One of the more intriguing hypothetical matchups is the one between the 72-10 Chicago Bulls of 1995-96 and the 2001 champions, the Los Angeles Lakers, who went 15-1 in the postseason.
Different people have different opinions on that theoretical showdown, and if you ask ex-NBA point guard Raymond Felton, Michael Jordan’s Bulls would have prevailed over the Shaq and Kobe-led Lakers because Chicago had more than enough bigs to guard Shaquille O’Neal by committee.
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“I still got the Bulls winning,” said Felton. “They had enough bodies to bang with Shaq. They couldn’t stop him. But they had enough bodies to bang with Shaq.”
The 1995-96 Bulls had plenty of big bodies to guard Shaq
Shaq was everybody’s problem during the 2001 NBA Playoffs, where he averaged 30.4 points, 15.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 2.4 blocks per game. He was even more dominant in the 2001 NBA Finals, where he put up 33.0 points, 15.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 3.4 blocks per game. To be fair, the reason why “Diesel” went amok in the championship series was that the Sixers’ frontcourt was absolutely no match for the Lakers’.
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Although Philly had four-time Defensive Player of the Year winner Dikembe Mutombo as Shaq’s primary defender in that series, O’Neal was simply too powerful for Mutombo down low. Sixers head coach Larry Brown alternated big men Matt Geiger and Todd McCulloch on O’Neal, but also to no avail.
However, the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls would hypothetically have more big bodies to throw at Shaq with seven-footers Luc Longley and Bill Wennington as their starting and backup centers. If needed, Phil Jackson could have pulled James “Buddha” Edwards and Jack Haley off the bench.
They also had big bodies at the forward position like Jason Caffey, Dickey Simpkins, John Salley, and, of course, Dennis Rodman, who could matchup. With those names, the Bulls had more than enough fouls to give up to send O’Neal to the foul line all game long and test his fragile free-throw shooting.
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Ron Harper thinks Rodman would’ve contained Shaq
Five-time NBA champion Ron Harper, who played for both teams in this hypothetical matchup, also thinks the Bulls would beat the Lakers because they were a little better defensively. Harp also mentioned that the Bulls’ biggest issue would be O’Neal. However, he thinks they would have found a way to solve the Shaq riddle.
“I’mma have to go with the ’96 Bulls because they were a little better defensive-wise,” Harper said. “… The one player that we would have a hard time with would be Shaquille O’Neal. But I think that my boy D-Rodman could handle him.”
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Little may be an understatement. The 1996 Bulls had the league’s top-rated defense that season, allowing a mere 101.8 points per 100 possessions. Meanwhile, the 2001 Lakers ranked just 21st in defensive rating, allowing 104.8 points per 100 possessions.
As for Rodman, he was fine defending seven-footers during his era. Although you could argue that Shaq from 2001 was a different beast, The Worm was pretty much comfortable guarding centers. Therefore, he could’ve slowed down Shaq or even riled him up just enough to have him ejected, as Felton’s co-host, Charlie Villanueva, mentioned.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 23, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.