What To Do With The Bulls?

So this is what Chicago was like Monday, the day after championship number six, with an asterisk by number eight.

Radio station WMVP carried wall-to-wall coverage of Bulls, Bulls, Bulls from 6 in the morning 'til 6 in the evening.

No traffic reports, no news reports, no weather reports, no commercial breaks.

Only Bulls.

This is how the Bulls clinched their sixth title in the 1990s, with Scottie Pippen playing like an upright Kimball piano, and Ron Harper playing sicker than a Utah center, save Antoine Carr. By playing four on six, at least when Luc Longley appeared on the court.

Mr. Karl Malone, the NBA playoffs. The NBA playoffs, Mr. Karl Malone.

Nice of Karl to show up, just in time for the end. He can only blame himself for Games 1 through 4. After all, he is the mailman, isn't he? Who else does he have to blame for not receiving his invitation?

The only shocker is that the Bulls didn't win it all at home on Friday.

On that night you kept waiting for MJ to take over, to score 40 and pick up his teammates and put them on his shoulders and will the Bulls to the win.

You waited because he has done it time after time. He is, bar none, the top competitor of our day.

It says here he is the greatest competitor of all time.

We were two days early in expecting Jordan's heroics. Sunday, he scored his 40, 45 to be exact. Sunday, he scored 45 of Chicago's 87. Sunday, MJ poured in 16 in the fourth quarter, including the final eight points. Sunday, he wanted it more than anyone else, more than John Stockton, more than Jeff Hornacek, and yes, more than Karl Malone.

Now the only suspense left is whether MJ and his teammates will return to the Bulls.

On one hand, you see that the Bulls need to bridge to the future by finding younger players, see that they don't want to pull a Boston and turn into the East Coast's version of the Clippers. It should be noted Boston ran into unfortunate circumstances with the deaths of phenoms Len Bias and Reggie Lewis.

On the other hand, you ask, why ruin a good thing? Who can beat these current Bulls, even next year? The one team that should beat them should have beaten them this year, but this team showed it is a pretender, not a contender. That team is the Los Angeles Lakers, the most talented team in the league.

But the Lakers are far, far away from being the best team in the league. Maybe one day Shaquille will know the difference.

For now, the best team is the Bulls.

Who out of the East would beat them next year?

Miami? Pat Riley has done a nice job, but he's trying to turn chicken salad into filet mignon. Too many retreads named Dan Majerle, Terry Mills and Voshon Lenard wear Miami uniforms. Two words for Riles: Juwan Howard.

The New York Knickerbockers? Too old and creaky. Need a point guard.

The Charlotte Hornets? A fancy offensive team with two of the best pure shooters around in Glen Rice and Dell Curry, but that's about it.

The New Jersey Nets? Should they stay intact, look out in two years.

The Atlanta Hawks? Bor-ing, Bor-ing, Bor-ing.

The Indiana Pacers? Aah, now we may be on to something. The Pacers were a Toni Kukoc off-game away from being in the NBA Finals. But the on-again, off-again Kukoc was on in Game 7 against the Pacers, and because of him, not MJ or Pippen, the Pacers were ousted.

Give the Pacers their due. They show the least fear, the least awe of the Bulls of any team that plays the Bulls.

Unless the Pacers pulled it off, the current Bulls would figure to be sitting in the NBA Finals yet again next year.

The only regret here is the Pacers didn't come out of the Western Conference, because judging by the playoffs, they were the second-best team in the NBA.

Last year Riley said the Bulls should stay together as long as they keep winning. Riley believes champions must reach the point where they are no longer champions, where they have to walk off the court and congratulate the other team.

They have to walk off the court a beaten team, a humbled team. They don't just disassemble in the off-season, which is what the Bulls figure to do.

Gee, do you think a bitter Riles is eager to one day rub it in MJ's face?

So many columnists have written on how sick they are of the Bulls this and the Bulls that.

Sports Illustrated even questioned whether the Bulls are good for the NBA.

No questions here. The Bulls are a dynasty. Dynasties come around as often as the Green Bay Packers, New York Yankees, Boston Celtics and UCLA Bruins.

Enjoy the Bulls - and a dynasty - while you can.

They have won six titles in eight years. We all know it would be eight in eight years had MJ not left to play baseball.

Spare us your tired Houston Sprockets dribble.

The Bulls are a dynasty headed by the greatest basketball player ever. We are fortunate to have watched them. The Bulls could be the last dynasty we see.