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2018-19 NBA: FIRST HALF


Dolfan in NYC

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1 hour ago, Brian Fowler said:

I'm baffled: did Chicago think they were actually going to win games this year?

I have no idea if Hoiberg is good or not, but he never had an NBA caliber roster to work with.

Eh, he inherited a playoff team.  He definitely had some talent to work with, even with the injury issues.

I'm in the "Hoiberg is probably not a good NBA coach" camp, but I also think firing him mid-season is dumb.  

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The excuse for Hoiberg was that he got a playoff team, but they weren't his guys who could play his kind of ball. Then they started rebuilding and he got players who could run his style. I didn't expect immediate success, but I expected him to develop players into his system. Players like Bobby Portis and Denzel Valentine still feel raw and underdeveloped and they've been in the league for 3-4 years now. Hoiberg's system has basically looked like guys making it up as they go along. Success looks like an accident.

With all that said, Hoiberg is not the real issue in Chicago. It's at the top. And no one wants to play for those guys. We will never attract top tier free agents with them in charge. I would hope this firing is a precursor to GarPax hitting the bricks, but I doubt it.

 

 

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To be fair, Paxson said that about Hoiberg before this season.

GarPax should've been gone years ago, but will never go because Jerry Reinsdorf is too loyal/lazy to get rid of them. Paxson has been in Chicago for 16 seasons and only has one Eastern Conference Finals to show for it. I could see them having a civil war down the line leading to Forman getting fired, but Paxson seems here for life.

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My issue with the Hoiberg thing is, why now?  If he is a bad coach (I think he is), isn't that what you want right now? Surely we don't want to start winning games.  Very confusing timing.

The only thing that makes sense to me is they couldn't get Hoiberg on the same page with the FO when it comes to tanking down the stretch.  Bulls have effortlessly been trash so far this year, but most of their talented guys are either just coming back or a few weeks away from returning. It's going to take a little more micro-managing if they want to stay in the Zion/RJ sweepstakes.

 

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That Luka stepback last night.  WHEW! 

https://streamable.com/uo5ar

Bill Simmons has been hyping up a potential Dallas trade where they unload Wes Matthews expiring contract to add another piece.  I love that idea.  They don't have their pick for next year so why not get Luka in the playoffs so he can get some reps.  

Dallas has played a really easy schedule so far, but they do have some quality wins this year.  Last night might be their best win yet.  Playoffs are definitely in the picture. I'm sure Random Act is hyped at this point.

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One more thing!  Sixers/Raptors tonight!! ECF preview in my opinion.

Between having Embiid on my fantasy teams and the Jimmy Butler trade, I've basically adopted the Sixers as my team this year. Helps that my work schedule only affords me time to watch the east coast games.  I'd say I've seen almost every game since the Butler trade.  They look more and more comfortable playing together every game.  Super thin bench right now, but I feel like a few guys will show up when the buyouts start.  

What surprised me was just how well Simmons and Butler have fit together.  Ben seems more aggressive when Jimmy is out there.  That gravity Butler has with opposing defenses really opens the lane up for Simmons.  That build a wall stuff Boston was doing last year in the playoffs wont work anymore. 

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The Rockets look like dog shit, and the Jazz are running them off the court, even though Gobert got himself an ejection in the first 3 minutes. Chuck and Shaq puked all over Phoenix for scoring 9 points in the first quarter of their game; Houston has that in the third so far (2:18 left). Utah might be the only WC team I like. 

Joe Ingles can play, but he should still be caulking Chris Paul's tub. 

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3 games into the Jim Boylen II era, Bulls players are already holding players only meetings. It only took a 56 point loss at home where Boylen pulled the starters  on multiple occasions for this to happen.

The rest of this season is going to be one hell of a shit show. 

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3 minutes ago, cubbymark said:

3 games into the Jim Boylen II era, Bulls players are already holding players only meetings. It only took a 56 point loss at home where Boylen pulled the starters  on multiple occasions for this to happen.

The rest of this season is going to be one hell of a shit show. 

Quote

CHICAGO -- Bulls players are pushing back on Jim Boylen's aggressive coaching style just three games into his tenure as head coach.

After suffering the worst loss in franchise history on Saturday night, Zach LaVine and Justin Holiday led a two-hour, players-only meeting in lieu of the practice Boylen had planned for the team on Sunday.

After the players met, Boylen and his coaching staff joined them for another meeting that rookie Wendell Carter Jr. said was the players coming to coaches "as men and [talking] to them about how we felt."

Boylen pushed back on the players' insistence that they had initiated a meeting.

"Our meeting is what I thought we needed," Boylen said.

"We were very, very honest with one another; very direct," Carter said.

In contrast to his predecessor Fred Hoiberg, Boylen has shown himself to be demonstrative, edgy and unafraid of confrontation. The dynamic between Hoiberg and Boylen when Boylen was associate head coach had been good cop/bad cop.

"We're still learning about each other," Boylen said. "I've moved over the 18 inches [from one chair on the bench to the next]. They're still learning how I want it. There's been a little shock and awe here in the last seven days. And there's an adjustment to that."

Team president John Paxson has committed to Boylen beyond this season, and that pledge appears to have given Boylen more latitude to be perhaps more aggressive.

After Boston went up 13-0 against the Bulls on Saturday night, Boylen pulled all five starters. He pulled the entire group again midway through the quarter, and the starting unit remained on the bench for the final 21 minutes of the contest. After the game, Boylen explained he didn't like the effort he was seeing on the court and wanted to see if the reserve group could "right the ship."

While new to the head-coaching seat, Boylen has been a part of the Bulls' coaching staff since 2015. That familiarity makes it easier for him to challenge and criticize his players. In Sunday's meetings, players sought a better understanding of Boylen's public comments disparaging their effort and conditioning.

"We understand what he says in the media, and you can take it good or bad," LaVine said. "But I think the main thing is how we're going to respond to it tomorrow."

Chicago, which has lost eight of its past nine games, hosts the Sacramento Kings on Monday night in what will be the third game of a four-game homestand for the Bulls.

 

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