Before the Bulls grinded out an embarrassing double-overtime loss to the Lakers Thursday, Forman attempted to downplay these reports by letting everyone know of their focus on winning. He claimed they will let nothing stand in the way of winning a championship. Even so, a toxic environment internally can't be ruled out.
Jeff Van Gundy started this last week when he threw the Bulls' front office under the bus for supposedly not respecting Thibodeau enough. That was fueled by league sources telling local media the relationship between the two sides was beyond repair. There may be two years left on Thibodeau's contract extension, but don't be shocked to see this basketball guru leave after the season, they said.
I don't know what's happening behind closed doors with Thibodeau, Forman and Paxson, but I know this. If they can't find common ground, it's going to result in a lost opportunity for a title which, in my opinion, won't come back after this year. The East is becoming stacked with the likes of Atlanta, Washington and Cleveland. And this might be the one chance to break through before Cleveland really figures it out and monopolizes conference championships for the next few seasons.
The Bulls have too many good things going for them to let this chance slip up. However, it's hard to think so lately, what with them going 8-8 in January with one game to go and all. I'd rather not think this alleged discord is getting in the players' heads and messing them up, so I won't. But if it is, the powers that be have no one to blame but themselves.
The common complaint appears to be Thibodeau wants to keep riding his guys hard while GarPax would rather he save them for the playoffs. Sounds like a clashing of old and new NBA philosophies. Can there be some sort of way for both of them to coexist? That's the only way this is going to work.
Are these troubles related to the Bulls' habit of playing down to their competition? Is there another reason that just this month, they've lost to the Jazz, Magic, Heat and Lakers with three of those games coming at home? Whatever it is, everyone needs to let their personal pride go to correct this tailspin we've been seeing lately. Otherwise, you risk giving up any home-court advantage in the playoffs and/or playing Cleveland in the first round, both of which are very real possibilities thanks to recent trends.
The trio in charge could take a lesson from Jerry Krause and Phil Jackson. The two men absolutely HATED each other, especially when they were about to part ways. Yet somehow, they led the Bulls to six championships in eight years. They had to swallow just enough personal pride to make that happen. If the current regime can't take a lesson from that, there's not much reason to believe in that ultimate goal.
Hopefully for everyone's sake, this is all just another chapter in a long regular season. We could all be laughing at this a few months from now. But even if we are, we should still be concerned about whether Thibodeau will still be at the helm for when this core still has a chance to play competitive basketball next year. Tell me someone smarter who would be better fit to guide this team and I'll change my mind.
The Bulls mercifully end January Friday against the Phoenix Suns. The obvious concern is if they're too tired from a losing marathon to stay competitive throughout. Conventional wisdom says they are. But there's nothing conventional about this team, so we'll just have to see.
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