Earlier this week, Steph Curry ignited a flurry of debates when he said his 2017 Warriors team would beat the ’96 Bulls in a 7-game series.
While the claim wasn’t exactly surprising, it did spark some conversations about how those teams would stack up against each other if they were to play today.
While some (including George Karl) disagreed with Curry’s assessment, there are others who feel the same way. On ESPN’s First Take, for example, Jay Williams explained went so far as to call the 2017 Warriors the best team ever.
“I think that the 2016-2017 Golden State Warriors is the best basketball team ever assembled! … I think that Golden State WOULD win this series in six!”
.@RealJayWilliams thinks the 2016-17 Warriors would’ve beaten the '96 Bulls 😳
“I think that the 2016-2017 Golden State Warriors is the best basketball team ever assembled! … I think that Golden State WOULD win this series in six!" pic.twitter.com/Q6UzH9sTSJ
— First Take (@FirstTake) January 12, 2022
Of course, we’ll never know for sure which team would get the upper hand in a series, but it hasn’t stopped people from speculating.
With MJ, Pippen, Rodman, and others, the 90s Bulls were strong, experienced, gritty, and just an all-around well-oiled machine. As, arguably, the greatest player ever, Michael Jordan would have been impossible for the Warriors to stop.
But the 2017 Warriors were no scrubs either. They had the best shooters in the game on their squad and a system that is still revered by experts today. Recently, Matt Barnes shared what made that team so special.
“Everyone kind of kept their egos at the door,” Barnes said on Gilbert Arenas’ ‘No Chill Gil’ Podcast. “You know, I mean the goal was to win; that team had so much firepower, so many stars from our coaches to our players that at least while I was there basketball was what was most important. Winning was most important so, you know, there were games where guys wouldn’t kill but at the end of the day you won by 30, [because] it was someone else’s turn. When I was there the chemistry was second to none.”
Great teams rise and fall all the time. From the Showtime Lakers to the Duncan-led Spurs, dynasties have been a thing from the very beginning.
The Warriors and Bulls at the peak of their existence might be the best we’ve ever seen and it’s impossible not to appreciate what they were able to do during their time.
Really makes you wonder what team will be the next to harbor the NBA’s nest great superpower.
