On December 3, at about 8:50 AM CST, the dynamic management duo known as GarPax (Gar Forman and John Paxson) made the decision to fire three-year HC Fred Hoiberg. Because, in case you weren’t in-the-know, an injury-riddled team that’s in rebuild mode is undoubtedly the coach’s fault.
Okay, enough sarcasm.
I’d like to first point out that I’m by no means a Fred Hoiberg stan. I don’t think he was the right replacement for Tom Thibodeau or the right HC for any NBA team for that matter. Not now, at least. However, I do think he lacks the “muster” needed to lead a locker room of men and create a winning, stable culture. But thinking, even for a second, that Hoiberg was the problem is simply falling for the smoke and mirrors strategy that GarPax execute so well. I, for one, refuse to miss the forest for the trees, and so should you.
Fred Hoiberg had a record of 115-155 in his 3-and-1/4 seasons with the Bulls, making the playoffs once, and getting bounced in the first round as an eighth seed. Sure, that’s nothing to scoff at and may even be “fire-able” standards, but again, smoke and mirrors. Let’s take a deeper dive into why exactly Fred’s tenure was so underachieving.
First, there’s the roster. Hoiberg took on a team in 2015 that, in the year before, gave the Lebron-led Cleveland Cavaliers all they could handle in the Eastern Conference Semis. Still, that team’s average age was 30.5, and their window to contend was rapidly closing. So, let’s take a look at all of the players the Bulls moved on from during the Hoiberg era.
Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade, Rajon Rondo, Joakim Noah, Pau Gasol, Kirk Hinrich, Doug McDermott, E’Twaun Moore, Tony Snell, Taj Gibson, Aaron Brooks, Mike Dunleavy, Isaiah Canaan, Michael Carter Williams (catches breath), Jerian Grant, Joffrey Lauvergne, Anthony Morrow, Paul Zipser, David Nwaba, Spencer Dinwiddie, Noah Vonleh, Kay Felder, Quincy Pondexter, Sean Kilpatrick, and Omer Asik. Phew…
In Paxson’s presser following the firing, he stated that he disagreed with the notion that Hoiberg didn’t get a chance to fully develop his personnel. Well, maybe it’s because he had players coming and going like it was a Sunday church league at the broken down court across the street from 7-11? I’m not positive…
Hoiberg didn’t even get a chance to coach a fully healthy Bulls team this year, as Lauri Markkanen just returned to the lineup and Kris Dunn and Bobby Portis have their eyes set on a return here soon. But Pax seems to believe we’re lacking in other areas this year. He stated “we were in a similar situation last year at this time. Poor record. But the entire energy about this group was different then. What we’re lacking is an energy and spirit.” Right. Energy and spirit. *face-palm*
What’s even more nauseating about all of this, especially to Bulls fans, is that Fred Hoiberg was Gar Forman’s guy. He was it – the “golden coach,” the “chosen one,” as former Bulls-beat guy Nick Friedell points out:
Hoiberg had support from people throughout organization prior to being hired — but he was absolutely Gar’s guy. Gar was convinced that Hoiberg could lead the Bulls to a title. And for a variety of different reasons, notably the roster didn’t have enough talent, it didn’t happen.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) December 3, 2018
Someone enlighten me, please. How is it that you, as a management team, get to hire a guy in an important position, swear up and down that he’s your guy and the right guy for the job, then fire him, then blame him for the reason you aren’t winning. And get to keep your job? How?!
Sidenote: Gar Forman wasn’t available to the media after he fired the coach he knew would win us a championship…
What’s even crazier? This isn’t the first offense. GarPax have hired and fired FIVE head coaches in their tenure together (Bill Cartwright, Scott Skiles, Vinny Del Negro, Tom Thibodeau, and Fred Hoiberg) and have 0 NBA Finals appearances to show for it. No other GM in the NBA can say that. None.
Oh, but John Paxson made sure to clear up any confusion about either him or Gar losing their job:
John Paxson on Gar Forman’s job security: “Gar is absolutely safe.”
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) December 3, 2018
So, there’s that.
What bothers Bulls fans about the Hoiberg firing isn’t that he was liked as a coach, it’s that fans loath GarPax as the decision makers of this rebuild. Their closest try at a successful rebuild was a lucky draw of the Draft Lottery that landed them a generational talent in Derrick Rose. Rose (along with coach Thibs) so blatantly masked the many incompetencies of Forman and Paxson, and they were exaggerated when he was hit with multiple knee injuries and management had no idea what to do. Sure, injuries to your star player can derail any franchise, but you could just sense the ineptitude of the GarPax duo to even try and recover from it.
Fast forward to the present day. Fred was sent packing, and the Bulls have officially named their next HC of the franchise (not interim, mind you), Jim Boylen, who was brought in as the assistant HC to Fred Hoiberg in 2015. Boylen, not to be confused with Jim Boylan of Bulls-past, has three championship rings, two while he was working under Rudy Tomjanovich and the Hakeem Olajuwon-led Rockets, and one with the Spurs as Pop’s assistant in 2014. Tenure and experience surely aren’t lacking with the Bulls new “guy,” but does it even matter?
Five head coaches. Countless players and bad contracts. Zero championships/Finals appearances. The one constant? That dynamic duo, Gar Foreman and John Paxson. You know the feeling of tasting a food that once gave you food poisoning? That’s how it feels to constantly type their name over and over…
Admittedly, the Bulls have themselves a nice young core in Markkanen, Carter Jr., LaVine, and Dunn. But, simply put, nothing will change until this team is no longer owned by the oh-so-faithful Jerry Reinsdorf. The organization continues to deal with the symptoms and not the roots of the problem. The sooner Bulls fans realize that and stop selling out the United Center, the sooner we’ll see winning basketball in Chicago.
You can follow me and the rest of my sports thoughts @Eli_PerSources.