Breakups don’t have to be nasty; cooler heads can prevail. Just don’t tell that to the Chicago Bulls.
As the offseason coaching carousel nears full swing comes word that the team might hold Tom Thibodeau hostage until all three current job openings are filled. Here’s Marc Stein of ESPN:
More and more you hear Thibs admirers around NBA say they fear Bulls determined to let all three open jobs get filled and then let Thibs go
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) May 25, 2015
Yikes.
It’s been assumed for months that Chicago and Thibodeau would go their separate ways upon the 2014-15 season’s end. Once the Bulls were eliminated from playoff contention by the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this month, that fracture became a matter of “when” as opposed to “if.” Fears of bugged offices aren’t exactly ideal working conditions, after all.
With June just around the corner, though, Thibodeau remains the Bulls’ coach, despite rumors of mutual interest between he and teams like the New Orleans Pelicans and Orlando Magic. Prevailing logic said the reason for his continued employment by Chicago is the team not only seeking compensation for his services, but also wanting a foolproof contingency plan in place before letting the 2011 Coach of the Year walk.
But this latest intel refutes that conventional wisdom, suggesting the Bulls’ approach to Thibodeau’s imminent departure is more malicious than anyone could have imagined.
It’s no secret that GM Gar Forman has a rocky relationship with Thibodeau. How else to explain the current circumstance of a coach who’s extremely successful and beloved by players parting ways with a veteran, winning team as one year remains on his contract? For both Chicago and Thibodeau, going different directions seems the best path ahead after so much pent-up friction.
But the Bulls risk alienating a group of potential replacements by keeping him until the coaching well dries up. The league’s coaches are notoriously close-knit and increasingly wary of so much turnover in recent years. Would a guy like Iowa State’s Fred Hoiberg — rumored to be Chicago’s top choice — be comfortable taking the job after Forman and company so flagrantly disrespected Thibodeau?
That’s something for the Bulls to consider, as is common decency. Letting Thibodeau go was never going to be a good look for Chicago, and this latest report will only make it worse.
