The Bulls fired coach Tom Thibodeau on Thursday despite two years and roughly $9 million remaining on his deal, with general manager Gar Forman citing a need for "a culture of communication that builds a trust throughout this organization."
A telling moment during an afternoon “Goodbye, Thibs” news conference at the United Center came when Bulls vice president of basketball operations John Paxson summarized the reasoning behind Thibodeau’s dismissal as Forman, sitting to his left, nodded in agreement.
“You have to have a situation where you are all pulling in the same direction,” Paxson said. “Once that stops, it’s very difficult to move forward.”
Seconds later, Paxson added: “We probably wouldn’t be sitting here if we won a championship” – a nod to the realities of pro sports: No matter how difficult a player or coach is to work with, winning cures all.But the Bulls didn’t win in the postseason under Thibodeau, who was removed Thursday after five seasons. The team’s performance in the second-round loss to the Cavaliers was particularly galling, given that Cleveland played without Kevin Love and with a hobbled Kyrie Irving.
"We were all really disappointed in the way the season ended," Paxson said. "Cleveland is a great team and they're in the Finals. But we felt like, given their injuries, the path was there for us if we could have seized it."
Forman said that Bulls management “dug deep” before coming to a decision Wednesday night and informing Thibodeau on Thursday morning.
They considered the team’s overall performance, exit interviews with players, Thibodeau’s reluctance to adhere to minutes restrictions and, perhaps most significantly, the coach’s personality, which turned off numerous facets of the organization.
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