Perhaps the truest mark of any all-time great is the teams he left in his wake. Bill Russell and the Celtics buried Jerry West and the Lakers throughout the 1960s, and LeBron James has no shortage of Eastern Conference foes decimated throughout the 2010s. But no superstar in history has dispatched a generation of elite players and teams quite like Michael Jordan.

Jordans hit count in the 1990s is iconic. He ended the Bad Boy Pistons, shut down Clyde Drexlers Blazers and out-dueled Charles Barkley en route to a trio of Finals, and that was before his first retirement. Seattles best season of the Gary Payton era came to a bitter end against Jordan. The Jazz got a double dose of Jordan in MJs last two titles. And thats just the Finals. Jordan silenced Madison Square five (!) times. He fought past Indiana on his last legs. Imagining the NBA Finals of the 1990s without Jordan is an interesting parlor game.

So which squads that Jordan dismissed are actually the top teams of the 1990s? We at The Crossover ranked the best squads Jordan kept from seizing that elusive Larry OBrien Trophy.

You could quibble with which Jazz squad deserves the nod here, and both Stockton and Malone squads made Jordan sweat in the Finals. But the 199697 team won more games and had a better offensive rating and defensive rating than Utahs 199798 team, giving them a slight edge.

Perhaps the late-90s Jazz werent stacked with stars, but they were exceptionally deep, playing 12 players over 10 minutes per game in 199697. Jeff Hornacek was still near his prime, and Karl Malone was named MVP. Utah swept the Clippers and dispatched the Lakers in five games in the first two rounds, and Jerry Sloans team then exacted revenge over the Rockets two years after the Mario Elie shot. The title was firmly in reach, but Jordan had other ideas. The Jazz are still awaiting their first title in franchise history.

Charles Barkley & Co. squeaked through to the Finals, needing five games to defeat the Lakers in the first round and seven games to defeat the Sonics in the Western Conference finals. But dont mistake playoff struggles for anything less than dominance for much of 199293. Phoenix ripped off 62 wins before the postseason, and it posted a league-leading 113.3 offensive rating. Barkley came to Phoenix after eight years in Philadelphia and subsequently won MVP. Some may attribute Barkleys honor to Jordan fatigue, but theres no denying Barkleys excellence in his first year with the Suns.

Barkley wasnt a one-man band by any stretch of the imagination. Kevin Johnson remained an electric point guard in 199192though he did struggle in the Finalswhile sharpshooter Dan Majerle led the league in threes. Phoenixs Finals squad was a true offensive juggernaut, and one well suited for the modern era. But Michael Jordan is considered the GOAT for a reason. Jordan averaged 41 points per game in the Finals (on 40% from three), including a 55-point explosion in Game 4. Barkley held his own, but nobody could challenge Jordan at his peak as Chicago sealed the three-peat.

George Karl averaged 59.5 wins in his six full seasons with the SuperSonics, and the 199596 squad was likely his best. Seattle was the leagues No. 2 defense and No. 8 offense, sprinting to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with 64 wins. And a quick peek at the roster quickly explains the Sonics success.

Both Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton finished in the top 10 of the MVP race, and Detlef Schrempf was still cruising as an impact scorer in 199697. Seattle sported significant stretch with the Schrempf, Sam Perkins and Hershey Hawkins trio.

The Sonics ended the Rockets three-peat bid with a sweep in the second round, then outlasted Utah in a seven-game thriller to reach the Finals. But the Finals ended quicker than the series tally suggests. Chicago won the first three games of the series, then won Game 6 at home by double-digits. Payton and Kemp were a menacing two-man combo in 199596. Yet they stood little chance against a rejuvenated Michael Jordan.

Barkleys Suns would likely thrive in the modern era. Patrick Ewings Knicks? Not so much. New York averaged ranked No. 22 in offensive rating in 199293, and the roster wasnt exactly filled with scoring punch. Ronaldo Blackman was on his last legs by the time he got to New York, and Doc Rivers and Greg Anthony werent exactly scoring dynamos. But after years during which Ewing was largely on his own, 199293 marked the emergence of a dynamic duo.

John Starks had been in New York for two seasons entering 199293, though he was largely a complementary player, failing to enter the starting lineup in a single game in 199192. Starkss third season with New York marked a turning point. He jumped to 17.5 points per game, earning All-Defensive team honors as he started 51 games. New York won 30 of its last 37 contests amid Starkss rise, and the Knicks cruised past Indiana and Charlotte en route to the Eastern Conference finals. Starks held his own against Chicago, including a 25-point performance in Game 1. But Jordan and the Bulls ripped off four straight after falling in a 20 deficit, marking just one of many heartbreaks for the Knicks in the 1990s.

Dethroning Detroit in 1991 remains one of Jordans top career accomplishments, an achievement that was chronicled at length in The Last Dance. The Pistons battered and bruised Jordan for years, continually keeping him out of the esteemed company of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Defeating the Pistons represented Jordan finally getting over the hump. But while Detroit remained a sturdy Finals contender as the 80s ended, the 199091 team is by no means the franchises best.

Detroit won 50 games in 199091, a nine-win dip from the previous season. Both Vinny Johnson and Mark Aguirre were near the end of their careers, as was interior enforcer Bill Laimbeer. This isnt to say that Detroit was some sort of paper Tiger. Isaiah Thomas and Joe Dumars finished in the top 15 of the MVP voting, and Thomas frankly should have fared better than his No. 13 finish. But champions always run out of gas sooner or later, and 1991 marked the end of Detroits golden era. The 199091 run ended in a sweep against Chicago, and it took 11 years for the Pistons to win a playoff series after their loss to the Bulls. The peak Isaiah Pistons could have beaten any team on this list. The 199091 squad ran out of juice with plenty of miles on the odometer.

Portland was well positioned to hoist the Larry OBrien Trophy in 199192 as Clyde Drexler finished behind only Jordan in the MVP voting. The Blazers won 57 games in the regular season and dropped just three playoffs contests en route to the Finals, and it appeared as though Jordan could have his hands full as he eyed back-to-back championships. The prognosticators were quickly proven wrong.

Jordan banged home six first-half threes in Game 1 of the Finalsleading to the famous shrugfinishing the night with 39 points in a 33-point win. And MJ continued to dominate through the Finals. He scored 39 again in Game 2 and an outrageous 46 in Game 5, giving the Bulls a 32 series edge as it returned to Chicago. Portland kept it close in Game 6, but Chicago outscored the Blazers by 19 in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. Portland has yet to return to the Finals after Drexler was shredded by His Airness.

Tim Boyle/AP

Penny and Shaq defeated Jordans Bulls in the second round of the 1995 playoffs, and back-to-back Finals appearances was certainly in play entering the 1996 Eastern Conference finals. The Magic won 60 games in the regular season, then won seven of their first eight playoff games. They quickly ran into a buzzsaw.

Jordan didnt do much heavy lifting in a four-game sweep of Orlando. Dennis Rodman controlled the paint with 13 points and 21 rebounds in Game 1, and Scottie Pippen led Chicago with 27 points in Game 3. But with a sweep in sight, Jordan smelled blood, dropping 45 points in a five-point victory. ONeal left for Los Angeles that summer, stopping what could have been the leagues premier duo in its tracks. Orlando wouldnt reach the Eastern Conference finals for another 13 years.

Indiana reached the Eastern Conference finals in 1998 and 1999, then broke through to the reach the Finals in 2000. But the 199798 squad was perhaps the best Pacers team of the Reggie Miller era. The sharpshooting guard canned 42.9% of triples, and Miller was surrounded by a dominant defensive core. Dale and Antonio Davis packed a serious punch in the middle of Indianas defense, and Rik Smits logged his lone All-Star campaign. And it looked for a second like the Pacers were ready to dethrone the Bulls.

Indiana clawed back from a 20 series deficit with nail-biter wins in Game 3 and 4, and the Pacers pulled off a three-point win in Game 6. Chicago faced a dogfight in Game 7. Jordan made just nine of 25 shots, and Chicago missed 17 free throws while shooting 38.2% from the field. But Indiana scored just four points in the final 5:50 of regulation, sending the Bulls to their sixth straight Finals. Miller would have to wait two more seasons to seize the Eastern Conference crown.

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Who Are the Best Teams Michael Jordan and the Bulls Kept From Winning a Title? - Sports Illustrated