At halftime of their game against the Golden State Warriors, the Chicago Bulls welcomed the inaugural class of their new Ring of Honor. They honored 13 members, including the likes of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Dennis Rodman, none of whom were able to be in attendance for the event.
The Bulls also honored the late Jerry Krause, the long-time GM of the Bulls. However, United Center decided to boo Krause when he was announced. Krause’s widow, Thelma, who was there representing her late husband, was noticeably emotional when the boos began raining down. Since the incident, there has been a slew of criticism being thrown the way of Chicago.
Former Bull and current NBC Sports Chicago analyst Stacey King called the boos “the worst thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“I’m telling you what, Chicago is a sports town, and what we witnessed today 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 I’ve ever seen in my life,” King said via ESPN. “I hurt for that lady. Brought her to tears, and whoever booed her in this arena should be ashamed of themselves.”
Michael Reinsdorf, the President and CEO of the Bulls, addressed the booing in a statement after the event.
“His legacy deserves to be celebrated and respected,” Reinsdorf’s statement said. “We were incredibly honored to have Thelma with us this evening to recognize Jerry as a member of the inaugural Chicago Bulls Ring of Honor.”
It was an ugly moment during what should have been an amazing ceremony.
