CHICAGO (670 The Score) – What was meant to be a beautiful evening for the Bulls as they enshrined the first class into their newly formed Ring of Honor on Friday at the United Center was marred by an ugly scene during the halftime ceremony.
Bulls fans loudly booed when former general manager Jerry Krause’s name and accomplishments were announced, which visibly upset the late Krause’s widow, Thelma, who was representing him during the ceremony.
While it was only some of the Bulls fans in attendance sharing their dislike and cheers emerged as the videoboard transitioned from an old photo of Krause to a live shot of Thelma sitting at mid-court, the boos were still resounding. As Thelma became emotional, former Bulls guard Ron Harper put his hand on her shoulder to help console her in front of the sellout crowd of 21,153. The presentation then moved on to honor former assistant Tex Winter and legendary coach Phil Jackson, who received a thunderous ovation.
Krause was the Bulls’ general manager from 1985 to 2003 and built the dynasty that won six championships in the 1990s. Krause passed away in 2017.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr, the former Bulls guard who was also enshrined into the Ring of Honor as part of the 72-win championship Chicago team of 1995-’96, blasted the fans who booed Krause’s name.
“It’s shameful, it’s absolutely shameful,” Kerr said. “I can not believe (it). I’m devastated for Thelma and for the Krause family. What can we possibly be thinking? I can not believe that the fans – and you have to understand, when you hear boos, it’s not all of them, right? So the fans who booed, they know who they are. And that, to me, is absolutely shameful. I’m devastated by that. Because what are we doing? Whether people liked Jerry or not, whether they disagreed the decision to move on (from the dynasty team), we’re here to celebrate that team. Jerry did an amazing job building that team. Tonight and last night (at a celebratory gala) was all about the joy and the love that that team shared with the city. I’m so disappointed in the fans, and I want to be specific – because there were lots of fans, I’m sure, who did not boo. But those who booed, they should be ashamed.”
Bulls fans have long blamed Krause for breaking up the team’s dynasty after its final championship in 1998. Beloved Bulls players also had countless clashes with Krause during the 1990s, forever casting Krause as a villain in the public eye.
Bulls television analyst Stacey King, who played for the team from 1989-’94, shared his displeasure as well.
“I’m a little upset right now,” King said on the broadcast as the third quarter got started. “We just had a remarkable ceremony bringing back the legends and I’m telling you what. Chicago is a sports town. And what we witnessed today was when Jerry Krause’s name was called, and the people that booed Jerry Krause and his widow, who was accepting this honor for him, it was the worst thing that I’ve ever seen in my life. I hurt for that lady. It brought her to tears. And whoever booed her in this arena should be ashamed of themselves. That’s not Chicago. That’s New York, Philly. Chicago’s not like. We don’t have a reputation of being that way. And whether you like Jerry Krause or not, that man brought six championships here. He didn’t shoot a basket nor did he get a rebound, but he put six titles up. There’s a lot of teams that don’t even have one, and that was really classless. I was disappointed in the people that booed. It was a sad thing.
“Bulls fans are better than that. We are better than that. We’ve never had that situation happen. I felt so bad for that lady. She’s a wonderful lady, and it was just sad to see her breaking down in tears. I just wanted to go out there and hug her.”
The Bulls’ initial Ring of Honor class was comprised of 13 individuals and the entire 1995-’96 team. The individuals who were enshrined were Artis Gilmore, Jackson, Michael Jordan, Johnny “Red” Kerr, Dick Klein, Krause, Toni Kukoc, Bob Love, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Jerry Sloan, Chet Walker and Winter.
The legendary Jordan as well as Pippen and Rodman weren’t in attendance Friday. Rodman badly wanted to come, he explained in a video that the Bulls posted to their social media, but the inclement weather prevented him from getting to Chicago.
While the Ring of Honor festivities were still special for so many involved, the inaugural ceremony in front of the crowd will likely forever be remembered for the booing of Krause. The Bulls led the Warriors by 13 at halftime but lost 140-131 after Golden State blitzed them with 48 points in the third quarter.
“Something like that, rest his soul,” Bulls star DeMar DeRozan said of Krause. “He played a major in the success that the Bulls had, creating one of the greatest teams ever assembled. You got to give him credit. That man have family, friends that are still here, that ought to be appreciated and shouldn’t be disrespected in any type of way by hearing boos or anything like that. It just sucks that their family has to endure something like that, but you can never take away what he created. Without Jerry, there wouldn’t be a historic Chicago Bulls history. You got to give him credit for as long as basketball is around.”
Cody Westerlund is an editor for 670TheScore.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.