NBA Rumors: People Close To Tom Thibodeau ‘Convinced’ Bulls Will Fire Him

USA Today

The rumors continue to swirl around the NBA about the immediate future of Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau. Although Thibodeau has the Bulls in position to advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs, potentially facing the Cleveland Cavaliers, the longtime Bulls coach can’t shake the rumors of his potential firing at season’s end.

Thibodeau has had a rough few years in Chicago trying to keep his team on the right track despite the constant injury problems of his star players. Former NBA MVP Derrick Rose has gone down with knee injuries on a seemingly annual basis while Joakim Noah has also struggled to stay healthy as of late.

Despite all the injury issues in Chicago, Thibodeau has kept the Bulls competitive and is still highly regarded as one of the best head coaches in the league today. The Bulls may even be able to reach the NBA Finals this year, but the rumors continue to circulate about his seemingly imminent firing, according to Zach Lowe of Grantland.com:

People close to Thibodeau are convinced the Bulls will fire him after this season, though the front office has always played down the tiff in terse public statements.

With the Bulls brass potentially determined to make a change, Thibodeau may either be out of coaching for sometime or the leader on the sidelines for another franchise next season. Unfortunately for Chicago, it’ll be extremely difficult to find another coach equal to or better than Thibodeau if they’re truly set on firing the 57-year-old.

One intriguing option for Thibodeau if he’s let go by the Bulls is taking over for the recently fired Scott Brooks in Oklahoma City. The Thunder fired Brooks after the team failed to make the playoffs and appear to have their crosshairs on Florida’s Billy Donovan, but Thibodeau potentially becoming available would almost certainly shake things up.