Top Five Fridays: The Chicago Bulls

This is my regular feature called Top Five Fridays. Here I'll list some of my favorite things like, Top 5 Ways to Annoy a Michigan Fan or Top 5 Most Overrated Athletes (cough cough, Brett Favre, cough cough)..... Have no fear, we'll get to both those topics in good time. At the end there will also be a section for those that just missed the cut.

In honor of the Chicago Bulls being mathematically elimated from the playoff picture, today we'll be going with:

Top 5 Favorite Chicago Bulls of the Post-Jordan Era

This was a tough one since I worked for the Bullskis for 2 1/2 years, but I think I've found a good mix of players I genuinely cared about and some funny stories for you!

1. Tyson Chandler
Ty wins the prize for two reasons:

a. When the Bulls traded Elton Brand for his rights on draft day, the sales staff was given this line to tell fans who were pissed off about the move. "Tyson Chandler runs like a gazelle."

b. When Michael Jordan came out of retirement, again, and arrived with his Washington Wizards to play in what would be his last ever game in the United Center, I took one of my college roommates, Hacksaw, and my ex-girlfriend from college, who we will refer to as Mrs. Miami from this point forward. Bear in mind that this girl once called to ask if Florida State was the same school at the Gators. So...after the Bulls botched a fast break when a pass hit Tyson Chandlerin the hands and he fumbled it out of bounds the conversation sounded something like this:

Hacksaw: Chandler sucks.

Cap: Yeah, but he's been a lot better lately. Give him time.

Mrs. Miami: I don't think Chandler has had a good season at all.

(She is sitting between us and at this point we both lean forward and stare at her with a "whaaaaa?" expression.)

Mrs. Miami: (slouching in her chair in embarassment) We're not talking about Chandler from Friends are we?

You simply can't make stuff like this up folks.

2. Donyell Marshall

In my humble opinion, he was one of the classiest guys to ever pull on a Bulls' uniform. He was always the first one at practice and the last to leave. He showed up for a bowling event with our sponsors an hour before any other player simply to practice bowling and sign autographs for the kids in the after school league. He was one of very few players to show up at the company Holiday Party, and he even brought his entire family with him. I was sad to see him go. This was a guy who understood what being a professional athlete was all about. And during his prime he could drain an open jumper with the best of them.

3. Jalen Rose
One of my favorite memories from my time with the Bulls front office is "The Jalen Rose Expression." It didn't matter the situation: Needed to get the crowd pumped up, just hit a big shot, chucked up a prayer that missed and thought he got fouled, didn't know what Coach Cartwright said because you couldn't hear him over the crickets in the United Center (okay, that was a dig in very poor taste at Coach...sorry.) Either way, it always looked the same to me. Couldn't find the picture in a Bulls' uniform, but here it is with the Raptors. I hear that Kirk Hinrich has been doing a good impression of it this season.

4. Andres Nocioni
Okay, look; when Nocioni first came over from Argentina I was borderline obsessed with the guy. The Bulls finally had a guy who gave it his all during every second he spent on the floor. He was pretty good too, although now he's developed a bit of an ego and his act is wearing a little thin. Either way, he inspired this song that I heard on my favorite Sports Radio show, "Mac, Jurko and Harry."

http://stations.espn.go.com/stations/espnradio1000/sectional?id=mjhparody

5. Adrian Griffin
This thought by Harry Teinowitz on ESPN Radio clinched it: "Adrian Griffin is the most versatile player on the Bulls roster. He'll brick shots from anywhere on the court. He's not picky at all about where he misses from."


"Juuuuust a bit outside. He tried the corner and missed."

Ron Artest - This is more because of his starring role in The Melee at the Palace than anything he did in Chicago.
Kirk Hinrich - After being told to go away when he was trying way too hard to hit on my friend's roommate, he once busted out the classic famous person line, "Do you know who I am?"
Marcus Fizer - I love the giant question mark tattoo on the neck symbolizing how he questioned his faith after a childhood friend was killed. Nice story, but by "I love it," I really mean, "that looks dumb."
Corie Blount - Blunt? Are you serious? That's your name? And you're sticking to that?
Bryce Drew - I knew I should have gone to some small school and played basketball just so I could hit a prayer during March Madness to clinch a first round upset and parlay that into an NBA contract that I didn't deserve.
Jay Williams - "Messed around and got a triple double" his rookie year on J-Kidd and looked to be headed in the right direction before the motorcycle accident.
Dalibor Bagaric - What was this guy doing in the NBA? No. Seriously.
Linton Johnson III - Signs that your team sucks: 1. An NBDL guy signs a 10-day contract and not only makes the team, but starts 20 games that season