It took very little time for the Chicago Bulls to find a head coach. After firing coach Tom Thibodeau, the Bulls had his successor ready to sign on the dotted line. And make no mistake about it, Fred Hoiberg is the man for the job.
Hoiberg’s basketball resume is quite extensive. Not only was he a successful coach at the collegiate level, he was also a First-team All-Big East in 1995, an NBA veteran, and a former vice president of basketball operations for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The game of basketball is a part of Fred Hoiberg, so it makes perfect sense that the Chicago Bulls hire someone with such passion for the game. As a former player, Hoiberg understands what it’s like to be on an NBA court. Unlike current player/coaches Jason Kidd, Derek Fisher, and Steve Kerr, Hoiberg won’t have to learn the job on the fly, as he has already had four years of coaching experience at Iowa State, where he applied the same principles he learned as a player to his Cyclones teams.
One could argue that the college game is a far cry from the NBA, and many that have tried have failed. (John Calipari, Rick Pitino) However, Hoiberg is a former NBA veteran that is coaching a very formidable roster. He knows the in’s and out’s of the pro game, that’s something most college to pro coaches don’t have the luxury of knowing, or having, at the onset of their coaching tenure.
Of course, there will be the exceptions like Brad Stevens, who took a once lifeless Celtics team to the playoffs. And for as good as he has been over his two years there is still plenty to learn. But that’s where Hoiberg’s veteran instincts come into play.
Things that have taken Stevens years to master will take Hoiberg far less time to grasp. And make no mistake about it, the Bulls will still have a better roster than the Celtics come opening night. The window for Hoiberg is small, because many feel the hire is more to fuel Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf’s ego.
If that’s the case then Chicago fans will want to win, and win now. But Hoiberg is the man for the job, he is too good of a basketball mind not to be.