A season of turmoil between Thibodeau and Gar Forman and John Paxson has culminated in a separation of the sides. For months now, rumors have been swirling about that a divorce was coming unless the Bulls made a serious run towards a championship. That didn't happen, so this was the result.
Here are excerpts of statements released by the organization. First, from Jerry Reinsdorf:
"Teams that consistently perform at the highest levels are able to come together and be unified across the organization - staff, players, coaches, management and ownership. When everyone is on the same page, trust develops and teams can grow and succeed together. Unfortunately, there has been a departure from this culture. To ensure that the Chicago Bulls can continue to grow and succeed, we have decided that a change in the head coaching position is required."
And this, from Forman:
"As we looked ahead and evaluated how we as a team and an organization could continue to grow and improve, we believed a change in approach was needed."
We may never know everything that went on behind closed doors with Thibodeau and management. What can't be debated though is that the sides were not on the same page. The relationship was apparently further beyond what even Phil Jackson and Jerry Krause could accomplish at the end of their time together: have great success even though they hated each other.
If Thibodeau was fired because GarPax felt his methods were ineffective and not in the best interest of his players, that's fine. Going all out in every single game at a time when other teams were watching minutes could be taxing. His message could have fallen on deaf ears among the core group after hearing it for so long. Often times, it was clear they felt they needed more rest.
However, if this was due to office politics, because GarPax wanted him gone for the sake of him being gone, that's incredibly short-sighted thinking. Dumping one of the best coaches in the league just to get some peace within the organization is not of the best interest for anyone. We saw this when the dynasty broke up and everything just turned awful from there. With the talent on this team, there's no reason they shouldn't be guided by a man most other teams would hire quickly.
Whatever the reason, this represents a turning point in franchise history. Whether that's for better or worse won't be known for some time. Still, everyone will be left to wonder what could have happened if circumstances had been more favorable with a healthy Derrick Rose. Perhaps only then could Thibodeau have had more leverage in an attempt to save his job.
In the days leading up to this move, the rumors of Fred Hoiberg assuming Thiobdeau's former role are as strong as ever. It might be the worst-kept secret in the NBA that the Bulls are intent on hiring him. We've known about it for almost as long as we knew Tim Floyd was going to take over for Phil Jackson.
As time passes, these Bulls become more of a veteran team. So I continue to hold firm in my belief that Hoiberg is not the best option for this franchise. They don't have LeBron James to bail out somebody like David Blatt. This is a roster that needs the proper direction, and that must come from an NBA mind, not another project as the Bulls have been prone to launch (Floyd, Bill Cartwright, Vinny Del Negro).
Right now, Alvin Gentry is the only name I can think of who would be a good replacement. He's been around the professional game for a long time and could be useful to a group trying to win. The only bad thing about it is age and injuries might hamper some of what he could accomplish. That's not really in his control though.
Now, we get to see what GarPax is really made of. They came together at the same time Thibodeau was hired. Can we trust their judgment going forward? Their next move will say a lot and could tell us if they just made the right call.
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