Bulls + Jordan Best of All Time?

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The 2014-2015 Bulls (see below) are 72-9 heading into their last game of the season. The Bulls face the Hawks in Chicago. The season record vs. the Hawks is 2-0: a 108-88 Bulls home win on Jan 1 and a 108-93 Bulls road win on 12/8.

If the Bulls win this game, they will break the 72-10 record held by the 1995/1996 Bulls.

Will this team record the best record in NBA history? They have to win the last home game and become NBA Champions to do it.

In this NBA 2K15 Franchise I control the Bulls but let all games Bulls games play CPU v CPU. The rest of the games are simulated.

The league is customized.

There are two clones of D. Rose. I traded D. Rose to the 76'ers. D.Rose clone two was traded to the Lakers. D. Rose clone one is on the Bulls.

M. Jordan from the 95-96 Bulls (72 win season) was added to the Bulls. His age was lowered to 20 prior to the 2014-2015 season.

Added the 70-71 Lakers to the league. They replaced Toronto.

Cloned Chamberlain. Sent him to the real (Kobe) Lakers, who now have the Rose clone and Chamberlain clone.

Traded Gasol to the Lakers and also traded Butler and Gibson in order to lower the team payroll.

Bulls Lineup:

Panko (D. Rose clone)
Jordan
McDermott SF
Mirotic PF
Noah C

Bench

Norris Cole PG
Ray Allen SG
Jim McMillian SF
Jordan Clarkson PG
Mike Dunleavy has been off the bench at times
Robert Sacre C

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The Bulls defeated Atlanta (in Chicago) 116-103. The Bulls finished the regular season with an NBA best ever 73-9 record.

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Bulls first round opponent is Atlanta.

Game 1 was a 117-108 overtime win. The Bulls led by 6 with 2 minutes remaining, but the Hawks tied the game with 4.7 seconds left on the clock. Mirotic hit a last second floater for the tie. Bulls outscored the Hawks 11-2 in overtime.

Jordan scored 39. The Rose clone handed out 10 assists and scored 23. Noah had a double double with 14 points and 22 rebounds. Mirotic just missed a double double: 16 pts, 9 rebounds. Horford scored 30 for the Hawks. Hill had 11 assists. Nobody had double digit rebounds for the Hawks.

Other 1st round action:

Thunder(1) over the Rockets(8) 123-103. Durant was 3 assists shy of a triple double.
Trail Blazers(4) over the Clippers(5) 133 - 99.
Real Lakers(6) over the Warriors(3) 107-96.
Spurs(2) over the Mavs (7) 95-84

Cavs(5) over the Heat(4) 135-133. Lebron and Irving each scored 35. Love was out and is day to day with a sore knee.
Pacers(3) over the Knicks(6) 102-90. Paul George scored 41 points with 9 rebounds.
70-71 Lakers(2) over the Hornets(7) 98-97. The Lakers trailed by 17 heading into the 4th. They outscored the Hornets 40-22 in the 4th quarter. West scored 37 with 7 assists. Chamberlain grabbed 14 rebounds and went home with 3 women.

Looking at the playoffs, some of the deficiencies in past game reporting become apparent.

There is no way to see scores of games from the regular season except by looking in the player "recent games" listing. But that listing starts cutting off early season games. For example, Michael Jordan shows "recent games" only from 11/4 until the present. Each new game, another past game result is gone.

The box scores don't show any information on quarter by quarter scoring. I can't go back to see who did what in overtime. That applies to both simmed games and played games.

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Bulls took a 2-0 series lead with a 114-97 victory over Atlanta (in Chicago). Jordan scored 44, the Rose clone had 12 assists. Noah, perhaps feeling the heat of rumors he will be traded after the season, scored 6 points with 6 rebounds.

Rockets tied their series 1-1 with a 129-113 win in OK.
Portland took a 2-0 lead over the Clippers.
The real Lakers took a 2-0 lead with a 104-102 victory over the Warriors in GS.
The Spurs now lead their series 2-0 after a 95-77 win at home.

The Heat tied their series 1-1 with a 103-102 home win despite 37 points and 13 rebounds from Lebron. Love played only 1 minute.
The Pacers got 46 points from George in a 103-100 home win over the Knicks. The Pacers lead the series 2-0.
The 70-71 Lakers took a 2-0 lead with a 108-90 home victory over the Hornets. West had 36 points with 14 assists. Wilt had 14 rebounds and 7 post game dates.

After two games Jordan is averaging 41.5 PPG in the playoffs. But he's not the leader in scoring. Paul George leads the playoffs with 43.5 PPG.

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Bulls make it 3-0 with a 115-93 win in Indiana. Jordan scored 42, Rose Clone had 12 assists, Noah had 18 rebounds.

Rockets take a 2-1 series lead with a 129-108 home win over the Thunder.
Portland goes 3-0 with a 104-89 win in Los Angeles.
GS pulls to 2-1 by beating the real Lakers in LA 118-104
Spurs lead 3-0 thanks to a 100-94 win in Dallas.

Cavs win 101-92 in Cleveland. They now lead Miami 2-1.
Pacers blew an 11 point half time lead, but held on for a 94-93 win in NY for a 3-0 series lead.
70-71 Lakers remained perfect in the playoffs, now leading 3-0 with a 113-95 win over the Hornets in Charlotte. West scored 32 with 9 assists. Chamberlain scored 22, pulled down 13 rebounds, blocked 4 shots, and handed the keys to his hotel room to 4 women. "That's the before midnight shift," said the Stilt.

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On their way to becoming the best in NBA history, the Bulls swept Atlanta in the first round with a 135-104 win in Atlanta. The Rose clone led the Bulls with 35 points and 10 assists. Jordan scored 23 in 28 minutes, and he had 8 assists. Noah pulled down 13 rebounds. The Bulls await the winner of the Cavs-Heat series, now tied 2-2.

The Trail Blazers swept the Clippers with a 105-77 win in Los Angeles.
The real Warriors evened the series thanks to a 124-123 win in Los Angeles. Bryant and the Chamberlain clone each scored 30, and the Chamberlain clone had 11 rebounds. The Lakers' D. Rose clone scored 27 with 10 assists. But the Lakers still fell.

The Mavericks won their first game of the series 128-95 in Dallas.

The Heat evened their series 2-2 with a 104-97 win in Cleveland.
The Knicks stayed alive with a 108-95 home win. The Pacers lead the series 3-1.
The Hornets avoided the sweep by beating the 70-71 Lakers in Charlotte 109-88. The Lakers lead 3-1. Wilt had a slow night. He only took 3 women back to his hotel room.

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The Bulls waited for their opponent, while the playoffs continued.

OKC took a 3-2 edge after winning at home 128-107.
The Warriors beat the real Lakers 120-116 in GS. 3-2 Warriors.
The Spurs moved to the second round, winning game 4 105-95 and the series 4-1.

Cavs won on the road 99-94 to take a 3-2 series lead.
The Pacers finished the Knicks 111-99 in Ind. The Pacers won the series 4-1.
The 70-71 Lakers won by 20, and won the series 4-1. Wilt had 18 rebounds and over a dozen more women.

The next games:

Rockets tied their series. 3-3 heading to the final game in OKC.
The real Lakers tied their series 3-3. Now the Warriors and Lakers will play game 7 at GS.

The Cavs finished off the Heat with a 112-108 home win. The Cavs will face the Bulls, who swept them in the regular season.

Game 7's 1st Round:

Rockets beat the Thunder 126-117 in OKC despite 48 points and 11 rebounds from Durant. Howard had 20 points and 16 rebounds for the Rockets.
The Warriors beat the real Lakers 114-113. The Lakers overcame a 14 point 1st quarter deficit and an 11 point half time deficit, but they couldn't get the win. Now the Lakers have to figure out what to do with a loaded roster - Bryant, Rose clone, Chamberlain clone, Pau Gasol, Carlos Boozer - that disappointed.

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Round 2

Bulls(1) v Cavs(5) - Bulls won the season series 4-0.
70-71 Lakers(2) v Pacers(3)

Trail Blazers(4) v Rockets(8)
Spurs(2) v Warriors(3)

There is no quick way to find the season series results between the teams. I know the Bulls swept the Cavs. That's it. This is a huge deficiency in game/season reporting.

I can't even go back to see all the results in the player "recent game" listings, because the list doesn't span the entire season.

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Bulls defeated the Cavs 120-115 in game 1. That made it 5-0 for the Bulls against the Cavs this year and a 1-0 series lead for the Bulls. Noah had 20 rebounds and 21 points. Love had 18 and 12. Jordan had 25 with 7 assists, while the Rose clone had 26 with 7 assists. Lebron scored 32 points.


Trail Blazers lead 1-0 after beating the Rockets 113-103 in Portland.
The Spurs lead 1-0 over GS thanks to a 114-101 win in San Antonio.
70-71 Lakers took a 1-0 series lead with a 96-67 win over the Pacers.

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The Bulls moved to 2-0 by defeating Cleveland 112-103. It was the Bulls' sixth victory over Cleveland this season. Rose clone was player of the game with 16 assists. Jordan scored 33 points, Mirotic scored 23, and Noah had 10 points and 12 rebounds. The series, 2-0 for the Bulls, now moves to Cleveland.

Trail Blazers won 116-98. They lead the series against the Rockets 2-0.
The Spurs moved to 2-0 after a 110-86 win over the Warriors in San Antonio.

70-71 Lakers took a 2-0 series lead when they beat the Pacers 92-91 in Los Angeles. The Lakers trailed by 14 after three quarters, but they outscored the Pacers 33-18 in the 4th. Chamberlain had 12 points, 18 rebounds, and 6 women.

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How do I have time to post at 4 in the morning? These games are playing CPU v CPU, while I go through ACT tests to analyze answer. That takes a long time, but once it's done it's done forever. I have to do it again, because a computer virus destroyed all my electronic documents, including annotated tests with notes and analysis.

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Triple Overtime Stunner

Prior to game 3, Lebron expressed frustration with not being able to beat the Bulls. He said the Cavs had to find a way to win, and that he had to do more down the stretch to lead them to a victory.

Cleveland led by 3 with 38 seconds remaining. Jordan brought the Bulls to within one with a jumpshot from the corner. The Bulls fouled Lebron, who missed both free throws. Jordan took a leaning jumper to put the Bulls up 1 with 32.6 seconds remaining. Lebron missed a jump shot from the free throw line. Mirotic scored to put the Bulls up by 3. Cleveland inbounded with 5.1 seconds remaining. Irving hit a 3 at the buzzer to force overtime.

Lebron gave Cleveland a 3 point lead with a layup at :55. Rose clone hit a layup to pull the Bulls within 1. Then Lebron fumbled the ball on the way to the lane. Rose clone picked it up and ran ahead of the pack for a dunk and a 1 point Bulls lead with :23.2 to play. Cleveland inbounded to Irving. He passed to Lebron. Lebron tried to force a pass to Verejao in the lane, but the Bulls picked it off. Cleveland intentionally fouled Jordan, who hit both free throws for a 3 point lead. Henderson tied the game with a 3 with 1.5 seconds remaining. Jordan missed a buzzer 3. The game went into a second overtime.

Lebron guarded Jordan in the 3rd overtime, holding him to 0-4 shooting and 0 points, while Lebron scored 9 to lead Cleveland to their first win over the Bulls this season: 127-119.

Lebron scored 26 with 7 rebounds and 6 assists. His frustration was gone after the game, and he vowed that Cleveland would win the series. Irving had 24, Varejao scored 19 with 20 rebounds and Love scored 18 with 17 rebounds. The Cavs outrebounded the Bulls 59-52 (18-6 in the three overtimes).

Jordan scored 42, Mirotic scored 26 with 17 rebounds, Noah had 11 rebounds. and the Rose clone scored 21 with 14 assists in the triple overtime loss.

The Bulls lead the series 2-1. This is the only series in which a team isn't up 3-0.

Portland remained undefeated in the playoffs, and took a 3-0 lead against the Rockets with a 101-93 win in Houston.
The Spurs went up 3-0 with a 94-90 win on the road against GS.
The 70-71 Lakers went up 3-0 after a 105-97 win in Indiana. Chamberlain pulled down only 3 rebounds. He invited only 2 women to his hotel room.

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Cleveland took game 4 119-112 thanks to 39 from Lebron. Irving added 21, and Love and Varejao had 10 rebounds. Jordan scored 28, Rose clone had 10 assists, and Noah had 10 rebounds in the losing effort. Jordan said this after the game. "When you have a team down you have to keep them down. If they get up, watch out. We have to come back punching."

The Rockets earned their first series win with 39 from Harden in a 112-108 win in Houston.
The Warriors stopped the sweep with a 118-91 win at home. That series is 3-1 Spurs.

The 70-71 Lakers completed their sweep by outscoring the Pacers 29-19 in the 4th. Lakers won 86-82. They await the winners of Cle v Chi. Wilt rented a bus after the game.

The NBA Commissioner asked for a moratorium on seeing players sway with eyes closed while the National Anthem plays.

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Bulls up 3-2 with a 110-98 win. Jordan scored 40.

Portland beat the Rockets 112-103 to move to the West Semis.
Spurs won game 5 102-74. They beat GS 4-1 and now face Portland in the West Semis.

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Heading Back to Chicago

Cleveland tied the series at 3-3 with a 106-91 win. The Bulls led by 1 heading into the 4th, after coming back from an 11 point deficit at the end of the 1st. Cleveland outscored the Bulls 30-14 in the 4th. James scored 30 with 7 rebounds and 5 assists, while Love scored 24 points with 15 rebounds. Jordan scored 28 for the Bulls, the Rose clone (Panko) had 10 assists, and Mirotic had 13 points and 13 rebounds in the loss.

It's back to Chicago where the Bulls are 5-0 against the Cavs this season.

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Odd thing I just noticed with the crowd in game 7 of the Bulls/Cavs game. The UC is only about 70% full. There are some sections, particularly the lower levels, that are almost completely empty.

That's odd for a conference semifinals game 7. It''s even odder for a game 7 featuring Jordan and Lebron and a team that won a record 73 regular season games.

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The Shot Part II

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Love tied game 7 at 114 with a tip in, over Noah, of a Lebron miss. 4.8 seconds remained on the clock. The Bulls called a time out. This is the call (not from the canned, wooden in game announcers).

"The inbounds pass comes in to Panko. He tosses it to McDermott, over his shoulder to Michael beyond the arc, flings it up....IT'S IN ...THE SHOT PART 2, OH MY!!!! 117-114 on Jordan's three. There's no stunned silence here in the United Center. They're going nuts! Cleveland has no time outs and .1 on the clock. They won't even get a shot. THE BULLS WIN!!!! Michael Jordan with 49 points hit the long three over Henderson. 26 years later the Shot Part 2... or maybe 3. Remember, Jordan hit the Shot in Cleveland in 1989, and he did it again in 1993. This time it's a game 7 after all the drama of this spectacular series. It's on to the 70-71 Lakers as Michael Jordan and the Bulls complete a season of frustration for Lebron. He almost pulled it out. He almost kept his promise. 36 for Lebron. But Michael said no!"

The Bulls win game 7 117-114.

Verejao had 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Love had 16 points and 12 rebounds in the loss. Panko had 16 assists. Noah had 12 points and 12 rebounds. McDermott had 11 points and 2 assists including the assist to Jordan for the game winner.

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Bulls won game 1 of the East Conference Finals 123-114. Jordan led the Bulls with 49 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. MIrotic and Noah each had 12 rebounds, and Mirotic recorded a double double with 16 points. Panko threw 10 assists to go along with 16 points for his own double double. Goodrich led the Lakers with 21 points. West had 20 and 6 assists, while Chamberlain scored 19 with 12 rebounds. After the game, Chamberlain was seen getting into a stretch limo with what reporters described as "a handful" of women.

The Spurs went up 1-0 in the West Conference Finals with a 88-84 win. Parker led the Spurs with 16 points, while Splitter and Duncan both recorded double doubles (14/12 and 11/10 respectively). Aldridge had 18 points and 15 rebounds for the Blazers.

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The Bulls lost for the first time at home in the playoffs 125-119. Jordan scored 52, Panko had 15 assists and Noah had 18 rebounds in the loss. West scored 37 with 11 assists, Gibson had 28 points and 14 rebounds. The series now stands 1-1 heading to Los Angeles.

The Spurs made it 2-0 with an 88-86 win. Duncan led the Spurs with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Lillard scored 28 with 6 rebounds and 10 assists for the Blazers. Aldridge had a double double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

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Lakers won game 3 125-108 to take a 2-1 series lead. West had 37 for the Lakers. Jordan led the Bulls with 28 and 7 assists. Panko had 19 assists for the Bulls, and he scored 20. Noah had 12 and 12. The key was the 3rd quarter, when the Lakers outscored the Bulls 30-26.

The Spurs took a 3-0 series lead by beating Portland in Portland 111-109. 7 players scored in double digits for the Spurs.

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Earn the Crown Before Wearing It

Down 2-1 prior to game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Michael Jordan told reporters "You guys crowned us champions before the playoffs began, and some of the guys believed it. I told them we have to win the crown before we can wear the crown."

The Bulls took another step towards winning the crown by beating the 70-71 Lakers 119-112 in Los Angeles. West had 31 points with 9 assists and Goodrich had 26 points, but Noah 18 points and 17 rebounds) held Chamberlain to 14 points on 6-14 shooting and only 8 rebounds. The Bulls out rebounded the Lakers for the first game of this series, 45-43. Jordan scored 35 with 6 assists, Panko scored 26 with 13 assists. McDermott (9 rebounds) was the other Bull to out rebound Chamberlain. The series, tied 2-2, now heads back to the United Center.

The Spurs completed their sweep of Portland with a 78-76 win in Portland. The Spurs head to the finals where they will face the winner of Chicago v 70-71 Lakers.

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The 70-71 Lakers took a 3-2 series lead with a 112-105 win in Chicago. Goodrich scored 31 with 5 rebounds and 6 assists. West scored 29 with 9 assists. Chamberlain scored 20 with 13 rebounds. Jordan scored 37 with 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Mirotic had a double double with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Now the Bulls face elimination in game 6. When asked about having to win two in a row, including one on the road, to move on in the playoffs, Michael Jordan replied, "We only have to win the next game. If you keep winning the next game, you'll never get eliminated".

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I forgot to mention that the Bulls traded Taj Gibson and Tony Snell to the 70-71 Lakers in return for a draft pick. The trade was just before the trade deadline.

Going into Game 6 of the East semis, Gibson recorded 5 playoff double doubles in 15 playoff games. His stats in the Chicago series:

Game 1 (Loss for Los Angeles) 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block
Game 2 (Win) 28 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block
Game 3 (Win) 18 points, 12 rebounds 1 assist
Game 4 (Loss) 18 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists
Game 5 (Win) 6 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block

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Again! Game 7

The Bulls forced game 7 with a 116-109 win in Los Angeles. The Bulls outscored Los Angeles 29-17 in the 4th quarter to secure the win. Jordan scored 31 with 7 rebounds and 7 assists. Panko was player of the game with 22 points, 5 rebounds, 11 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. Lewis, starting for the injured Mirotic, scored 15 points with 11 boards. Noah also had a double double 13/16. Chamberlain led the Lakers with 25 points and 13 rebounds. West added 22 and Gibson, the former Bull, had 19 points and 15 rebounds.

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On to the Finals

The game was tied at 108 with just over three minutes remaining. Chamberlain committed his 6th foul on an illegal screen. The Bulls outscored Los Angeles 13-6 from that point to take game 7 121-114.

Jordan had 15 points in the 4th quarter, on his way to a game high 55 points. He added 8 rebounds and an assist. Panko had 27 points and 16 assists. Lewis, again starting for the injured Mirotic, scored 12. Noah had 11 rebounds. West had 34 and 10 assists for the Lakers in a losing effort. Chamberlain had 18 points with 14 rebounds before he fouled out. He also chartered a jet to fly two dozen women to Chicago and back to Los Angeles after the game.

The Bulls will now face the defending champion Spurs. The Spurs lost only two games on their way to the NBA finals and have no injuries. Mirotic who missed the last two Bulls games in the Eastern finals, has a bruised tail bone. While he won't start, he's expected to play limited minutes in game 1 against the Spurs.