Bull of the Day: Toni Kukoc

The original foreign star, Toni Kukoc came to the Bulls after the third title of the first three-peat. His arrival was actually pretty controversial. Hated general manager Jerry Krause was known to be partial to Kukoc, and it was often speculated that he planned on bringing Kukoc over to get rid of Scottie Pippen.

Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen took a great deal of offense to these rumors, and they decided to absolutely embarrass Kukoc in the 1992 Olympics. Kukoc definitely wasn't on the same caliber as the NBA's elite, and the '92 Olympics proved it. He was a skilled offensive player, but damn, was he weak. Sounds a lot like our savior Nikola Mirotic.

Still, Kukoc was an excellent offensive player who could light up the scoreboard, and his talents were highly necessary during the 1997-98 season when Pippen missed much of the year due to back problems. Kukoc wasn't much of a defensive player, and for a guy who was 6'10, he was a terrible shot blocker. Nevertheless, he came to play in the '98 championship, averaging about 15 points per game during the finals, and I'll always remember that he was basically the only other guy who scored during MJ's Game 6 45-point finale.

Kukoc thrived tertiary offensive option, so when he became "the guy" in 1999, it became readily apparent that he couldn't shoulder the load as a number one scored. Poor Toni was traded to Philadelphia in a three team deal that netted the Bulls John Starks (sickening), Bruce Bowen, and a 1st round pick. Bowen and Starks were both fairly promptly released, and I can't even blame Krause for doing that: Bowen wasn't good at the time and Starks was the number one adversary of the Bulls for the better part of a decade.

After Philly, Kukoc made stops in Atlanta and Milwaukee, finally retiring at the age of 37.

Toni was well-known for his giant pregame meals (as well as a giant penis).



These days, Toni plays golf every day and splits his time between Highland Park and Croatia. I wouldn't mind running into him some day, as long as he's wearing some pants.

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Bull of the Day: Dennis Rodman

In the spirit of broke ballers, I wanted to give Dennis Rodman some necessary credit for his tremendous impact and part of several important Bulls' teams.

Rodman came to Chicago, in a trade that was literally the steal of the decade. Will "he's not just chicken" Perdue for Dennis, straight-up. Yes, one for one. Will Perdue. Will Perdue.

Rodman went on to be a crucial member of the most prolific team in NBA history: the 1995-96 Bulls. They stomped on hopeless opponents on their way to a 72-10 record, and Rodman became the "Horace Grant" of the 2nd dynasty (sans goggles).

He averaged 15 boards per game, and played with the defensive intensity the team sorely needed. Mind you, its still somewhat unknown what the hell Dennis did at night, though we know it involved a lot of partying that only he could get away with. Rodman might have flamed out elsewhere, but in Chicago, with the Zen Master and MJ leading things, Rodman was given the perfect atmosphere to flourish.

While his career in Chicago ended with the end of the Bulls dynasty, he ended up playing parts of 2 seasons with the Lakers and Mavericks. His stat line with the Lakers was good (2/11/1) but his antics wore out before the playoffs could begin.

I'll always remember him for the McDonald's cup that changed his hair color with your drink, but I guess he also dressed like a tranny from time to time.