Windows in Time: The Bulls Decade by Decade

These days we hear a lot about whether a franchise's "window" is open or closed. The window is open if the franchise has a core group of players who are 1) good enough to contend for a championship, 2) healthy, and 3) not headed for free agency in the immediate future. The window is closed if the core group is too old, too injured, too young ("rebuilding"), or just bad. You could safely say that the Bulls' window was wide open in the 1990s. 

 

 

Below is a summary of the Bulls' performance by calendar decades. Interestingly, the Bulls have alternated losing and winning decades throughout their history to this point. 

Years                     W.         L.          Pct.        Postseasons

1966 - 1970           134       196       .410         3

1970 - 1980           429       391       .523         6

1980 - 1990           394       426       .480         7

1990 - 2000           520       268       .660         8 (6 world championships)

2000 - 2010           341       479       .416         5

2010 - 2020           409       378       .520         6

 

     Now, what do you suppose happens when we examine every ten-year stretch of Bulls history, regardless of calendar decades? Then we find (not surprisingly) that the Bulls' greatest ten-year window ended in 1998--the year of their sixth world championship and second "three-peat."    

     As we were reminded by the recent and riveting documentary The Last Dance, general manager Jerry Krause seemingly couldn't wait to dismantle the dynasty that might have won another title or two in order to start a rebuild that was supposed to prove that he could win without Michael Jordan, Phil Jackson, and others. Consequently, the worst ten-year period in Bulls' history began in 1998.

Years                     W.         L.          Pct.        Postseasons

1988 - 1998           592       228       .722         10 (6 world championships)

1998 - 2008           289       499       .367          3

Chicago Bulls year-by-year history on Basketball-Reference.com.

 

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