Enter Fred
Forman then hand-picked his Iowa State pal Fred Hoiberg to be Thibodeau’s replacement. When Gar and Hoiberg sat side by side at the new coach’s introductory press conference, here’s the first thing Gar said about Fred:
“In Fred, we feel strongly that we’ve got a guy with a skill package of a winning coach, a guy who is a natural leader and a great, great communicator.” – Gar Forman
A natural leader and a great, great communicator. Wow, two greats, Gar? Does Fred speak ten languages or something? Oh, that’s not what Forman was talking about. He was referring to that rare and desirable human skill of being able to communicate with other humans. You know, that thing that Thibs couldn’t do, thus explaining all of the Bulls’ collective failures? Yeah, that communication. All hail “The Mayor”, the savior of dialogue in Chicago!
That was nearly two years ago now.
Tongue-Tied
In those two years, have Bulls fans seen examples of that great, great communicator Forman so excitedly introduced to us?
Just a few months into the job, star player and self-anointed leader in the locker room Jimmy Butler told the media he thought Hoiberg needed to “coach a lot harder.” That sounds like a player who doesn’t believe his coach is communicating his instructions properly. Then came the benching of Joakim Noah. Fred told the media it was Joakim’s idea to come off the bench, but the proud veteran quickly negated that falsehood. Here was the real leader in the locker room and the head coach telling directly conflicting stories to the media.
Great, great communication.
Fast forward to this season, and we’re seeing more of the same.
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