Thibs' Team

The Bulls limp into the NBA All-Star break with a 27-25 record, barely good enough for seventh place in the Eastern Conference rankings and one game from being on the outside of the playoffs looking in.  So, was firing Tom Thibodeau a mistake?

Given all the championship rings Thibodeau has won in his career (zero), I would still say No, though now with the qualifier, Not Necessarily.  What Bulls’ management did was change coaches while keeping Coach’s team intact.  This really was Thidbodeau’s team, if not molded in his image then bent enough to his will.  New coach Fred Hoiberg is proving every night the difference between the NBA and college.  Note to other NBA teams—when you fire a strong personality, don’t replace him with a weak one.

The Bulls did and are now paying the price, with Jimmy Butler challenging Hoiberg to coach harder and Pau Gasol declaring his intent to exercise his opt-out come summer just two of many examples of the mice happily at play with the cat away.  Oh, and Derrick Rose’s play.  Who knew you could sleepwalk for entire games at a time?

If the front office intends to keep this roster, it’s going to have to fire the coach.  If management likes the new coach so much, it needs to restructure the team, as in yesterday.