50 Fun Facts About Chicago Bulls

In which year were the Chicago Bulls founded?

They were the city's third NBA team, after the Stags of the 1940s and the Packers/Zephyrs of the early 1960s.

How many NBA championships have the Bulls won?

They are the only franchise to win multiple titles without ever losing an NBA Finals series.

With which NHL team do the Bulls share their home arena?

Both clubs are chased out every autumn when the circus takes over the building for two weeks.

Who reportedly sealed Dick Klein's team-name choice by saying 'Dad, that's a bunch of bull!'?

Klein had rejected Matadors and Toreadors, arguing that no three-syllable nickname had ever won much except the Montreal Canadiens.

What was unusual about founder Dick Klein among all Bulls owners?

He had played for the Chicago American Gears and served as general manager and president in the early years.

What feat did the Bulls' first-ever team achieve that no other first-year NBA franchise has matched?

Their 33–48 record was the best by any expansion team at the time, and coach Johnny "Red" Kerr won Coach of the Year.

What is the name of the Bulls' mascot, introduced in 1969?

He wears number 1; a dunking cousin, Da Bull, was retired after his performer was arrested in 2004.

Which player did the Bulls miss out on in 1979 after losing a coin flip for the first pick?

GM Rod Thorn called heads; the Bulls took David Greenwood second, and the Lakers used the pick they had acquired from New Orleans.

With which pick of the 1984 draft did the Bulls select Michael Jordan?

Houston took Hakeem Olajuwon and Portland took Sam Bowie ahead of him.

Jordan scored a still-standing playoff single-game record of how many points against Boston in 1986?

Larry Bird called him "God disguised as Michael Jordan" even though the Celtics swept the series.

Scottie Pippen was acquired on 1987 draft night from Seattle for which centre the Bulls had just picked eighth?

Horace Grant came in the same draft at number ten.

Which team eliminated the Bulls in the playoffs three years in a row from 1988 to 1990?

The "Bad Boys" won the title in 1989 and 1990 before Chicago swept them in the 1991 Conference Finals.

Which coach did Phil Jackson replace as Bulls head coach in 1989?

Jackson had been an assistant, and the team also drafted Stacey King and B. J. Armstrong that summer.

Whom did the Bulls beat in the 1991 NBA Finals for their first championship?

They won in five games after a then-record 61-win regular season.

Whose three-pointer with 3.9 seconds left won Game 6 of the 1993 Finals in Phoenix?

The 99–98 win completed the first three-peat against MVP Charles Barkley's Suns.

On what date did Michael Jordan announce his first retirement?

It came three months after his father's murder; the second of those dates is when he came back.

Which Croatian rookie forward joined the Bulls in 1993 and later won Sixth Man of the Year?

He won the award in the 72-win season of 1995–96.

In which season did the Bulls move from Chicago Stadium into the United Center?

They had called the old building home for 27 years.

Which centre, acquired from Minnesota in 1994, was the first Australian to play in the NBA?

He started at centre on all three teams of the second three-peat.

Whom did the Bulls send to San Antonio in 1995 to acquire Dennis Rodman?

Rodman had won four straight rebounding titles and had been one of the Pistons' Bad Boys.

What was the Bulls' regular-season record in 1995–96?

It stood as the NBA record until Golden State went 73–9 twenty years later.

How many games did the 1995–96 Bulls win before their first loss, then an NBA-record start?

They started 41–3 and went 37–0 at home before dropping a game there.

Whom did the Bulls beat in the 1996 Finals for their fourth title?

Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp led the opposition; Jordan swept MVP, All-Star MVP and Finals MVP that year.

How many games did the 1996-97 Bulls win, missing a second straight 70-win season by losing their last two?

They went 39–2 at home for the second year running.

Which team did the Bulls beat in both the 1997 and 1998 NBA Finals?

Utah's Hall of Fame duo came up short both times, the second time on a 5.2-second shot in Game 6.

How many times was Michael Jordan named NBA Finals MVP with the Bulls?

He was also named league MVP five times, all in Chicago.

Which team pushed the 1998 Bulls to a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Finals?

Reggie Miller's side won all three home games before Chicago prevailed 88–83 at the United Center.

Which player did Jordan strip before his title-winning shot in Game 6 of the 1998 Finals?

The 87–86 win came with 5.2 seconds left; Stockton missed a three at the buzzer.

Which general manager broke up the dynasty in 1998, citing an aging roster?

He traded Pippen, let Rodman go and hired Tim Floyd to replace Phil Jackson.

What was the Bulls' record in the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, the first after the dynasty?

That season also produced a record-low 49 points in a game against Miami.

Which No. 1 pick, later traded for Tyson Chandler, was co-Rookie of the Year for the Bulls in 2000?

Krause's decision to trade him shocked fans, and the team hit a franchise-worst 15–67 the following year.

What were the Bulls' odds of winning the 2008 draft lottery, which they won to select Derrick Rose?

They were the longest shot ever to win it since the modern lottery format was introduced.

Derrick Rose played college basketball at which university before the Bulls drafted him?

He was a Chicago native, and his No. 1 jersey was set to be retired in January 2026.

What distinction did Derrick Rose earn in 2011?

He was the first Bull to win MVP since Jordan, and the team went a league-best 62–20 under new coach Tom Thibodeau.

Which Bull won Defensive Player of the Year and finished fourth in MVP voting in 2013–14?

That season the team traded Luol Deng to Cleveland and still won 48 games.

With which pick of the 2011 draft did the Bulls select Jimmy Butler?

He was traded to Minnesota in 2017 in the deal that brought Zach LaVine and the pick used on Lauri Markkanen.

Which Alan Parsons Project instrumental became famous as the Bulls' player-introduction music?

Announcer Tommy Edwards was the first to use it, along with Pink Floyd's "On the Run", and Ray Clay carried on the tradition through all six titles.

Which graphic designer created the charging red bull logo the team has used since its first season?

An early-1970s alternate added a cloud reading "Windy City" under the bull's nose.

Which arena hosted the Bulls before they moved to Chicago Stadium?

Attendance later fell so low that one 1967–68 game officially drew 891 fans.

Which touring show forced the Bulls and their arena-mates onto an annual two-week autumn road trip?

Because it played indoor arenas rather than tents, the circus took over the building for its entire run.

Which local businessman bought a controlling stake in the Bulls in 1985?

He bought in two years after the death of Arthur Wirtz, whose family had run the team on a shoestring.

Which star did the Bulls acquire from San Antonio in the 2021 off-season?

He hit back-to-back buzzer-beating threes that season, and the team briefly held the East's top seed.

How many wins did the Bulls set as a franchise record in 1972 under coach Dick Motta?

That team leaned on Jerry Sloan, Bob Love, Chet Walker and Norm Van Lier.

Which centre acquired in the 1976 ABA dispersal draft led the Bulls in the late 1970s?

He was later traded to San Antonio for centre Dave Corzine.

In which year did the Bulls introduce their Ring of Honor?

The first class included everyone with a retired number or banner, plus contributors such as Dick Klein and assistant coach Tex Winter.

How many wins did the Bulls post in 1990–91, a then-franchise record, on the way to their first title?

They swept the Knicks and the defending-champion Pistons on the way to the Finals.

Which 2020 ESPN and Netflix documentary miniseries chronicled Michael Jordan's Bulls career?

Its release brought the franchise a wave of renewed attention decades after the dynasty broke up in 1998.

In June 2017 the Bulls traded Jimmy Butler to Minnesota in a deal that brought back which guard?

The package also included Kris Dunn and the pick used on Lauri Markkanen; LaVine later re-signed for four years and $78 million.

In the early 1980s the Bulls practised at Angel Guardian, a former what in Rogers Park?

Earlier they used DePaul's Alumni Hall, and from 1992 the purpose-built Sheri L. Berto Center in Deerfield.

What was the official attendance at one Bulls home game during the 1967–68 season?

Interest had collapsed so badly after the promising first season that some 'home' games were played in Kansas City.