Chicago Bulls: The Amazing Nine-Peat That Never Was

Led by Hall of Famer Bill Russell, the Boston Celtics reeled off an NBA record eight consecutive titles from 1959-1966. That record still stands today and will most likely never be broken.

However, the 1990's Chicago Bulls may have surpassed Boston's record if it wasn't for Michael Jordan's two retirements during the decade. The Bulls won six championships in the '90s (two separate three-peats), but possibly could have pulled off nine in a row.

Jordan's first retirement came in '93, just a few months after the Bulls won title No. 3 against the Phoenix Suns. He just wasn't motivated to resume his career following the murder of his father that summer and ended up playing Minor League baseball.

With Jordan out of the picture, the Bulls surprised the league by winning 55 games in '93-94 and taking the eventual Eastern Conference champion New York Knicks to seven games in the second round of the playoffs.

That year, Bulls stars Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, and B.J. Armstrong each had career years. Pippen finished third in MVP voting, and both Grant and Armstrong became All-Stars.   

But just imagine if Jordan hadn't retired in '93. What if he had decided to stick around and continue to dominate the NBA instead of chasing fly balls for the Birmingham Barons?

In all likelihood, Jordan would have put together another incredible season and either won his fourth MVP or finished second in voting to Hakeem Olajuwon, who actually won the award in '94.

The Bulls maybe win 60 regular-season games, slip past the Knicks and Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, and then face Olajuwon's Houston Rockets in the Finals.  

It may have been a tough series for Chicago due to the fact that Olajuwon would have had his way with the Bulls' center corps. The Dream could have easily dropped 40 points a night on the likes of Bill Cartwright, Luc Longley, and Scott Williams.

And the Bulls may have had trouble stopping Houston's dangerous long-range attack. The Rockets had a plethora of three-point shooters such as Vernon Maxwell, Kenny Smith, Mario Elie, Robert Horry, and rookie Sam Cassell.

However, perimeter defense was Jordan and Pippen's forte, so the Bulls would have somehow found a way to win the series. They probably take it in six or seven games.

Jordan is named Finals MVP and the Bulls become the first team in league history to win four consecutive titles since those great Celtics teams.

In the offseason, Grant, became an unrestricted free agent and ended up signing with the Orlando Magic. If Jordan hadn't retired, does Grant re-sign with the Bulls and try to go for a fifth straight championship or does he still take the Magic's money?

He probably still leaves Chicago and attempts to be a part of a new dynasty in Orlando that is led by young superstars Shaquille O'Neal and Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway.   

The Bulls posted a 47-35 record in '94-95 with Jordan playing only 17 games (he came out of retirement in March '95). With Jordan in the lineup for a full season, the Bulls may have won another 10 games or so.

Chicago fell to Orlando in the second-round of the playoffs as Jordan apparently seemed a bit rusty. In addition, the Bulls starting center-power forward duo of Longley and Toni Kukoc wasn't enough to battle the likes of O'Neal and Grant.

If Jordan was his usual self, though, the Bulls may have gotten past the Magic and advanced to the Finals for a rematch with the Rockets despite their lack of frontcourt depth.

The Bulls would have had their work cut out for them once again vs. the Rockets, but they likely win the series in seven games. Jordan earns Finals MVP and leads his team to their fifth consecutive title.

Chicago went out and acquired power forward Dennis Rodman in the offseason and the team went on to win three straight championships from 1996-1998.

Ron Harper, a starter on those title teams, wouldn't have been on the roster if Jordan hadn't retired, since Harper was only signed to replace Jordan. So Harper is likely replaced in the lineup with Armstrong, who was lost to Toronto in the expansion draft.

Either way, the Bulls still win titles from '96-'98 no matter if Armstrong or Harper is starting in the backcourt.

General manager Jerry Krause infamously dismantled the Bulls dynasty following the team's sixth title in '98. He wanted to rebuild the aging roster with high draft picks and top-flight free agents.

Head coach Phil Jackson left—joined the Lakers a year later—Jordan retired for the second time, Pippen was traded, Rodman was not re-signed, and key free agents like Longley and Steve Kerr ended up in different destinations.

Imagine if the team was kept intact for another two years. They surely would have knocked off the San Antonio Spurs in the '99 finals despite having trouble with the Twin Towers of David Robinson and a young Tim Duncan.

That would have been nine in-a-row for the Bulls, the NBA record.

In 2000, the Bulls could have defeated Reggie Miller's Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals and met up with the Lakers in the NBA Finals. And yes, even without Jackson, the Lakers would have still wound up in the finals.

This time, though, the aging Bulls would most likely have lost to the younger Lakers. However, the matchup of Jordan vs. Kobe Bryant would have went down as a classic showdown.

Then the Bulls head into rebuilding mode. Jackson leaves, Jordan either retires or heads elsewhere, and the team tries to lure in free agents.

So looking back at it all, if Jordan didn't retire twice in the '90s, would the Bulls have pulled off a nine-peat?

Probably not. Since winning just one title is hard enough, nine straight is pretty much a fantasy.

But having arguably the NBA's greatest player of all time in Jordan, maybe the greatest coach ever in Jackson, and one of the premier defenders in Pippen, the Bulls definitely had a chance.