[SmooveKRYPTParticipant]

Can’t say I saw this one coming. Did they expect this roster to be winning more game despite several key injuries?

Jim Boylen taking over as permanent HC.

 

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

Not surprised at all. The bulls gave him every chance but he just never really was able to establish a culture or identity for the team. Didn’t really have the personality to deal with nba egos. His first season was a nightmare where he took a very talented Chicago team that was expected to contend for a finals berth and missed the playoffs completely, and let the locker room get away from him. I thought he’d be gone after that but they stuck with him. The same issues continued to arise the next few seasons as well.

While the bulls probably lack the talent and experience to challenge for a playoff berth this year, they should at least be more competitive than they’ve been. Hoiberg has a good basketball mind, but that’s only part of coaching, and he was just never really able to get the respect of his players for whatever reason.

  

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

One has to be of two minds about it. On one hand, nothing Hoiberg did justified his continues employment. He did a great job at Iowa State. One can argue that he was dealt a bad hand in that he was brought in thinking that Doug McDermott and Niko Mirotic were better than they were in the desire to change the way the team played. The front office fell out with Derrick Rose and then Jimmy Butler. He had two brief spells of success under him that were ended by injuries, first of Rajon Rondo in the playoffs and then Kris Dunn landing teeth first on the court. Other than that, the Bulls have been largely miserable under him. On the other hand, Ryan Arcidiacono was not a lock to make the team, and one month in is playing 29 minutes per game. Similarly with Antonio Blakeney, he was not a lock to make the team. He is playing 17 minutes per. Justin Holiday was probably pegged as the fourth wing in the preseason, and is playing 35 minutes per game. Chandler Hutchison seemed as a likely candidate to play in the G-League, and is now playing considerable minutes off the bench. Shaq Harrison wasn’t on the team at the start of the season, and is now a staple of the rotation. This doesn’t even address the massive misevaluation of Cam Payne and Cristiano Felicio. They are 5-19 because of the players at the coach’s disposal, not the coach. If you are playing what you thought was the fringe of your rotation and projected third units big minutes, the team is going to lose. In the end, it is hard to think this is an unfair result.

The shame of the Bulls season is that they still have two big issues to work through this now-lost season. Kris Dunn is eligible for an extension. Given that he has what amounts to one good month over two-and-a-quarter seasons, they can’t possibly do that with what they know now. They certainly know that they need a better backup than Arcidiacono, Payne, and Harrison, but do they need a starter? They have seen the danger of just clearing out the position for him to get big minutes. Also, now that the team has largely abandoned Parker at the three, it puts them in a spot where it has to choose between Portis and Parker. They cannot carry them both as third bigs. Portis is bigger and gives better effort. Parker is more skillful offensively. 

[OhCanada-Participant]

 Hoiberg had no control of that roster. He probably asked to be fired and they are doing this as a good grace to him. They tell him to tank and he tanks. Then he gets fired. Nice deal.

 Last year he gets his guys to win 5 straight, 10 straight and they trade the teams best player (Mirotic). Im pretty sure they had an 8th seed at that point too. Last year they had Jerian Grant playing good minutes but not big stats and after the allstar break they bench him and give Payne his minutes to try and justify acquiring him and ruin team chemistry. Same thing with Zipser he finally starts playing well bang, benched. Guys are healthy and they still sit the media asks them why they arent playing and they smile holding back the laughter. Even Markannen didnt return from an elbow sprain without having 1 week of full contact practice without pain and after that week they bring him off the bench.

This team can win games with the talent they have but they are clearly tanking. Thing is they arent gonna be as bad as the Hawks, Suns, Cavs without having Lavine, Markannen, Portis, Parker continue to rotate on the injury reserve with elbow sprains and upper body/lower body injuries, back spasms and those type of ticky tacky injuries.

 Losing on purpose and sending a message throughout your roster thats the goal is a terrible way to rebuild. Trade the talent for future assets and bottom out or try to turn that talent into a group that wins nd closes games but dont adjust your lineups for the sake of losing.

 

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

I think it depends on your definition of tanking. The injuries to Dunn, Markkanen, Portis, and Valentine are real. If you think of a normal eight-man NBA rotation, they have, more or less, missed half of their projected rotation all year. While the decisions to gift Cameron Payne the back point job, let their best defensive wing in Nwaba leave for nothing, and continued desire to try to see if Felicio can salvage any value from his awful contract are all undeniably bad decisions that would have impacted the team regardless, most of the reason they are in the position they are is just a bad run of luck with health. A team wouldn’t give Jabari Parker $20 million if this was the plan. If they hold on to the cap space, eventually some team would come around and offer them things of value for getting them under the tax. Also, like I mentioned earlier, they have to make a decision on Parker or Portis this year. Realistically, only one will be able to stay. Dunn will be eligible for an extension next summer. If he plays himself into being a locked in starter, then they would want to get him signed as soon as possible, but how can they do so when he has one good month on his record? I cannot imagine a team would want to fly blind into these decisions. 

The one question I have of what they did last season is the extent to which Dunn’s fall, and serious concussion where he wasn’t cleared to play for about a month and was never really right when he got back, altered their plan. Maybe I am wrong, but I do not believe they would have given up on young team that was playing good ball. 

[OhCanada-Participant]

Well they got a long season ahead of them to figure all of that out but Portis is a beast. He brings that Harrell, Randle type of energy on both ends of the floor that really helps teams make runs and gain momentum. 

[Andv1 WaitingParticipant]

 Fred snaked Thibs..Thibs was still employed by the Bulls when he was talking to them about the HC job and then he was replaced by one of their Assistant coaches that I am sure they chose to bring in lol…

The Guy was given at least 4 and a bit seasons to do something with it and did nothing…Thibs had a bunch of scrubs and Noah in the Playoffs this guy struggled to get D-wade,Rondo and Butler to the playoffs…Then they went full rebuild/tank mode and I am guessing they didn’t see enough player progression under him.. Also I am guessing the owner has said if you don’t start winning soon both your heads are also on the block…

Personally if the T-wolves are dumb enough to Fire Thibs(really hope they don’t) this off season I think the owner should fire GarPax as they are hopeless-They give bad contracts,Trade poorly never fully capatilise on their star players windows.. Then Give Thibs the same dual role as he has as the T-wolves as they fired the wrong person.. As Thibs had every team in the playoffs when he was there come hell or high water..He has proven he isn’t a horrible as a Basketball OPs he got a star player in with Butler,then he got something for a player that tanked his value and has that team playing respectable ball..This is without mentioning Thibs breaking the T-wolves playoff drought of 15 years..

 

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