The Bulls honored three-time NBA champion and TV analyst Stacey King with a Celebration of Life ceremony Monday at the Advocate Center, with speakers that included Bulls CEO and president Michael Reinsdorf, King’s former broadcast teammates Neil Funk and Adam Amin, and his sons, Erick, Garrett and Brandon.
King died earlier this month after 19 years behind the microphone for the franchise, and his impact on and off the court was best summed up by Reinsdorf.
“Over the last three decades, Stacey became so much more than just a former player or our television analyst,” Reinsdorf said. “He became one of the defining personalities of Chicago Bulls basketball. He meant so much to me, to my family, to my dad (Jerry Reinsdorf), who is here today, to everyone in our organization, to the city of Chicago, and to Bulls fans all over the world. He was clearly one of one. Incredibly talented, hilarious, authentic, there simply won’t be another Stacey.”
The team has yet to announce how it will honor King during the upcoming season, but it will undoubtedly match King’s personality and be big.
There has also been no movement on a replacement for King, but that could start to develop in the coming months.
King, 59, was a member of the Bulls’ first three championships from 1991 to ’93 after being a standout force at Oklahoma. In eight NBA seasons, he also played with Minnesota, Miami, Boston and Dallas, averaging 6.4 points and 3.3 rebounds.
The sixth overall pick in 1989, King played in all 82 games as a rookie, coming off the bench and averaging 8.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.