"Nobody from planet Earth was beating Michael Jordan that year" - George Karl refutes Steph Curry's claim that the '17 Warriors could have beaten the '96 Bulls
In recent events, Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry stated that his Warriors team with Kevin Durant had the potential to defeat the legendary '96 Chicago Bulls led by Michael Jordan.
Curry's comments created quite the stir among fans of the sport. Steph Curry received some backlash when his comments were refuted by former Denver Nuggets and Seattle Supersonics head coach George Karl.
Karl responded to Steph Curry's comments with a tweet of his own.
"Nobody from planet Earth was beating Michael that year."
Nobody from planet Earth was beating Michael that year. twitter.com/espnnba/status…
As a former head coach and the 2012-13 NBA's Coach of The Year, Karl's comments hold some value in the matter.
George Karl had first-hand experience coaching against Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls. As coach of the Seattle Supersonics from 1992-98, Karl experienced the dominance of the Chicago Bulls in the NBA as they dismantled his Supersonics in the 1996 NBA Finals.
Although Karl's comments have received mixed reviews from fans of the sport, the debate between who would emerge as the winner between Steph Curry's Warriors and Michael Jordan's Bulls poses an interesting dialog.
Could Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors take on Michael Jordan and the '96 Chicago Bulls?
The Golden State Warriors had one of the most stacked rosters heading into the 2016-17 season.
Adding the talents of Kevin Durant following their loss in the 2016 Finals made them beyond competitive. Recording 67 wins in the regular season along with a 16-1 postseason record resulting in the title, the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors were undoubtedly one of the best teams the NBA has seen.
The '96 Chicago Bulls were also in a league of their own. Recording a 72 win season, a record that withstood the test of time for many years to come, the 1995-96 Bulls are considered by many as the best team of all time.
Losing only three games on the road to the title, the Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, seemed unstoppable.
The nature of Steph Curry's comments is not out of place in the slightest. Durant's first year at Golden State saw him average 25.1 points and 8.3 rebounds in the regular season. Curry himself averaged 25.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game.
The overall makeup of the Warriors made them an overwhelming team to say the least. While also factoring in the brilliance of Steve Kerr's free-flowing offense, there's little to dispute the greatness of the team.
However, the '96 Chicago Bulls featured Michael Jordan at the peak of his powers. With Jordan averaging 30.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game for the season, there was little anyone could do to stop "His Airness" in an era where physicality was the norm.
#OTD Jun. 16, 1996 🔙⏳
The @chicagobulls became #NBA champion after defeating the Seattle SuperSonics 4-2. Michael Jordan was named Finals MVP 🏆🏆🏆🏆
The Bulls completed the most impressive season of all-time, following a 72-10 regular season record!
https://t.co/iAcwNw7qt9
The debate can be understood from a wide variety of approaches. The game could be broken down into one-on-one player analysis. It can be viewed in terms of pace and physicality. It can also be viewed in terms of schemes used by the coaches.
While it is hard to dispute Steph Curry's confidence and faith in his team, it feels harder to discount a champion such as Michael Jordan when put in a seven-game series against anyone.