the final stretch.