Former Chicago Bulls general manager had an ambitious proposition for an up-and-coming Ron Artest, determined to one-up the legendary Michael Jordan and build past the two three-peats he blessed the franchise with in the '90s.
Artest admitted to being a fan of the Bulls as a kid, and Krause built into that energy by promising that the next championship the Bulls would win would “destroy” the other six Jordan brought home during his two tenures with the team.
“For me, it’s like Jerry drafted me after Michael Jordan (played there), so for me, the Bulls were my favorite team,” Artest explained to Sam Amick and Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “I played with them all the time on the video games, so as a 19-year-old kid, I’m like, ‘Wow,’ right? And then Jerry told me one day — I love Jerry — Jerry is like, ‘Ron, we’re gonna get (championship) No. 7, and you’re gonna be here, and it’s gonna just destroy those other six titles. Jerry would always say that. ‘No. 7 is the most important one…’”
As “The Last Dance” docuseries displayed in Episodes 3 and 4, Krause was hellbent in getting credit for being the architect that put together a Bulls roster good enough to bring home six titles.
Naturally, he was overshadowed by the players, as Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and even coach Phil Jackson received plenty more credit than he did.
It's likely that same passion that inspired Krause to make such a tall promise to Artest, who only played two-and-a-half seasons with the Bulls before being shipped to the Indiana Pacers in 2002.
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