Steph says the Warriors with KD would beat the ‘96 Bulls

In a recent GQ Sports video, the two-time MVP and greatest shooter ever went undercover online to answer fans’ questions. Curry answered multiple hard-hitting questions like who is the better shooter, you or Klay? As well as if he wanted to get drafted somewhere else other than the Warriors on draft night. But one of the hardest-hitting questions that hoop fans have been debating for years came up and Curry gave his honest opinion.

The fan asked, "Do you believe the fully healthy Warriors with KD could have beat the ‘96 Bulls in 7 game finals?” Steph looked up at the camera confidently and declared, “Absolutely. Obviously, we’ll never know, but you put us on paper with them... I like our chances. I’d say Dubs in 6 too.” And he is right we’ll never know because the two top-heavy teams played in different eras and left behind two different legacies. But both Dennis Rodman and Scottie Pippen have been recorded on occasion saying that their Bulls squad would demolish the Warriors.

If you really look down the line and name the players on each team, the only underlining fact is Michael Jordan. Fans have debated that no one on the Warriors would be able to stop him, which in most cases would be true. But in an era where many are quick to crown Jordan’s successor, better known as Lebron, it is fair to ask if the Warriors would replicate the same outcome facing Jordan as they did to Lebron. Granted Jordan did have a better constructed roster, but the question remains the same. You could also ask the same question for Curry and Klay as they are two of the top three-point shooters on the same team. And Curry’s off-ball movement would be a nightmare to guard for Ron Harper.

Taking a closer look at the matchup, we can say that the Warriors would most likely start Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Zaza Pachulia or Javale McGee. And based off of who started for the Bulls ‘96 team it would probably consist of Ron Harper, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and either Luc Longley or Bill Wennington. Both squads had guys who could contribute off the bench with the Dubs having Andre Iguodala, David West, Shaun Livingston, and in the second year of their run together, players like Nick Young and Quinn Cook who could provide a spark at any moment.

Whereas the Bulls bench had the Warrior’s coach Steve Kerr, Toni Kukoc, John Salley, and Jud Buechler. In comparison, both teams had decent role players but sacrificed extreme depth over keeping highly valued players like Jordan and Curry or KD. But if we were strictly going off of how the starting lineups would match up it would most likely look something like this. Curry would guard Harper and Zaza or Javale would guard Longley or Wennington. The other three guys could be interchangeable as maybe Klay would guard Michael, Draymond on Rodman, and KD on Pippen. But you would have to figure that Draymond would take the challenge of trying to guard MJ or possibly even KD to give him a height advantage. As the thought of a seven-foot demigod in 1996 was almost unheard of, but one who could move his feet and knock down a thirty-footer, almost impossible.

But the same could be said on the other side, as the game has never seen another MJ, meaning his dominance could be so overwhelming that it could win the series. This is why the game of basketball is so special though, it is always evolving to become a better version of itself. There will always be great teams that dominate the league, but it is how the other 29 teams respond that makes it so fun to watch. So, at the end of the day we will never know who would win, we can only speculate about the greatness that has been left behind from the two dynasties.

(Photo credit: erickjpeyton/IG)