Unsuccessful offseason has Chicago Bulls uncertain about the future – NBA Feature Part 4
Then there is the case for Tom Thibodeau. He was an assistant to Doc Rivers with the Boston Celtics up until 2010, when he was offered the head coaching job by the Bulls after they parted ways with Vinny Del Negro. In his first season, he led the Bulls to the best record in the league and an Eastern Conference Finals appearance, where the Bulls narrowly lost to the Miami Heat. In his second season with the Bulls, he again led the team to a league best record, even though he did not have his starting five together for more than 10 games in the season.
More than that, he helped build a culture that lays emphasis on winning, and team effort over individual performances. He groomed Derrick Rose into an MVP and used the bench available to him to wreck havoc on the opposition. He made the Bulls the best defensive team in the league, with enough offense to win games. And he does not have a guaranteed contract with the very organization for which he was achieved so much. Thibodeau was signed onto a three year deal with a team option in the final year.
The Bulls have opted to pick up the final year of the contract, but they are yet to offer him an extension. Charles Barkley and Doc Rivers have openly criticized the Bulls for not giving Thibodeau what he deserves, while others have suggested that it would be better for the coach and the team if he entered the next season knowing where his future lay.
With all that has transpired in the past two months, analysts and fans alike have been forced to believe that the Bulls are in fact constrained by the fact that the franchise owners do not want to spend too much money. They are frightened of entering the luxury tax threshold, and are not willing to spend money to get new players. Players such as O.J. Mayo, Courtney Lee, Brandon Roy, Ray Allen etc would all have loved to be part of the Bulls organization because of Rose and the Bulls chances of clinching a title. Instead, the organization seems to have settled for a first round or possible second round finish in the playoffs over the next two season, and are looking towards the free agency in the summer of 2014 to pick up a star player to add with Rose and take the team forward.
The only issue with that is players tend to get disappointed when they see they clubs not committed to winning and doing everything possible to win and win immediately. The Lakers have been successful over the course of their history for this very reason. They make big decisions to affect the immediate future. And with Rose already entering his 5th year in the league next season, he will be a 6 year veteran by the time the summer of 2014 comes around. And if he is without a championship ring by that time, he might start becoming a little frustrated and anxious about his future and his legacy.
Think LeBron James and more recently, Dwight Howard. The Bulls might lose their best chance of making a comeback onto the basketball stage since Michael Jordan, and all because they were just too slow in making things happen.
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