I know I’ve made a list of the top games I’ve ever attended in person; not sure if I’ve made a specific list of the best Bulls games I’ve attended in person. The ones that come to mind, the ones that are on my top 10 overall list, include: my first ever Bulls game when I was 10-11 years old; my first time seeing MJ in person. The 3OT playoff win against the Nets. Game 1 when we bashed LeBron and the Heat (before losing 4 straight). And of course, one that may never get topped… Game 6 of the 1992 NBA Finals. Pretty good list. Yet, on Sunday April 2, 2023, I attended a Bulls game that will be in the conversation.
Yes, I… WE were in the house for the Sunday afternoon tilt against the Grizzlies; talk about a game where everything went right. We bought the tickets months ago; it was a birthday gift for my son. Earlier this season, we had got Mavericks tickets, so he could see his favorite player Luka; the dude didn’t even play. We gave it another shot with this one, hoping he would see his 2nd favorite player Ja. When we saw the whole Ja drama, we couldn’t believe it; we had bought really good seats!!! Well, it turned out that he DID play in this one; we got to see a dunk and a handful of other nice plays for Morant; check.
We showed up early for the game, ensuring we would get a Benny bobblehead, check. It was Benny the Bull’s birthday too; my son got to take a picture with the whole Benny family in the atrium before the game. Plus, my wife brought his first picture with Benny, when we saw him on State Street when my son was a baby; he gave it to Benny to sign for him, check. We grabbed a little bit to eat and drink before settling into our seats in the 100 level… woo hoo, high rollers… haha. We were right next to the section where Benny throws the popcorn; this time, he was accompanied by the whole family, as there was popcorn everywhere. When you looked up at the jumbotron, you saw my son standing right across the aisle from the madness, check.
We told my son to make a sign for this game. Since we were in the “good seats”, maybe he’d be able to get his up on the big screen. When I saw the cameraman standing close by, I went up to him… letting him know it was also my son’s birthday, and he made a sign, so when that part of the game comes, if he could get him on camera, that would be cool. He didn’t say anything… just kind of nodding. When I got back to our seats, I told my wife; we weren’t sure if it would happen. But… it did! The part of the game came, and the first one on the jumbotron for all to see, was my son holding his sign. Awesome check! He was pumped; we couldn’t believe it. He was getting birthday wishes from all around us; that was really, really cool.
And oh yeah, the game… well, the Bulls were getting their skulls bashed in, but I kept the faith. I kept telling my son… they’re not going to lose on Benny’s birthday… they’re not going to lose on YOUR birthday. And for once, I was right!!! They came back from 20 points down to win, in one of the best Bulls games I’ve ever attended. It helped that I had bet on them too, before the game, and multiple times in game; a clean sweep baby!!!
Yeah, so… I said it was Top 5 Bulls games all time that I attended; I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch. We had an absolute blast. With the Bulls big comeback victory, surely they would steamroll into the playoffs and beyond, right? Right….
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