Kenny tells Stephen A, the Rockets would have smacked the Bulls

I was in the building when the Rockets won it all on 6.22.94. Was with a friend on the first row of the upper level right behind the goal for all of the WCF and NBA Finals. My friends parents had season tickets down low so as the building emptied out we walked down to the lower level. Me at 20 in my Vernon jersey because I’m a hero and all. Anyway, the team had left the court but Kenny randomly came back out onto the court. And I jumped on a chair and screamed something like “Kennnnyy let’s gooo!” And he screamed let’s go and was waving a towel and buddy let me tell you that was pretty ****ing awesome for a 4th generation Houstonian who saw with these eyes a real title won for my city for the first time.

 

It is a shame we never got to see the two best teams and two best players of the 90s match up in the playoffs. I don't think they would have had any answer at all for Hakeem. MJ would've gotten his, of course, but I think we could have limited the damage better than they could have on Dream.

Greatest playoff series that never happened?

 

**** them kids Rockets in 4

 

Coming off a retirement lol. If MJ didn't retire Chicago would have won 8 in a row.

 

Starts at 53:00.

 

Luc longley or whatever his name was on a prime Olajuwon lol hahaha. No chance in hell that would have ended well for the Bulls.

Clyde and Mario could have atleast limited Pippen and Jordan. There is noway anyone on the bulls could have touched Olajuwon. A 50 year old Robert Parish and Longley? Hahaha

 

A great what-if fueled by some of the select games the Rockets beat them when they would play twice/year.

That being said, the Bulls were able to beat teams with elite centers… and the Rockets lost to teams that probably shouldn’t have been able to contain Hakeem but were able to.

Would have boiled down to in-series adjustments... and Rudy vs. Phil would be very contrasting styles. I actually think the 95 team was far more versatile and could throw different lineups at teams based on matchups.

 

I don’t think the second Bulls 3-peat team would have a problem with those Rockets. They handled Shaq pretty well and Hakeem was older at that point. Rodman would have been a difference maker.

Hard to say what a 94 or 95 matchup would have looked like. Cartwright still there. Bulls faced teams with post-up centric centers in the East, albeit none as dynamic as Hakeem. The 96 Sonics contained Hakeem with Ervin Johnson and Shawn Kemp.

 

The Rockets would have all went to prison because they would have Murdered the Bulls. For two seasons, Dream was the best basketball player who ever walked the earth. MJ could just go shiver and gape in awe at his presence like the rest of them.

 

In 1995 Olajuwon was at the Peake of his powers. See what he did to a young Shaq . In 1994 he destroyed Ewing and Robinson. Olajuwons decline started in 1996/1997 with the knee and back issues.

I think in 1995 when Jordan was gone the Rockets Olajuwon could have taken the 1995 bulls with Jordan if he was around .

 

I hated playing the Sonics almost as bad as the Jazz back then. There was no free lunch with either of them.

 

Wish I could find a meme for it, but mere words will have to do: second place winner for post of the day!

 

Yes, well aware… but sometimes the matchup is a lot easier when you know exactly how they’re going to defend you. Olajuwon had no problems with the other elite centers because those teams would always match up and try to guard him one-on-one (a virtual impossibility in the post).

Teams like Seattle gave him trouble because they’d be inventive in their schemes (some say illegal defense) and would force him to make mistakes when he over-extended himself or forced others to beat them.

Much like the Rockets can claim they’d handle the Bulls, the 90’s Sonics could complain they’d have handled the Rockets had they not got flukeshily bounced in first round best of 5 series.

 

Kemp was killing the Rockets because he and Payton were just too much with the pick and roll and Shawn the reign man kemp was the in shape athletic freak version was agile and skilled enough to shoot from the mid range and the occasional three ball. That was dragging Olajuwon out of the paint.

Barkley helped offset that because he could replicate everything Kemp did and Charles also had a better jump shot. Plus Charles in 1996 was still a damn good post up player with his usual knack to eat off the offensive glass.