[tuq]

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... or how the 1993 Phoenix Suns were clearly >>>>>>> 1993 Chicago Bulls)

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Which side of the debate do you take, tuq? This is like the most important question i've ever asked on 2p2.

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Well you're from Chicago so there's no way you're gonna agree with me, but anyway here goes.

The Suns were a better team than the Bulls that year. The better team doesn't always win. They won the most games in the regular season, but that's not my only argument. Danny Ainge, who played for the Blazers team that lost to the Bulls the previous year said (paraphrasing) "this one hurts more because last year Chicago was the better team. This year we were."

The Suns were Finals noobs, whereas the Bulls were two-time defending champions who had hardened playoff skillz from tangling with the Pistons prior to that. So the Suns put up no fight in going down 0-2, both games at home.

Then they woke up and in their three games in Chicago won game three in triple overtime, barely lost game four (MJ went for something like 55 that game) and then took game five pretty easily.

Speaking of Ainge, he pretty much cost the Suns the series when, for reasons that will forever elude me, he decide to double team Horace Grant, leaving Paxson open for the dagger three when the Suns were up two. It's not just that Horace Grant making a two would merely tie the game and give the Suns the last shot, it was that Horace Grant had made one freaking shot in games five and six combined.

So in those last four games the Suns were 2-2, 2-1 on the road, and both losses were in the last minute.

Granted, that was possibly the weakest of the Bulls championship teams. 1998 where they also narrowly escaped (that time to the Jazz) was pretty weak too.

Clarkmeister argues that had MJ not retired they would have run off eight straight. I say no way, his taking time off and coming back motivated and giving guys like Pippen a taste of life without him is a huge reason they won the last three titles.