The Chicago Bulls and current head coach Tom Thibodeau are likely heading for an ugly divorce in the coming weeks after the Bulls’ disappointing performance in the postseason. One of the favorites to replace Thibodeau is Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg. But, is the former Bulls guard the right man for the job?
In five seasons coaching the Chicago Bulls, Tom Thibodeau won 64.7 percent of his games in the regular season, including three 50+ win seasons and won the NBA’s Coach of the Year Award after the 2010-11 season.
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But, after a tumultuous five-year stretch that included devastating injuries to key players like Derrick Rose, former Bulls swingman Luol Deng and Joakim Noah, tension built between Thibodeau and the organization about how hard he plays his key guys on a nightly basis.
Thibodeau and the Bulls are likely heading for a split after the Bulls bowed out once again to a LeBron James-led team in the postseason — the fourth time since 2010 — and the organization will be looking for a new head man on the sideline.
One of the favorites to potentially replace Thibodeau if (and when) he is forced out by Bulls management: current Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg.
Hoiberg, a former NBA guard, who spent four seasons with the Bulls in the immediate post-Michael Jordan era, has won 115 games in five seasons with the Cyclones, including two Big XII Tournament titles.
In those five seasons, Hoiberg took ISU from a mediocre 16-16 season in 2010-11 (Thibodeau’s first year with the Bulls), to a 25-9 season this past year and the school’s fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
Reports have circulated from different outlets about Hoiberg being one of the Bulls management’s favorite options, but is he really a great option?
Sure, Hoiberg knows the NBA game. He spent 10 seasons in the pro game, including a stint in the front office after his retirement for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Plus, a weird connection Hoiberg has to the Bulls is, when the 42-year-old took the job at Iowa State, he replaced current Creighton head coach Greg McDermott, who is the father of current Bulls guard Doug McDermott.
However, when you look at Hoiberg’s numbers in big games, the numbers might shy you away from him, even in the college game.
During Hoiberg’s five years on the sideline in Ames, the Cyclones made the NCAA Tournament four times. But, Hoiberg’s teams only made it out of the first weekend one time (2013-14).
Just like Thibodeau, Hoiberg has had great regular season success, but during the postseason, his teams haven’t been able to get over the hump.
Along with Hoiberg’s postseason struggles as a head coach, he’s Iowa State to his heart (which was just operated on back in April). Hoiberg spent four seasons in Ames, amassing just under 2,000 points and became a Cyclone legend. Not only has Hoiberg played and coached for the Cyclones, the man received write-in votes during Ames’ mayoral election in 1993, his junior season with ISU.
To put the cherry on top of Hoiberg’s ISU connections, he signed a 10-year, $20 million extension in April 2013.
There’s nothing Bulls fans wouldn’t like about Fred Hoiberg, but it’s clear that he isn’t the right man to replace Tom Thibodeau.
Hoiberg is a folk hero in Ames, his family loves Ames, and with his heart issues that forced him into retirement, it’s unlikely Hoiberg will make the jump to the NBA.
CBS Sports writer Ken Berger wrote on Friday,
"Atop that list is Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg, who league sources say would check all the boxes for the Bulls, including fixing the team’s inconsistent — and against the Cavs in Game 6, ineffective — offense. But with Hoiberg only two years into a 10-year, $20 million deal with the Cyclones — and with strong family roots in Ames and having undergone recent heart procedures — there is strong doubt among NBA front office sources that he’d be inclined to make the jump.“He can leave whenever he wants,” one front-office source said. “Why now?”"
That’s actually a great question: Why would Fred Hoiberg leave now?
The Bulls are one of the oldest teams in the league (28.5 years old on average), their superstar point guard has had three knee surgeries before his 27th birthday and it’s becoming well-documented how Bulls management expects their head coach to be:
If Bulls-Thibs breakup as expected, whether it's Gentry, Griffin or Hoiberg, common characteristic is management seeking more compliance.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) May 15, 2015
There’s no denying that the Bulls do have talent. Despite the injury concerns, Derrick Rose played well in the 17 games after his second meniscus surgery, Jimmy Butler is in line for a max-deal, and Nikola Mirotic finished second in the NBA’s Rookie of the Year voting to Minnesota’s Andrew Wiggins this season.
But, if you’re Fred Hoiberg, and you’re in line for $16 million (not including bonuses) over the next eight years in a place that you basically call home, why would you come to the Windy City?
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