There are two major criticisms of Tom Thibodeau, who is expected to leave the Chicago Bulls now that the team has been eliminated from the playoffs. The first and most serious is that he runs his players to death. Not literal death (yet), but figurative death. His stars play heavy, heavy minutes, even in blowouts, all season long. Many consider that one reason Chicago has been disappointing in the postseason under Thibodeau.
This is the perfect ending for the Kirk Hinrich era
Hinrich was completely unproductive for 20 minutes of an elimination game. Yep.
Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
The second major criticism is just two simple words: Kirk Hinrich. Thibodeau, like Vinny Del Negro before him, relies on Hinrich for major minutes despite the fact that Hinrich is one of the least productive players in the NBA. He's a crutch, in a way.
Instead of promoting younger prospects or trusting new additions, Thibodeau always goes back to Hinrich. The front office enables it by keeping Hinrich around. But they aren’t forcing Thibodeau to play Hinrich so much. He has options.
Bulls go fishing
If the Game 6 blowout is Thibodeau’s last with the Bulls, it may also be the end of the Kirk Hinrich era in Chicago. And what a fitting end it would be. Hinrich played 20 minutes in Game 6 -- more than any other Chicago reserve, and about twice as much as all other guard reserves combined.
In those 20 minutes, Hinrich logged one shot (a missed three), one block, one personal foul and absolutely nothing else. The Bulls were -29 in Hinrich's 20 minutes and +8 in the 28 minutes he was on the bench. And this was against a team that lost Kyrie Irving in the second quarter. This was largely against Matthew Dellavedova.
Kirk Hinrich produced essentially nothing for 20 minutes and got scorched by Matthew Dellavedova in an elimination game. He might be back next year, too, as he holds for a $3 million player option. Hollywood couldn’t write it any better.
