It did not seem like Da Bulls would win "forever." There was already talk that general manager Jerry Krause was going to accept that certain contracts were running out, and that he would rebuild the team. So this was being called "The Last Dance."
Ron Harper, Toni Kukoc, Keith Booth, Randy Brown, Dickey Simpkins and Bill Wennington would be the only 6 holdovers from the previous season -- and only Harper had been a starter, although Kukoc was the 6th man. The next season? Only Simpkins was left, although B.J. Armstrong and Will Perdue from the 1991-93 "threepeat" had returned.
The effect? After going 62-20 under Hall of Fame head coach Phil Jackson in 1997-98, they went 13-37 under Tim Floyd in the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season, which extends to 21-61 over the standard 82 games. In 1999-2000? 17-65.
But no more Jackson, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Luc Longley and Steve Kerr; Armstrong, Bill Cartwright and Horace Grant were already dumped after the 1st threepeat.
There was reason to believe that Krause could rebuild. After all, the only 2 guys from both threepeats were Jordan and Pippen.
But he couldn't, because Jordan -- and Jackson -- were key. His weight rising even further led to Krause's retirement in 2003. He died in 2017, having failed in the most ambitious building program in NBA history.
The Bulls didn't make the Playoffs again until 2005, and didn't win another Playoff round until 2007. They won their Division in 2011 and 2012, and got to the Conference Finals in 2011. But they have since fallen apart again, and were just 27-55 in 2017-18.
That title won on June 14, 1998 remains their last. That's 20 years. How long has that been?
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Of the NBA's 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players, 9 were then active, 4 of them playing in the Finals: Jordan and Pippen for the Bulls, and Karl Malone and John Stockton for the Jazz. The others were Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson and Shaquille O'Neal. Another, Clyde Drexler, had just retired. Of those 50, Wilt Chamberlain, Dave DeBusschere, George Mikan, Paul Arizin, Bill Sharman, Dolph Schayes, Nate Thurmond and Hal Greer have since died.
Allen Iverson was in his 2nd season with the Philadelphia 76ers, Kobe Bryant his 2nd with the Los Angeles Lakers, Tim Duncan his 1st with the Spurs. Dirk Nowitzki was still playing in Germany. Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony were still in high school. LeBron James was in unior high. Steph Curry and Brook Lopez were 10 years old; Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook 9; Kyrie Irving 6, Anthony Davis 5, and Kristaps Porzingis 2.
The San Antonio Spurs, the Miami Heat, the Dallas Mavericks and the Cleveland Cavaliers had not yet won their 1st NBA Championship. The Spurs, the Heat, the Mavs, the Cavs, the Indiana Pacers and the New Jersey Nets (now the Brooklyn Nets) had not yet appeared in their 1st NBA Finals. The Seattle SuperSonics had not yet moved to become the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Vancouver Grizzlies had not yet moved to become the Memphis Grizzlies. The Charlotte Hornets had not yet moved to become the New Orleans Hornets and then the New Orleans Pelicans. The Charlotte Bobcats had not yet been founded, eventually becoming the new Charlotte Hornets.
Atlanta, Brooklyn, Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indiana, Vancouver/Memphis, Miami, New Orleans, Seattle/Oklahoma City, Sacramento and San Antonio have since opened new arenas. Milwaukee and Golden State are working on new ones.
In 1998, Barry Trotz of the Islanders had just become the 1st head coach of the Nashville Predators. Pat Shurmur of the Giants was the offensive coordinator at Stanford University. Todd Bowles of the Jets was the defensive coordinator at Grambling State University in Louisiana. David Fizdale of the Knicks was an assistant coach at the University of San Diego. John Hynes of the Devils was an assistant coach at Boston University. David Quinn of the Rangers was an assistant coach at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (not to be confused with the main campus in Lincoln). Aaron Boone of the Yankees was playing for the Cincinnati Reds. Mickey Callaway of the Mets was playing in the Devil Rays' farm system. Kenny Atkinson of the Nets was playing in the Spanish basketball league.
Speaking of Spain, Domenec Torrent of NYCFC was managing Palafrugell in Girona, Catalonia. And Jesse Marsch of the Red Bulls was helping the Chicago Fire go from MLS expansion team to MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup "Double" winners in just 1 season.
The defending World Champions, in addition to the Bulls, were the Florida Marlins, the Denver Broncos, the Detroit Red Wings, and D.C. United. The Heavyweight Champion of the World was Evander Holyfield. Arsenal had won England's Premier League and its FA Cup, for a Double, while Real Madrid broke a 32-year drought to win the UEFA Champions League.
The Olympic Games have since been held in America, Australia, Greece, Italy, China, Canada, Britain, Russia, Brazil and Korea. The World Cup had just been won by France, on home soil, and has since been held in Japan, Korea, Germany, South Africa, Brazil and Russia.
Only 4 Justices then on the U.S. Supreme Court are still on it now: Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer. The idea that corporations were people, and entitled to the rights thereof, was ridiculous -- but then, so was the idea that people of the same gender could marry, and get all the rights and protections thereof.
The President of the United States was Bill Clinton, and he was under an impeachment inquiry for things far less serious than Donald Trump is under investigation for now. Trump was then married to his 2nd wife, Marla Maples. Barack Obama was a State Senator in Illinois. George W. Bush was running for re-election as Governor of Texas. Former Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, their wives, and the widow of Lyndon B. Johnson were all still alive.
The Mayor of San Diego was Susan Golding, the city's 1st Jewish Mayor, a Republican but one who was pro-choice, pro-environmental protection, pro-affirmative action and pro-gay rights, flying in the face of a previous Mayor, then running out the string as Governor of California, Pete Wilson, about to be succeeded by Gray Davis. She is now the CEO of the Child Abuse Prevention Foundation.
Current Mayor Kevin Faulconer was then a public relations executive -- which helps in governing, and definitely in elections. Jerry Brown, about to leave the Governorship for the 2nd time, was launching his political comeback, about to be elected Mayor of Oakland.
The Governor of the State of New York was George Pataki. The Mayor of the City of New York was Rudy Giuliani. The Governor of New Jersey was Christine Todd Whitman. As for the current holders of those posts: Andrew Cuomo was U.S. Secretary of Housing & Urban Development, Bill de Blasio was one of his aides, and Phil Murphy was running the Asia office of Goldman Sachs out of Hong Kong.
There were still living veterans of World War I, the Bolshevik Reovlution, the Balkan Wars of 1912-13, and the Mexican Revolution of 1910-20. There were still survivors of the 1900 Galveston Hurricane, the 1904 General Slocum fire, the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, and the sinkings of the Titanic and the Lusitania.
The Nobel Peace Prize was then held by landmine-removal activist Jody Williams.The Pope was John Paul II. Pope Francis, the current Pontiff, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires. The Prime Minister of Canada was Jean Chrétien, and of Britain Tony Blair. The monarch of each was Queen Elizabeth II -- that hasn't changed. There have since been 4 Presidents, 4 Prime Ministers of Britain, and 3 Popes.
Major novels of 1998 included Blood Work by Michael Connelly, About a Boy by Nick Hornby, and Giles Foden's dramatization of Uganda's dictator Idi Amin, then still alive, The Last King of Scotland. All would be made into major motion pictures. Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency would become a TV series. Stephen King published Bag of Bones, J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and George R.R. Martin A Clash of Kings.
No one had yet heard of Ash Ketchum, Robert Langdon, Master Chief, Rick Grimes, Wynonna Earp, Lisbeth Salander, Bella Swan or Katniss Everdeen.
Notable films of the late Spring and early Summer of 1998 included Spike Lee's basketball-themed film He Got Game, Deep Impact, Bulworth, The Horse Whisperer, A Perfect Murder, The Truman Show, Can't Hardly Wait, Out of Sight, Buffalo '66, Eddie Murphy's awful remake of Dr. Dolittle, a film sequel to The X-Files, and a new but very bad version of Godzilla.
George Lucas was working on Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace. If anyone told him, "Wait a minute... " about any part of it, he didn't listen. Steven Spielberg was about to release Saving Private Ryan. The Next Generation cast was filming Star Trek: Insurrection.
Pierce Brosnan was playing James Bond, Dean Cain had recently wrapped up playing Superman, George Clooney (with help from director Joel Schumacher) had nearly ruined Batman, Lynda Carter was still the last live-action Wonder Woman, and Nicholas Hammond still the last live-action Spider-Man. And Paul McGann's one-shot deal was the only appearance of The Doctor since 1989.
Sex and the City and Celebrity Deathmatch had recently premiered. Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Singled Out, The Larry Sanders Show, and iconic shows Murphy Brown and Seinfeld had recently been wrapped up. New York Undercover and Step By Step were days away from doing so.
No one had yet heard of Tony Soprano, Jed Bartlet, Jack Bauer, Omar Little, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Michael Bluth, Michael Scott, Don Draper, Walter White, Jax Teller, Richard Castle, Leslie Knope, Sarah Manning or Jane "Eleven" Hopper.
The Number 1 song in the country was "The Boy Is Mine," a duet by (or perhaps a battle between) Brandy Norwood and Monica Arnold. Both went by only their first names, and, by this point, Arnold was the only Monica anyone wanted to hear about.
Frank Sinatra had recently died. So had Linda McCartney, wife of ex-Beatle Paul. Bob Dylan was touring in support of his album Time Out of Mind, and Michael Jackson had just become the father of Paris Jackson. Geri Halliwell left the Spice Girls, effectively ending their phenomenon after 2 years. Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera were both recording their debut albums.
Inflation was such that what $1.00 bought then, $1.55 would buy now. A U.S. postage stamp cost 32 cents, and a New York Subway ride $1.50. The average price of a gallon of gas was $1.12, a cup of coffee $1.86, a McDonald's meal (Big Mac, fries, shake) $5.69, a movie ticket $4.58, a new car $20,238, and a new house $181,500. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the preceding Friday at 8627.92.
The tallest building in the world was the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Mobile phones had become common, but they didn't yet have Internet connections. There was no Wikipedia, no Skype, no MySpace, no Facebook, no YouTube, no Twitter, no Tumblr, no Pinterest, no Instagram. There was no iPod, no iPhone, no iPad. The Nintendo PlayStation was the leading home video game system.
In the late Spring and early Summer of 1998, India and its neighbor and arch-rival Pakistan each successfully tested nuclear devices for the 1st time -- "joining the club." In neighboring Afghanistan, an earthquake killed over 5,000 people. Riots killed over 1,000 people in Indonesia, and the dictator, Suharto, resigned after 32 years.
A civil war broke out in the African nation of Guinea-Bissau. A train derailed between Hanover and Hamburg, Germany, killing 101 people. New airports were opened in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 1st euro coins were minted.
Justin Fashanu, the 1st British soccer player to come out as gay, hanged himself over accusations he had molested a teenage boy. And former Saturday Night Live star Phil Hartman was shot and killed by his wife Brynn, who then killed herself.
Alice Faye, and Roy Rogers, and football pioneer Sid Luckman died. Jaden Smith, and Markelle Fultz, and Dani Olmo were born.
June 14, 1998. The Chicago Bulls won their 6th NBA Championship in the last 8 years. They have never come close to winning another.
Might another one be soon in coming? They were 16 games out of the last Eastern Conference Playoff spot this season, so it doesn't look likely.
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