Some things in sports are pretty much guaranteed.
There will never be another team like the Chicago Bulls of the 90s. No other team will win six championships in eight seasons. No player is the “next Michael Jordan”.
The comparisons will never end.
But forget the Bulls’ entire decade of dominance for a moment, and just think about how hard it will be for any team to top Chicago’s 1995-96 season. During that year, the Bulls won their fourth title in six years and an NBA record 72 games.
Just look at the awards.
In 1996, Jordan joined Willis Reed as the only player to be named regular season, All-Star, and Finals MVP in the same season. Scottie Pippen made the All-NBA First Team. Phil Jackson was voted Coach of the Year. Toni Kukoc was named the league’s best sixth man. Even Dennis Rodman kept it together long enough to win his fifth rebounding title. Well, he did headbutt a referee… but that’s about as wild as the NBA got before the days of punching fans in the stands.
So throw out the possibility of any team living up to the Bulls’ lofty legacy. No one can sustain that kind of long term success, but if anyone can come remotely close to that level of dominance in the short term, it’s LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs (66-15) are the East’s top seed, own home court advantage throughout the playoffs, and likely have the MVP in James.
Since his arrival in 2003, James has slowly transformed the Cavs from punchline to powerhouse. Cleveland has made the playoffs the last three seasons and went to the NBA Finals in 2007.
James averages nearly a triple-double (28.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 7.2 apg). He sells out arenas anywhere he goes. I’ve seen James play at Conseco Fieldhouse twice this season and No. 23 Cavs jerseys were everywhere. At last week’s game even Pacer fans cheered as James held an informal dunk contest with teammates during pre-game warm-ups.
The only knock on the LeBron-era Cavs is that they’ve had a weak supporting cast. Guys like Carlos Boozer, Ricky Davis, and Larry Hughes have tried, but none have been able to stick as James’ sidekick. But this year, James has finally found his Pippen in All-Star point guard Maurice Williams (17.8 ppg, 4.1 apg).
Just don’t expect these Cavs to stick together for long. Big men Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Ben Wallace are aging, Anderson “Sideshow Bob” Varejao should leave via free agency, and even James could bolt for New York in 2010.
But with home court advantage throughout the playoffs, Cleveland should take care of business and beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the Finals. James would win his first title a year before Jordan got his.
If things don’t work out, at least James can do this:
