The Chicago Bulls Miss Tom Thibodeau

The Chicago Bulls are struggling and haven’t looked the same since they decided to let Tom Thibodeau go

A few years ago, the Chicago Bulls winning another NBA Championship seemed inevitable. Behind only the Boston Celtics (with their Big 4 of Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett) and the Miami Heat (with their Big 3 of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh), the Bulls were considered the “next” team.

With Derrick Rose being named the NBA MVP during the 2010-11 season, at the age of 22, Chicago appeared to have its next franchise player upon their hands – and their first since Michael Jordan.

Then came up-and-coming star in Jimmy Butler, who continued to show flashes of potential with every passing season, even when Rose was lost year after year to injury.

There also was Tom Thibodeau who, if nothing else, brought fantastic team defense. During his first four seasons with the Bulls, Thibodeau’s led Chicago to the 2nd, 1st, 3rd and 4th ranked defenses in the NBA. The only season in which Chicago ranked outside the top 5 in defense was during the 2014-15 season, his last in Chicago, in which they ranked 9th. Still respectable.

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Though times in Chicago were not always great, injuries and minutes management were the Bulls’ biggest problem. Tom Thibodeau and Bulls Management never saw eye to eye. Management thought Thibodeau’s practices were too intense for players logging 40 minutes a night.

Management also expressed concern with Thibodeau’s tendencies to ride out his star players with heavy minutes because it exposed them to more injuries. Management even tried to give players minutes restrictions because they wanted to “protect” players from Thibodeau.

Yet, it never seemed to work. And still, Thibodeau’s teams always looked “worn down” during playoff time.

According to the Chicago Tribune at the time, “statistics showed the Bulls led the NBA in players playing 13 or more consecutive minutes”.

Certainly, Thibodeau made questionable decisions regarding his player’s minutes. Like playing Joakim Noah 42 minutes in an overtime loss near the end of the season even though Chicago already secured homecourt advantage for a first round playoff series.

Increasing Derrick Rose’s minutes every month of the season from 23 to 25 to 30 to 34 before he got injured was head-scratching too. Playing Pau Gasol 35 minutes per game at age 34, which was his highest number of minutes in Gasol’s last three seasons in the NBA, never added up either

Jimmy Butler, even though he had youth on his side, should not be leading the NBA in minutes (38.7), which he did during the 2014-15 season. Thibodeau’s intense coaching style on his players and occasional clashes with management were enough to dismiss him after the 2014-15 season.

With that being said, Thibodeau established a defensive identity, leading Chicago to 60-victory seasons and deep playoff runs. Thibodeau had flaws but he was and still is respected as one of the best coaches in the NBA.

So, it really did not surprise anybody when Thibodeau became one of the most sought after coaches last offseason landing a five-year, $40 million contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Ironically, the moment Chicago fired Tom Thibodeau is the same moment their championship windows closed. The road to mediocrity began.

Looking at the future for the Chicago Bulls is a little saddening.

This once elite championship contender was now just another average team in the Eastern Conference. In 2015, Chicago hired Iowa state’s Fred Hoiberg to a five-year contract in hopes his pro style NBA offense would translate Chicago’s identity from a defensive team to more of an offensive team.

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Chicago’s offense ranked 21st at 101.6 points per game and Chicago’s defense ranked 16th, giving up 103.1 points per game. The Bulls struggled to find an identity on either side of the ball under Hoiberg.

It was a season built on the players not trusting Hoiberg as well. The losing got so frustrating that Jimmy Butler even called out his coach after a loss calling Hoiberg “Too nice of a guy” and “guys need to be coached harder”.

Then there was the rumored drama between Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler.

Derrick Rose was the heart and soul of Chicago for many years but Rose was not able to regain his MVP form after countless injuries. Rose was more reliable health wise playing in 66 games during the 2015-16 season, but his game and explosiveness was never quite the same.

The franchise was turning into Jimmy Butler’s team, averaging a career high 20.9 points per game that year. At the same time of Butler’s ascension, Rose’s decline continued at a rapid pace.

According to NBA.com, Rose’s 9.4 Player Impact Estimate during the 2015-16 season marked as Rose’s lowest PIE rating since his rookie season. Barring his 7.3 PIE rating in 2013-2014 because he only played in 10 games that year. Rose’s shooting percentage was slipping as well. Shooting a career worst 42.7 percent from the field and 29.3 percent from distance in 2015-16.

Rose’s 16.4 points per game fell to a career low as well. Yet, Rose still showed flashes from 2010-11 when he won the MVP award, but the consistency was never there and executives around the league knew Rose would never be the same.

The Chicago Bulls finished 42-40 and didn’t qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the 2007-08 season. This was also the first time Chicago had lost 40 games in the last six seasons. The most games Chicago lost in five seasons with Thibodeau was 32 games.

Chicago went into an offseason full of questions. Management had to make a decision on trading Rose or Butler because most likely one of them were getting moved in the offseason.

Management also had to decide which direction they wanted to build for the future. They could retool the roster or rebuild and get younger. Questions about Fred Hoiberg’s job came as well. People in the NBA circles questioned if Hoiberg’s offense was legit enough or if Hoiberg was even the right man for the job.

Jokaim Noah was the heart of the defense for many years, but the minutes starting to catch up with him playing in only 27 games the year before because of knee injuries. His contract had also expired.

In the offseason, Chicago decided to trade its son in Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks for center Robin Lopez, guard Jose Calderon and guard Jerian Grant. Rose, Justin Holiday and a second-round pick was sent to New York.

Chicago then decided to let Joakim Noah walk in free agency, which then he signed a five-year, $60 million contract with the Knicks. Pau Gasol also decided to leave in free agency, and then signed with the San Antonio Spurs with hopes of capturing one last championship.

This was officially the end of an era for the Chicago Bulls.

Bulls management decided it was time to rebuild, get young and more athletic. After trading Derick Rose, Chicago drafted Denzel Valentine in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft. It appeared that Chicago was putting faith in guys like Nikola Mirotic, Jerian Grant, Bobby Portis, Doug McDermott and Jimmy Butler (who may or may not have been shopped on draft night, depending on who you believe).

Then came free agency, where the interesting moves came.

During free agency, Chicago signed Rajon Rondo (who led the NBA in assets, 11.7, the year before) and Dwyane Wade (who didn’t feel respected by the Miami Heat all summer).

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These moves brought veteran leadership for sure and Wade was still an all-star caliber player, and his leadership and experience would be pivotal for the Bulls especially Jimmy Butler. Yet, Chicago was in need of three-point shooting badly and Wade and Rondo shoot less than 30 percent for their careers from the three-point line.

The signings also defeated the purpose of “getting younger”. Wade is 34 and Rondo is 30, but they could’ve brought veteran leadership experience to a young Bulls team.

Despite their signings, the 2016-17 version of the Chicago Bulls still had the same issues that plagued the team the year before. Still no identity and inconsistent play, mostly.

Sure, Jimmy Butler’s game has rose to another level. He’s averaging 25 points per game and is reaping the most under the guidance of Wade. Although, on the other hand, Rondo has been a disaster for the Bulls.

After losing his starting spot, Rondo met with Bulls management to discuss his benching. Rose said he got “no direct answer.” Rondo also added that “this is the most confused” he’s ever played with a team.

Fred Hoiberg’s 67-66 record as Chicago’s head coach speaks for itself. The Bulls’ defense has been inconsistent, but actually ranks a respectable 6th this season. However, Hoiberg was brought in because of his offense. And, right now, Chicago is worse on that side of the ball than they were last season. They’re ranked 23rd at the moment.

With a 19-20 record on the season, the Chicago Bulls find themselves outside the playoff race, ranked 9th in the East.

Question is, where does Chicago go from here?

Jimmy Butler has been the saving grace for Chicago and he could be the reason some executives in Bulls management still have jobs today. Dwyane Wade is a future hall of famer, no doubt, and a great mentor for Butler and the rest of the team.

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However, his best days are well behind him. Wade’s scoring average 18.7 on 43 percent shooting from the field has decreased drastically since last year. Most likely, Chicago will trade or waive Rajon Rondo by the trade deadline.

If the Bulls want to keep Hoiberg as the head coach, then they must get players that fit his system better. Chicago needs three-point shooting bad. Chicago’s three-point percentage of 31.8 percent is ranked 30th, which is dead last in the NBA.

Chicago should use Butler and Wade as decoys more often and get shots for the supporting role players. Trading for another all-star like Paul Millsap or signing an all-star like DeMarcus Cousins in free agency would give Chicago another franchise player to build around alongside Jimmy Butler.

At the end of the day, though, the Chicago Bulls miss Tom Thibodeau whether they want to admit it not. Chicago has some decisions to make and their clock continues to tick.