Chicago Bulls fans were stunned when they heard that previous coach Tom Thibodeau had been fired. They had a feeling he was coming because of the tension built up between the front office and the coach, but they were still sad to see him go after doing so much for the team as head coach. He was respected by all his players and fans. He had turned the organization around and made them world championship contenders thanks to his defensive training. The Bulls had the best record they’ve had since the Michael Jordan era. He made players like Joakim Noah an All Star, Defensive Player of the Year and MVP candidate. It still wasn’t enough for the front office who wanted more of him. In his 5-year tenure as head coach, the organization and the fans had something to believe in again, which was on hiatus since Michael Jordan retired as the Bull and Phil Jackson left as head coach. After Thibodeau was fired, the Bulls front office hired Fred Hoiberg, who was a former Iowa State head basketball coach. He had a completely opposite approach to the game, which was offensive instead of Thibodeau, who was defensive. It was an interesting change that the organization had made and it got fans excited to see more offense in games, which made the game more fun to watch. There was every doubt that he would live up to Tom’s expectations, but there was nothing anyone could look forward to until the season started. As the regular season began, players and fans alike were enjoying the new change of pace.

Players talked about how they enjoyed it as it gave them more freedom to shoot the ball when they had a clear vision instead of making plays that Tom would normally make. It started off well, then the Bulls hit a wall where they were losing games due to their lack of defense. Games where they were up by double digits at halftime turned on them and they would lose the second half, costing them the game. After some talk between team leader Jimmy Butler and the head coach, the momentum shifted. They went on a six-game winning streak and then hit a wall again by losing to teams under .500 but somehow beating teams over .500. Concerns definitely began to question whether Hoiberg was the coach to keep making the team elite championship contenders or just an average team. There has to be something done in practice to get the team back on track to get to the finals, otherwise the Bulls won’t go far in the playoffs when the time comes. They’re on a roller coaster of ups and downs right now and will have to see how things pan out during the last three months of the regular season. If the coach can continue to use his offensive training along with defensive pressure, there’s no reason the Chicago Bulls can’t once again become an elite championship contender.