1. 1972 sweep over the Chicago Bulls
The 1971-1972 Chicago Bulls were not that big of a threat to the Los Angeles Lakers, which was evident from the team sweeping the Bulls in convincing fashion. The Bulls did have Hall of Famer Jerry Sloan and all-star Bobe Love, but with Jerry West, Wilt Chamberlain and Gail Goodrich, the Lakers were the more talented team.
However, this was still the same Bulls team that took the Lakers all the way to seven games the year prior, so they could not be taken lightly, and they weren’t.
The Lakers came to play and both West and Goodrich averaged 28.5 points per game while adding 10.0 and 4.5 assists, respectively. Wilt Chamberlain had a stellar showing as well, averaging 14.5 points and a staggering 20.8 rebounds per game.
What makes this series so great outside of the Lakers sweeping the Bulls and having great individual showings is that it represented the first step in the team winning its only championship during the Jerry West era.
West was infamously 1-8 in the NBA finals with the 1972 season being the lone exception. For a franchise with so many championships, this might not seem like a big deal, but it helped cement West’s legacy in the league.
And it all started that year with the Bulls. The Lakers went on to defeat Kareem and the Milwaukee Bucks four games to two in the Western Conference Finals before defeating the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.