Tom Thibodeau–Rookie Coach of the Year?
In 1998, head coach Phil Jackson, His Airness Michael Jordan, and the Chicago Bulls won their third-consecutive NBA Championship—the team’s 6th title in 8 seasons as Chicago became the center of the basketball universe during the 1990’s. But then, seemingly all at once, everything changed shortly after the ’98 season, and departures the likes of Phil Jackson, Jordan, Rodman, and Pippen left gaping holes in the Bulls’ locker room.
From the very instant that Jordan and his supporting cast left the team, the Bulls have been searching for the right mix of players and coaches to bring the spark back to Chicago. But in the thirteen years since the departure of #23, the Bulls have experienced more head coaching changes than playoff appearances, and have only made it out of the First Round of the playoffs one time.
However, with the arrival and instant impact of Derrick Rose (2009’s Rookie of the Year), and then the inception of Tom Thibodeau as head coach a year later, the Bulls look poised to make a playoff run that Chicago hasn’t seen since the days of Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, and company.
With slightly over one week left in the 2011 regular season, the Bulls sit firmly atop the Eastern Conference with a record of 56-20, their 74% win-percentage is 2nd in the league behind only the Spurs; with only 5 games remaining after Tuesday, Chicago is currently 33-5 at home, 14-1 against their own division, and a home-court advantage in this year’s playoffs is theirs to lose.
Assuredly, most of the credit for the Bulls’ performance this season is due to the team’s captain and potential league MVP Derrick Rose—but something must also be said for the work of first-time head coach Tom Thibodeau.
This isn’t simply Thibodeau’s first season as the head coach of the Bulls, it’s his first season as an NBA head coach, period. From 2004 to 2007, Thibodeau served as a defensive coach with the Houston Rockets, and has held similar positions with the New York Knicks as well as the Boston Celtics. In ’99, Thibodeau was on the staff of the Knicks team that went to the NBA Finals; and in 2008, Thibodeau won it all as a defensive assistant with the Celtics—that season, Thibodeau not only helped the Celtics to the top of multiple defensive categories, but also played a major role in containing Kobe Bryant when the Lakers and Celtics met in the NBA Finals.
In his career, Tom Thibodeau has coached in 87 NBA playoff games—so although he may be new as a head coach, he is certainly not new at coaching in the NBA playoffs. It also seems that Thibodeau has brought his experiences as a defensive coach to Chicago as the Bulls currently average only 91 points allowed per game on defense—and, in the entire league, only the Boston Celtics are allowing fewer points per game this year than the Bulls. Chicago is also holding their opponents to a field-goal percentage of 43%, which is the lowest in the NBA.
Ok, true, having players the caliber of MJ, Scottie Pippen, D Rose, or Joakim Noah can certainly help the team’s efforts, but Tom Thibodeau understands that it’s defense that wins Championships. Even if Thibodeau is not named the NBA’s Coach of the Year in 2011, what he has done in his rookie season in Chicago has been thoroughly impressive.
One thing is certain, though—the Bulls have not entered the playoffs this hot or with this much of a buzz since the days of Phil Jackson, Air Jordan, and the Bulls’ dynasty of the 1990’s, which could spell trouble for the rest of the Eastern Conference.
