“If this team was in the playoff race, I’d love to be here” – John Starks on why he played only four games for the Chicago Bulls originally appeared on Basketball Network.
John Starks was one of the top villains for Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls. Starks and Jordan competed in some of the fiercest on-court battles during his eight-year tenure with the New York Knicks. Although MJ dominated their career head-to-head at 33-12, the feisty guard is considered one of Mike’s most bitter rivals.
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But towards the end of his NBA career, a 34-year-old Starks ended up playing for the Bulls, albeit only four games. Of course, this happened when MJ and Pip were gone, but it was still crazy to see Starks wear a Bulls jersey. He wasn’t too thrilled either.
“If this team was in the playoff race, I’d love to be here. No question,” Starks said. “But that’s not the case. … Every player that plays the game wants to win a championship. I’m no different.”
Starks was traded to the Chicago Bulls
Starks was a prominent figure in New York until January 1999, when the Knicks wanted to acquire Latrell Sprewell. Sprewell had been suspended by the Warriors for choking P.J. Carlesimo, and the Knicks believed that his toughness matched what they were trying to do. Meanwhile, Starks originally played for the Warriors before coming to New York, so sending him back to The Bay made sense.
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Starks played for the Warriors until February 16, 2000, when Golden State became the conduit team in the Toni Kukoc trade to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers got Kukoc in that deal while sending Larry Hughes and Billy Owens to the Warriors. Meanwhile, the Bulls got a first-round pick from the Warriors but had to absorb the salaries of Starks and Bruce Bowen to complete the deal.
Immediately after the trade, Starks told the Bulls that he did not want to be a part of their rebuilding and preferred to play for a contending team and chase his championship dream. The Bulls tried to deal him before the trade deadline, but there were no takers. John even offered to forfeit his salary so the Bulls would release him, but instead, his case went to a labor arbitrator.
John got his freedom but not the chance to play in the playoffs
In early March, arbitrator Roger Kaplan ruled that Starks could forfeit his salary and leave the Bulls to sign with another team. However, he would no longer be eligible to play in the postseason because the March 1 deadline for playoff rosters had passed. Interestingly, Starks withdrew his offer to give up his salary. However, the Bulls still waived him and paid him his money.
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“He had the option,” said Bulls GM Jerry Krause of Starks’ decision to keep the money instead after learning he can no longer play in the playoffs. “We asked him if he would agree to be waived without us paying him and he said, ‘No.’ He made it clear to me early that if he was going to lose money, he was going to stay here. I know John still has some basketball left in him. Our young players have to be on the court. They are the future of this franchise, and John certainly is not.”
Curiously, the Bulls waived Bowen two days after the Kukoc trade. Bowen was immediately picked up off the waivers by the Miami Heat, and he ended up playing for them in the postseason. Meanwhile, Starks watched the 2000 playoffs on TV before signing with the Utah Jazz in August 2000 and playing his final two seasons there. He didn’t get his championship in Utah, either.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 8, 2025, where it first appeared.