When talking about the greatest dynasties in NBA history, the legendary Chicago Bulls squad from the 1990s always pops up there, if not as the first answer, then at least at number two. And for a good reason. The Bulls dominated the whole decade, winning six championships in two different three-peat runs. Many argue that the number would have been even bigger had Michael Jordan , the man who has held the GOAT title in the eyes of many ever since, not retired in the middle of that iconic stretch.
However, apart from all the silverware, Jordan, Scottie Pippen and the rest of the crew etched their names into basketball history with another legendary achievement by winning 72 regular-season games during the 1995-96 campaign, surpassing the old Los Angeles Lakers record from 1971-72 when they won 69.
Chicago was firing on all cylinders, but no matter how dominant they were, even they were not immune to off-the-court distractions. And according to former Bulls big man John Salley , Chicago may have had one more win on the board if not for one wild party that spiraled a little too far before a regular-season game. And when asked if he was indeed the one responsible for it, Salley gladly took the blame.
"Yeah, that's my fault. Because I threw a party," Salley said , before quickly explaining the story behind it.
"I threw a party and you know it's hard to get MJ to get out the room. And he came out the room. I got him to get out in Philly and that ruined it. He said, 'Sal, I can't go out.' I said, 'Who do you think you are, Michael Jordan?'… I got him out for a second and he goes, 'Yo, this is amazing,'" he added.
For the longest time, Salley was one of the vital complementary pieces of the Detroit Pistons "Bad Boys" squads that were a thorn in MJ's side during much of his early NBA years.
They were once bitter rivals, but coming to play alongside Jordan was nothing unusual for a guy like "Spider," who built his whole career around doing the dirty work for his stars and allowing them to fully shine. That was exactly the case in Chi-Town, too.
Even though Salley never specifically pointed out which one of the 10 losses he was referring to, it is clear that it happened during the second half of the season, after the All-Star break, since that was when he joined the Bulls. Jordan was always known as somebody who took every single regular-season game personally, especially when a record like that was on the line, and Chicago was chasing history almost every night.
Still, that one party was enough for MJ to loosen up just a little bit, step outside his strict routine, and actually enjoy himself for once. And if there was somebody capable of convincing Jordan to do that at the time, it was probably Salley.
It says a lot about how convincing Salley must have been.
Interestingly enough, the Bulls' final three losses of that season all came by a single-point margin. So that means if MJ simply got a little bit more rest, or maybe skipped one late-night outing, that very well could have been the difference between 72 and 73 wins. And they would have still remained alone at the top.
That 72-win mark stood at the top of the NBA record books for exactly 20 years, until the Golden State Warriors surpassed it with 73 victories during the 2015-16 season, led by Stephen Curry and company.
Who knows, if John were not so persuasive in getting Mike out of his hotel room that night in Philly, maybe we would still be looking at the Bulls alone at the top today, instead of sharing that historic spot with Steph and the Warriors dynasty.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on May 12, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
