Tom Thibodeau Angered By Bulls' Defensive Issues
By Cody Westerlund-
CHICAGO (CBS) – The flash point for Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau's anger came Monday night shortly after the offensively challenged Orlando Magic scored more points in regulation and shot better than any other Chicago foe this season, but the truth is that the rage had been bubbling for some time.
Having made his name in the league as a detailed-oriented defensive savant, Thibodeau's long been bothered by the carefree attitude the Bulls (26-13) have exerted at times. After an embarrassing 121-114 loss to the lowly Magic (14-27) and their third-worst scoring offense, he couldn't hide it in any form.
He ripped into his team as hard as he has all season.
"If we're going to come in and just try to outscore people, we're not going anywhere," Thibodeau said. "I know that doesn't work. So we're going to have to bring a lot more intensity. The only way you bring more intensity is you work a lot harder. It's really that simple.
"You can't talk about it. You have to do it. You actually have to put the work into it. That's what we have to get back to."
Thibodeau was just getting started after the Bulls lost their eighth game of the season to a team that currently has a .500 record or worse. His defense is allowing 99.1 points per game, which ranked 14th before Monday night's games ended. The Bulls ranked 11th in defensive efficiency (points per possession) entering Monday.
"There's no shortcuts in this," Thibodeau said. "It's a tough league. If you want to do something special, there's a serious price to pay, and there's no getting around the work. It's really that simple."
In Thibodeau's eyes, the crux of the issue is practice, where he believes his team's problems start. Chicago's dealt with an abundance of injuries this season that have prevented its full unit(s) from working outside of game time. Further complicating matters is that some players have reportedly been limited in practice for preventative health measures.
Here and there, veterans have also been granted a maintenance day. It doesn't sound like any of those are coming soon, though.
"The thing is, we can't go on feelings," Thibodeau said. "To me, it's like, we got to put the work into it."
While Thibodeau ranted, Bulls big man Pau Gasol admitted he's "upset." And it was Gasol who at halftime had a message for his teammates.
"If we want to do something special, we can't be losing games like this," Taj Gibson said Gasol told the Bulls.
Most of the Bulls' defensive peripheral numbers remain solid. They entered Monday with the fourth-best opponents' field-goal percentage in the NBA, according to basketball-reference.com They'd allowed the fewest 3-point attempts, a focus of Thibodeau's. They're 10th in free-throw attempts allowed.
Their defensive rebounding has lagged, with the 22nd-best defensive rebounding percentage.
All that suggests Thibodeau's the-work-isn't-there take has a lot of merit to it. For these Bulls, it's often about effort – the multiple efforts on a possession, as Thibodeau would say – and concentration, be it in games or in practice.
Too often, they're been on cruise control. Gibson traced some of that back to Chicago relaxing with an improved offense that's led to more confidence, but everyone knows it has to change.
"We just have to have the right mindset," Gibson said. "We got to change our whole mind frame around and get hungry.
"We just got to have that dog mentality again."
And it starts now, Thibodeau emphasized.
"There's an excuse every night," Thibodeau said. "You can't do that. We have to make good. That's what we have to do. We have to make good. Either you're in or you're out. Either you're in the circle or you're out of the circle. You want to be in, let's go. You don't want to be in, that's fine too. Let's go."
Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for CBSChicago.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.