Back in July, I started a massive tournament with the last 64 NBA champions to find the best of all time. We're down to eight now, with quite the stark difference from the 2013 Tournament. Only four teams that made the Quarterfinals in 2013 are back this year, with only one team that made it to at least the semis still alive: our defending champion '96 Bulls. Our biggest turn of events: the '92 Bulls, who had the tough draw in 2013 with that year's Miami Heat, have made it this far while their eliminator from 2013 is out after last round. Most interestingly though, our top two seeds in the '15 Warriors and the '86 Celtics are still alive and might be on a collision course for the championship... but obstacles remain.
I was able to catch up on the stat lines from the last round, so you can view complete Elimination Round stats on my Google Sheet. I will also update the sheet again in the aftermath of the quarterfinals.
As for the series I'm going through today: like the last couple rounds, they are best of seven played in a 2-2-1-1-1 format. Home court advantage did get complicated in this round though, with seeding based on Group Play finish still being the primary criteria, though if their seeds are the same, record in Group Play is the first tiebreaker, followed by point differential from Group Play. I set up the bracket so that the one seeds were arranged in a standard seeded bracket format: the top 1 seed would face the 8th-best 1 seed, the second best would face the seventh-best, and so on. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's get to it.
(1) 1997 Chicago Bulls vs (1) 2015 Golden State Warriors
Game 2: @ '15 Warriors 105, '97 Bulls 96 ('15 Warriors lead 2-0)
Game 3: @ '97 Bulls 101, '15 Warriors 85 ('15 Warriors lead 2-1)
Game 4: '15 Warriors 112, @ '97 Bulls 103 ('15 Warriors lead 3-1)
Game 5: '97 Bulls 107, @ '15 Warriors 81 ('15 Warriors lead 3-2)
Game 6: @ '97 Bulls 113, '15 Warriors 107 (Series tied 3-3)
Game 7: @ '15 Warriors 111, '97 Bulls 108 ('15 Warriors win 4-3)
The Bulls locked down Golden State's outside shooting in Game 1, but Michael Jordan's 39 points weren't enough to overcome a balanced Warrior attack. Game 2 saw an early Chicago lead get blown away as the Warriors started to hit their threes again and held the Bulls' offense in check during their run. Back in Chicago, the Bulls' defense came to life in Game 3, holding the Warriors to 35.4 percent shooting while controlling the glass to make it a series again. The Warriors responded in Game 4, with four players scoring at least 20 points to more than cancel out 38 from Jordan. Jordan added 38 more in Game 5 while adding 11 rebounds, and the Warriors shot under 40 percent for the contest as the Bulls staved off elimination. Back in Chicago, the Warriors led by 16 going into the fourth quarter of Game 6, but Jordan and Scottie Pippen combined for 31 points in that last frame as each finished with 34 points to force a deciding seventh game. Steph Curry hit six of his eight threes in Game 7 and added 14 assists to outduel Jordan's 32, with Harrison Barnes putting Golden State ahead for good with 1:42 to play.
(3) 1985 Los Angeles Lakers vs (1) 1996 Chicago Bulls
Game 2: @ '96 Bulls 110, '85 Lakers 107 ('96 Bulls lead 2-0)
Game 3: @ '85 Lakers 116, '96 Bulls 107 ('96 Bulls lead 2-1)
Game 4: '96 Bulls 116, @ '85 Lakers 108 ('96 Bulls lead 3-1)
Game 5: @ '96 Bulls 106, '85 Lakers 93 ('96 Bulls win 4-1)
The Bulls got off to a hot start, shooting 57.3 percent in Game 1 to pull away for an easy early victory. After struggling in Game 1, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar got going in Game 2 and the Lakers nearly came back to tie the series, but Michael Jordan scored Chicago's final five points to seal the 2-0 series lead. Showtime got going back in Los Angeles, as seven Lakers scored in double figures in Game 3 to overcome 31 points from Michael Jordan. Jordan repeated his 31 point performance in Game 4, but saw his supporting cast rise to the occasion as the team shot 7-16 from deep to overcome a 54.2 percent shooting day for the Lakers. Back in Chicago, the Lakers shot 34 free throws but only made 22 of them while getting outrebounded 65-46 as Jordan and Scottie Pippen combined for 50 points to get the defending Champion of Champions back to the semifinals.
(1) 1992 Chicago Bulls vs (1) 1986 Boston Celtics
Game 2: @ '86 Celtics 104, '92 Bulls 97 ('86 Celtics lead 2-0)
Game 3: '86 Celtics 103 @ '92 Bulls 94 ('86 Celtics lead 3-0)
Game 4: @ '92 Bulls 124, '86 Celtics 108 ('86 Celtics lead 3-1)
Game 5: @ '86 Celtics 102, '92 Bulls 93 ('86 Celtics win 4-1)
Both defenses came to play to open the series in Boston, but the Celtics kept the Bulls under 40 percent shooting while taking 27 free throws to the Bulls' 12 in a Game 1 victory. Larry Bird and Kevin McHale each had 27 points in Game 2 and the Celtics shot almost 50 percent for the game to take a 2-0 lead into Chicago. Michael Jordan's 34 points weren't enough in Game 3, as the Celtics outrebounded the Bulls 60-44 and Robert Parish put up 23 points and 17 rebounds. MJ exploded for 44 points and Scottie Pippen played a strong game to hold off elimination. Back in Boston though, the Celtics forced 17 turnovers and Larry Bird went off for 36 points to get the Celtics on to the semifinals.
(2) 1991 Chicago Bulls vs (2) 1971 Milwaukee Bucks
Game 2: '91 Bulls 114, @ '71 Bucks 91 (Series tied 1-1)
Game 3: @ '91 Bulls 113, '71 Bucks 109 ('91 Bulls lead 2-1)
Game 4: @ '91 Bulls 117, '71 Bucks 116 ('91 Bulls lead 3-1)
Game 5: '91 Bulls 109, @ '71 Bucks 103 ('91 Bulls win 4-1)
Bob Dandridge had a career day with 35 points and 10 rebounds in Game 1 to propel the Bucks to a key win despite a triple-double from Scottie Pippen. Dandridge slowed down in Game 2 while Michael Jordan shut down Oscar Robertson to the tune of five points and 10 assists while scoring 23 points at the other end, including 11 in a 41 point second quarter for the Bulls to even the series. Kareem had 26 points and 19 rebounds in Game 3, but it wasn't enough to overcome a balanced attack by the Bulls that included 19 points off the bench for B.J. Armstrong. Game 4 was an instant classic, with three Bucks scoring at least 20 points, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who hit a jumper from the wing with two seconds left to put Milwaukee ahead. After a timeout however, Michael Jordan scored the final two of his 34 points at the buzzer to give the Bulls the win. Milwaukee missed 11 of their 27 free throws in the tough loss. Kareem had a monster Game 5 with 31 points and 22 rebounds, but he couldn't overcome Jordan and Pippen combining for 41 points, 15 rebounds and 15 assists and 17 points apiece for Horace Grant and John Paxson as the Bulls pull the lone upset of the quarterfinals and move on.
To see the updated bracket, click here. You can also go check the "Elimination" tab on my Google sheet to see updated stats from the quarterfinals.
The final four is set. We have the two teams most argued about as the greatest of all time still alive in the 1996 Bulls and the 1986 Celtics. Facing them over the next couple weeks are the 2015 Warriors and the 1991 Chicago Bulls, respectively. So this leaves a few possibilities: will the top two seeds from Group Play face off for the title? Will we see an all-Chicago finals? Will the greatest team debate be settled once and for all? Or will Steph Curry get a shot to knock off three straight MJ teams? Those games will play out over the next couple weeks, and I will be back with results when those series conclude.
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