90s basketball was the golden age.

[cark]

I enjoy basketball way more now. I enjoy the on-court product. I enjoy reading about the on-court product more than ever, now that current writers (like Zach Lowe) really grok the game in a way that nobody did in the past. I enjoy following things like the draft and free agency on Twitter.

Basically, I think just about everything about the experience is better now -- except for the Bulls winning titles, which I obviously loved. I also miss David Halberstam and Ralph Wiley, two writers who I think would've filled a couple of the niches that are missing from today's coverage.

[bullsRlife]

Ha, I knew there was a stat for that. Either way, it seems like when you're watching a superstar nowadays, they're not getting most of their pts. from actual made basket, bit more so from gaming the system. And the flipping is horrendous.

I think it's the amount of commercial breaks that make a lot of games so tedious. And there's only like 2 shots in today's game it seems. The layup or the 3.

I do think you see premier players shooting more FTs today than they did in the past which seems to be backed up by stats.

I don't know that there are really more commercials. It doesn't feel any different to me now in terms of game time anyway, and I don't think an NBA game is all that long of an event relative to other games.

I don't see flopping as ridiculous really. There are what maybe 2-3 charges a game? I do think it's the one thing I'd like to see improved, but relative to the wrestle-ball of the 90s or the ISO ball, I don't think it's nearly as big a problem personally.

I think if the NBA can clean up some of the flopping without creating more defensive fouls by creating more no calls then things will be awesome.

It's all just personal preference in the end. I just enjoyed the feel of "premier players", and having a more rivalry, and signature player feel to the game like the 90's.

I don't agree with the flopping being overstated. Not by a long shot. Flopping is horrendous nowadays. I was watching a Lebron highlight video today, and I literally saw Iman Shumpert commit 2-3 of the most heinous flops I've ever witnessed in a game. Everyone's doing it. Off ball, on ball, completely away from the play, during screens, during scrums, etc.

The players nowadays are trained to act on some cartoonish Vlade Divac levels. It's absurd. Show me some clips of 90's players flopping the way they do now. It's gonna be few and far between. Yeah, there's more footage now, but even still, I can't find that much footage of MJ, Iverson, etc. flopping like today's players.

Although, Kobe would be considered a tad bit "old school", he used to be one of the most guilty floppers of them all in his hey day.

[ralphisBullsFan]

I find it funny that in the Rockets documentary some of the Rocket players thought they'd beat the Bulls in the 90's if they had met in the finals...Olajuwon hated playing against Bill Cartwright after Cartwright broke his jaw with his "scud elbows." I feel confident that will either Rodman or Cartwright and Grant we could contain Olajuwon with Pippen and Jordan being able to help with a quick double team and being able to get back and close out on the Rockets shooters...Especially since the Rockets didn't have an elite perimeter player in their prime.. Plus i don't see how they could stop Jordan and Pippen...The Bulls were very different then the young Magic and older Knicks that took them 7 games(a knicks team we would have beat that year without Jordan if not for a inconsistent bizzare call by the refs...Where as the Bulls had plenty experience playing against a team with an elite center with really solid role players...Would have been fun the watch tho

[sisibilio]

To each his own. But to me most games from the mid 90s to the mid 00s were extremely tough to watch.

[Dieselbound&Down]

To each his own. But to me most games from the mid 90s to the mid 00s were extremely tough to watch.

Completely agree. Doug and some others already put down what I would say about the game in the mid-90s. Starting with the Detroit titles, the game decidedly turned more defensive and into the early 90s it was still good quality and balance. But by the mid-90s, the games turned into slow down grab fests. Overall talent was watered down and, although games were close and tense, that was mostly due to the inability of either team to decisively score points and pull away. The Heat/Knicks series were lionized but the reality was if either team hit 90 the game was a blow out in their favor.

In my opinion, the best thing to happen to the league was the Sacramento Kings. The way they played offense, having three Euros on the team and the excitement they generated started a move in a different, much better direction.

[Dieselbound&Down]

Why does the court look so much larger?! LOL But maaan, do I miss those days. I feels like the good times began their demise around the 2000/01 season and then gradually shifted with the additional of the Lebron/Wade era, and then really died out and became todays game around 2010/11 during the Heat run.

Funny because that is what I would call about the lowest point for the league. To each his own.

A decade of expansion watered down talent, about 5 years of straight from high school and one and doners meant there were less capable rookies coming in the league (and lots of flops being fed minutes) and this was the height of boring selfish offensive hero basketball being done by a league that was in between great generations meaning the top end talent was far thinner and arguably not as good even at their best.

[TheBullsDynasty]

90's(and similarly 80's) was a tough era. Not tough to watch like some said but tough era to play in. Imagine today's athletic players (like Lebron, Rose, Westbrook, etc) driving to the rim in today's league and putting up monster dunks. In the 90's there was a small difference, and that small difference was, back in the 90's there would always be a legit 7 ft center waiting in the paint to knock you the #### out. He wasn't there to try to "block" you or go up soft. He was there to hurt you and send you a message so the next time you try attacking the rim you would have that doubt in your head or even fear.

Most of today's players, especially the young ones, are SOFT as a marshmallow. They're always looking to cry, bitch and flop during the game. Even physical monsters like Lebron, Blake Griffin, etc constantly flop. Players like Harden, and again Lebron, and so many others drive to the rim to get a foul call. Not to finish but to get to the line. That's truly embarrassing. Put these players in 90's NBA and most would get destroyed both mentally and physically. Not because they are less athletic or less strong, but because they are not tough and they are afraid to play physical. Like many mentioned, back in the day everyone would be playing pick up on the streets and that's how 90's players (not just NBA but any kind of basketball player) became tough and played tough. Now kids play the game like a bunch of girls and watch out NBA because in 10-15 years NBA will be even softer if this trend continues.

Back in the 90's I used to enjoy any NBA game whether it was playoffs, a rivals game or a game between bottom feeders. Games would be close and there would be intensity no matter who was playing. Compare that to today's league where 99% of teams don't even play actual defense during the regular season. Everybody sees regular season as a joke and nobody gives a #### about the regular season anymore. Even the playoffs are garbage in the east aside from 2-3 teams.

Players today have more skill. The quality of top 5-10 players is severely lacking aside from Lebron and maybe Durant but the rest of the league is a lot better compared to the 90's. Players are also more athletic in general but they have no heart and most of the time they play with no intensity.

[Stratmaster]

This topic is kind of like "what was the best era for music". For most people the answer is going to be whatever time frame it was when they first became big fans. For me, that ended about the same time the Bulls dynasty did. It wasn't because my team stopped winning, I started following the Bulls as a toddler, and as you can see, still follow them religiously today. However, for me those were the years before having kids, job pressures got heavy, etc. Those were the years I could watch and follow every game. My interest has been renewed over the last several years as my kids have become young adults and moved out. Over the last few seasons I am back to being able to watch almost every game again.

[Leslie Forman]

When you look back at some '80s-'90s rosters, even supposedly really good ones, and see the rotation guys after the top few, it's pretty amusing. There's a lot of guys that played major minutes and frankly, you could not remember what actual element of basketball they were actually any good at.

Hell, look at the 1994 Finals and see who the two second options were after Olajuwon and Ewing - Vernon Maxwell and John Starks. If that's what you consider the peak of NBA basketball, well good for you because you have somehow extracted diamonds from a flaming bag of poop.

[CharityStripe34]

Players today have more skill. The quality of top 5-10 players is severely lacking aside from Lebron and maybe Durant but the rest of the league is a lot better compared to the 90's. Players are also more athletic in general but they have no heart and most of the time they play with no intensity.

I may be wrong, but I don't think today's players are quite as well-rounded or skilled as some claim. More athletic and better at defense? Yes, that I agree on. But I think in the 80's and early 90's the average player was more skilled with a basketball. Better ball-handlers, passers and shooters in general. A decent majority of NBA players could just dribble and make a jumper. The style and tempo of today's game is very fun to watch but sometimes it's painful to watch guys actually play and try to execute. Like for instance, when even guys like LeBron and Rose and other premier players do the dreaded "jump pass."

Obviously with more high-schoolers and underclassmen heading to the NBA draft, you're going to get underdeveloped players, hence guys like Amare Stoudemire and Dwight Howard being 10+ year vets and not having an elite-level offensive repertoire despite their talent (and 10 years later they're going to Hakeem to try and learn basic post-up moves). Players today rely too much on their athleticism and less on their fundamentals. Footwork in today's league is pretty awful compared to 25+ years ago.

Honestly, it was like a breath of fresh air watching Bobby Portis playing summer league. He's not elite at anything, but he has basic moves and can execute them well. He looks like he has a solid foundation of basketball. A soft touch, an outside shot, decent footwork and active defensive feet. He looks like he came out of the eighties. Not a great athlete but active and a solid foundational basketball base. And similar passion to boot.

The beauty of the game is that it evolves constantly, so I think eventually certain agreeable aspects of the game that have vanished will return to help balance out the perimeter-oriented game.

[transplant]

This topic is kind of like "what was the best era for music". For most people the answer is going to be whatever time frame it was when they first became big fans.

I became a NBA fan in the early 60s. When the Game-of-the-Week in the '60s was Celts-Sixers (Russell vs Chamberlain) it was pretty cool...it had a sort of "Duel of the Titans" vibe to it. The first "Golden Age" for Bulls' fans was Dick Motta's teams of the early 70's, and those years were filled with both excitement and frustration.

All this said, my "Golden Age" for the NBA started in 1979-80 when the "Magic vs Bird" show took the nation by storm. Truth is, I'd've been a fan with or without them, but those two (honorable mention to David Stern) helped make the NBA a national attraction.

[bullsRlife]

90's teams:

Gary Payton/Shawn Kemp Sonics
Charles Barkley/Kevin Johnson/Dan Majerle Suns
Stockton/Malone Jazz
Penny/Shaq Magic
Alonzo Mourning/Larry Johnson/Mugsy Bogues Hornets
Alonzo Mourning/Tim Hardaway/Jamal Mashburn/Dan Majerle Heat
Tim Hardaway/Mitch Richmond/Chris Mullin Warriors
Reggie Miller Pacers
Patrick Ewing Knicks

Who are the posters that said today's game is more fun to watch? You guys kidding me? It's so much more tedious to watch now. Game action, whistle, games action, touch foul whistle, game action, commercial break, touch foul whistle, flop flop flop, whistle.

You must be joking. And the teams of the 90's were high octane with every element of basketball. Nowadays there's only a few elements of basket all being played. It's a bastardized version of the 90's.

And there's like 2-3 teams that can actually run an elite fast break nowadays. It's so sloppy now. Back then, almost every team mastered the fast break.

[bullsRlife]

Oh yeah, and about expansion temas wtaering down the league back then.

Ummmmm....what about these kids playing 1 year on college with absolutely no jumpers, or any type of fundamentals. Back then the top 10 picks k ew how to shoot, pass, play team ball, all that.

Nowadays you have guys saying, "player a is an extraordinary athlete, but he has to improve his jumper and basketball IQ tremendously. What??? It's the NBA, not having a jumper back then would be unheard of. Even guys that needed to improve their jumper back then we're way better than these kids now, that only know how to drive to the hoop or Chuck up 3's in hs and college, because the games so watered down, and bastardized.

Nothings prettier than a sweet mid range J. Even the big men back in the day had automatic J's. I remember when watching a basketball game, if you left someone wide open it was an AUTOMATIC 2 points from a jumper. Nowadays, if you're a big man and can hit a jumper you're a god lmao.

[Alswank87]

Christmas Vacation is **** hilarious.

I agree; we're all partially biased to what we grew up on. I miss the 90's though. The overall vibe, fashion, music, sports and entertainment just seemed more authentic. Of course I was 10 in 1999 though, so I may be off.

The one thing I miss about 90's NBA and basketball in general was the toughness and physicality. It was definitely a man's game and if you ever had to play pickup in the park against older kids, they would do the same thing.

Yeah man I remember playing 21 with no fouls(unless blood or obvious dirty shots to the head) every day during the hot summers, now thats a mans game. THE Best game to see how good you really are as an individual player.

I still remember in 95 growing up in Chicago, I would have been 11, we played on those old school white acrylic, super hard orange rims (with no net of course). Literally weeds growing out of cracks on the court and broken glass/tiny pebbles disbursed around the weeds.

We were playing 3on3 fulls and the opposing team had an 8th grader whom I never saw before, but we attended the same school per his shorts. He kept pushing me when I jumped for a rebound, so when I had an chance, I did the same to him, got an offensive, dribbled it out and popped a three (as a player, i always seem to have played "today's ball" in the post up era)....swoosh. The kid had a really long nose and was talking $#17 all day so I called him a "bird nosed #&$%@" - beautiful language for an 11 yr old, I know. I continue running and this kid runs behind me and SUCKER punches me dead in the face. Who punches an 11 yr old in the face?!?!

Blood started pouring, i freaked the heck out due to never really bleeding that profusely before so I begin sobbing. My friends freak out and begin putting their shirts on my face to get all the blood. Eventually, the blood stops, my friends tell me my face is really swollen. I stopped crying because I realized nothing actually hurts, and the blood stopped so what do I do? PICK UP ANOTHER GAME!

Today, when I coached a camp, 11yrs old couldnt make a layup. Literally, could not make layups. Couldnt even teach them to shoot because they've never had to physically exert so much force so as to even throw a basketball the distance of an nba three. I was draining them with a broken nose in 90s!

That's crazy! When I read your story I was thinking,"wow what a big mouthed wuss." (I censored my language a bit there.) then you tell me kids are even worse off now and it makes you think there is a huge problem with the youth today.

[johnnyvann840]

Oh yeah, and about expansion temas wtaering down the league back then.

Ummmmm....what about these kids playing 1 year on college with absolutely no jumpers, or any type of fundamentals. Back then the top 10 picks k ew how to shoot, pass, play team ball, all that.

Nowadays you have guys saying, "player a is an extraordinary athlete, but he has to improve his jumper and basketball IQ tremendously. What??? It's the NBA, not having a jumper back then would be unheard of. Even guys that needed to improve their jumper back then we're way better than these kids now, that only know how to drive to the hoop or Chuck up 3's in hs and college, because the games so watered down, and bastardized.

Nothings prettier than a sweet mid range J. Even the big men back in the day had automatic J's. I remember when watching a basketball game, if you left someone wide open it was an AUTOMATIC 2 points from a jumper. Nowadays, if you're a big man and can hit a jumper you're a god lmao.

GREAT post. Exactly..the watered down in the 90's argument is lame... the NBA is more watered down, NOW, than at any time, ever. With KIDS who can't play worth a shyt. Back then maybe some of the players weren't the athletes and physical specimens, but at least they knew and understood the game.. there weren't nearly as many raw, dumb, low IQ, no fundamentals, "POTENTIALS" taking up half the roster spots in the league. Now, teams draft and sign these kids based on potential alone and then they wind up sticking in the league, even as busts, taking up space, until their rookie salaries are up because the investment was so big.

The brand of ball is different, now. Less intensity, more going through the motions. Even half the playoffs are listless and boring to me. Never used to be that way.

[TheSuzerain]

Players today have more skill. The quality of top 5-10 players is severely lacking aside from Lebron and maybe Durant but the rest of the league is a lot better compared to the 90's. Players are also more athletic in general but they have no heart and most of the time they play with no intensity.

I may be wrong, but I don't think today's players are quite as well-rounded or skilled as some claim. More athletic and better at defense? Yes, that I agree on. But I think in the 80's and early 90's the average player was more skilled with a basketball. Better ball-handlers, passers and shooters in general. A decent majority of NBA players could just dribble and make a jumper. The style and tempo of today's game is very fun to watch but sometimes it's painful to watch guys actually play and try to execute. Like for instance, when even guys like LeBron and Rose and other premier players do the dreaded "jump pass."

Obviously with more high-schoolers and underclassmen heading to the NBA draft, you're going to get underdeveloped players, hence guys like Amare Stoudemire and Dwight Howard being 10+ year vets and not having an elite-level offensive repertoire despite their talent (and 10 years later they're going to Hakeem to try and learn basic post-up moves). Players today rely too much on their athleticism and less on their fundamentals. Footwork in today's league is pretty awful compared to 25+ years ago.

Honestly, it was like a breath of fresh air watching Bobby Portis playing summer league. He's not elite at anything, but he has basic moves and can execute them well. He looks like he has a solid foundation of basketball. A soft touch, an outside shot, decent footwork and active defensive feet. He looks like he came out of the eighties. Not a great athlete but active and a solid foundational basketball base. And similar passion to boot.

The beauty of the game is that it evolves constantly, so I think eventually certain agreeable aspects of the game that have vanished will return to help balance out the perimeter-oriented game.

Saying Rose and LeBron are less skilled with a basketball because they jump pass?

Saying Amare didn't have a well-rounded offensive game?

Just a lot of cringe worthy parts to that post.

[League Circles]

I think general criticism of the jimppass is ridiculous. It's a great technique for players who are able to do it. It draws the defense further towards the ball handler and creates a passing angle that would never be there with the player on the ground. It's a great change to the game. Yes it's only appropriate for high level players - not beginners, but I love it. Seems like it gets the recipient an open shot WAY more often than it ends in a turnover.

[bullsRlife]

Oh yeah, and about expansion temas wtaering down the league back then.

Ummmmm....what about these kids playing 1 year on college with absolutely no jumpers, or any type of fundamentals. Back then the top 10 picks k ew how to shoot, pass, play team ball, all that.

Nowadays you have guys saying, "player a is an extraordinary athlete, but he has to improve his jumper and basketball IQ tremendously. What??? It's the NBA, not having a jumper back then would be unheard of. Even guys that needed to improve their jumper back then we're way better than these kids now, that only know how to drive to the hoop or Chuck up 3's in hs and college, because the games so watered down, and bastardized.

Nothings prettier than a sweet mid range J. Even the big men back in the day had automatic J's. I remember when watching a basketball game, if you left someone wide open it was an AUTOMATIC 2 points from a jumper. Nowadays, if you're a big man and can hit a jumper you're a god lmao.

GREAT post. Exactly..the watered down in the 90's argument is lame... the NBA is more watered down, NOW, than at any time, ever. With KIDS who can't play worth a shyt. Back then maybe some of the players weren't the athletes and physical specimens, but at least they knew and understood the game.. there weren't nearly as many raw, dumb, low IQ, no fundamentals, "POTENTIALS" taking up half the roster spots in the league. Now, teams draft and sign these kids based on potential alone and then they wind up sticking in the league, even as busts, taking up space, until their rookie salaries are up because the investment was so big.

The brand of ball is different, now. Less intensity, more going through the motions. Even half the playoffs are listless and boring to me. Never used to be that way.

Exactly man, the league is so bastardized. It reminds me watching my friend play 2k15, just spamming 3pt. shots the whole time. How is that so much more exciting? I think posters are confusing the Spurs with the entire league.

[bullsRlife]

I think general criticism of the jimppass is ridiculous. It's a great technique for players who are able to do it. It draws the defense further towards the ball handler and creates a passing angle that would never be there with the player on the ground. It's a great change to the game. Yes it's only appropriate for high level players - not beginners, but I love it. Seems like it gets the recipient an open shot WAY more often than it ends in a turnover.

Yeah, I don't get what people are watching. Rose can't make 70% of his passes without jumping. He creates the amount of velocity and power needed to make some of the impossible type ofnl passes he can hit.

[TheSuzerain]

You guys realize it's a hell of a lot more of a team game now than it was in the 90s which often turned into alternating ISO looks, right?

A few other fun facts:

Less turnovers today than ever. So much for all that "low IQ" narrative.
Less Free throws today than ever. So much for the narrative that old school players played through all sorts of contact.