Would 2015-16 Warriors beat 1995-96 Bulls? Steve Kerr won't tell
The Warriors are off to a 15-0 start to the season, which is tied for the best mark in NBA history. People are already beginning to wonder if they can challenge the 1996 Chicago Bulls for the best regular-season record of all time, which was a ridiculous 72-10.
But who would win in a hypothetical matchup between the two teams? We'll obviously never know, but Steve Kerr, who played for that Bulls squad and is the head coach of these Warriors, is uniquely qualified to weigh in on the discussion.
In a lighthearted Q&A with ESPN's Ethan Strauss, Kerr explained the difficulty of choosing sides because of the way the rules have changed over the years, and perhaps because he's too close to both clubs, he (somewhat disappointingly) refused to declare a winner in this hypothetical matchup that (quite obviously) will never take place.
So, what are your initial thoughts on this very realistic matchup?
Kerr: My initial thoughts are that it is literally impossible to even compare, because the rules are so different and the eras are so different. We would overload the strong side on [Michael] Jordan, and they would call illegal defense; and they would put their hands all over [Stephen] Curry, and the refs would call a foul. That make sense?
It makes sense. So let us do a compromise. We keep handchecks and take away illegal defense. How do you, as an analyst, see it going?
Kerr: Ah, well that's interesting. The only thing I know for sure is I had no chance to guard Steph. So I would say, we would probably have had to put a combination of Scottie [Pippen] and Harp [Ron Harper] on Steph.
So I need a prediction from you, on this very serious topic. In my hypothetical where handchecking is OK and allowed, but you can play any kind of defense you want and that's allowed, what's the final score?
Kerr: No comment.
You won't comment on a hypothetical that can never happen?
Kerr: Yeah. I refuse to comment on the score of this hypothetical game that would never happen.
For what it's worth, the 2015-16 Warriors are beating teams by an average of 14.4 points per game. The 1995-96 Bulls, on the other hand, outscored their opponents by 12.3 points per game. We'll leave it to the analytics people to figure out what that would mean in this hypothetical matchup.
