This morning, reports surfaced that the Chicago Bulls have decided to part ways with Vinny Del Negro. Eventually.
How Bad Can It Get? The Saga Of Vinny Del Negro And The Chicago Bulls
Well, duh. In case you haven't been paying attention for the past 18 months, Vinny Del Negro is on thin, thin ice in Chicago. Not only has the team regressed since last season's surprising bunch pushed the Celtics to a thrilling seven game series, but even then, Vinny was looked upon as the weak link in Chicago. His departure's not a matter of if, but when.
The report from ESPN’s Chris Broussard merely confirms what we’ve known all along:
The decision to fire head coach Vinny Del Negro has already been made, according to sources with knowledge of the Chicago Bulls' thinking. The fact that the Bulls' front office has not been able to settle on a replacement is the main thing keeping the embattled Del Negro employed, the sources said.
The Bulls would prefer not to promote an assistant coach, either Bernie Bickerstaff or Pete Myers, to interim status, but if they can't settle on a permanent replacement for Del Negro, they may have to go that route.
A strong run by the Bulls, who beat New Orleans Saturday night after the return of Tyrus Thomas from a broken arm, could delay Del Negro's eventual firing, but there is practically no chance he would coach the team beyond this season.
Of course there’s no chance he’ll coach beyond this year. Do you know how insanely apathetic management would be if they were to keep Del Negro for a third season? Insanely apathetic, or just plain insane.
He’s been woefully overmatched from day one, and rather than improving, he might just be getting worse. The Bulls blew a 35-point lead last week. SB Nation’s Bulls blog’s tagline? “Blog-a-Bull: We’ve Contracted V.D.N.” The drama isn’t whether the Bulls management will fire Vinny Del Negro, but how bad they’ll let things get before they do something.
The Bulls are one of the most profitable franchises in sports, in part because their owner Jerry Reinsdorf runs them like a business. They are the third most valuable NBA team behind the Lakers and Knicks, but where the New York and Los Angeles consistently spend big money to win (or lose in diastrous fashion, in the Knicks' case), Chicago is much more tightfisted with its funds. But despite their ownership's thrift, year in and year out, the Bulls are among the league leaders in attendance. Because there's always hope.
It’s a pretty amazing business model, when you think about it. Every few years since Michael Jordan retired, the Bulls have been re-building with top young talent. Young talent playing on rookie-scaled contracts, I might add. Draft young prospects, assure fans that “you’re building a championship core!” and then make tons of money with sellout crowds, all while minimizing payroll.
It's a cycle. Joakim Noah, Tyrus Thomas, and Derrick Rose used to be Tyson Chandler, Marcus Fizer, and Jamal Crawford. And when one of their lottery picks doesn't pan out, like with Fizer and Crawford, they can merely throw up their hands and say, "back to the drawing board!" When they do pan out, as with Tyson Chandler or Ben Gordon, they usually go elsewhere (Luol Deng and Kirk Hinrich being the exceptions).
But two things have thrown a wrench in Chicago’s plans: Derrick Rose and Vinny Del Negro. Because Rose is so much better than any of the prospects mentioned above, people are paying more attention to the Bulls. And with the added attention, more people are realizing just how incompetent Del Negro is as an NBA basketball coach. It’s pretty galling, when you look up close. Bad timeouts, incomprehensible substitution patterns, and authority that literally deteriorates more and more with each passing game. And much to the Chicago ownership’s chagrin, everyone’s watching. We can all see just how ridiculous Vinny Del Negro looks pacing an NBA sideline.
The Chicago Bulls keeping Del Negro is like a big game of chicken between the ownership, the players, and the fans--who blinks first? Will Derrick Rose have another apple-slicing accident, and “accidentally” slit his wrists in the locker room. Will some rogue fan storm the court attacking Del Negro? Somewhere along the line, we’ll have to reach a breaking point. You would think that giving up a 35 point lead would be just that, but then, there have been too many moments to count where you thought, “Okay, now the Bulls MUST fire him.”
The Bulls have a proud history and really, really awesome fans. They deserve better than this. But for the first time in the post-Jordan decade, there’s truly no hope. Not with Del Negro at the helm. And if the Bulls allow him to coach the duration of the season, it’s a disservice to their fans, to players like Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah, and to any sane person that’s ever watched them play.
How long will the Bulls’ management let this happen?
See More:
