All Eyes Turn To Fred Hoiberg In Bulls' Coaching Search
By Cody Westerlund--
(CBS) The question was coming at some point, and Bulls general manager Gar Forman did his best to tip-toe around the elephant in the room.
So, after firing Tom Thibodeau on Thursday morning, how important is experience -- "perhaps NBA playing experience, NBA coaching experience" -- in your search for a new coach?
"I just don't think we're going to put ourselves in a box," Forman said. "I know that's kind of an easy thing to say, but we've got certain criteria, some of which I've already said, but we're not going to put ourselves in a box that it had to have been a head coach, an assistant, what level they've coached at."
If you're looking for indications that Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg is front and center on the Bulls' radar, it was all there Thursday afternoon at the United Center as Forman and executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson addressed the future after the firing of Thibodeau. Chicago's interest in Hoiberg been the worst-kept secret in NBA circles for some time now, with multiple reports pegging him as the front-runner for the job.
Hoiberg has deep ties to the Bulls, having played in Chicago for part of his 10-year NBA career and having a close relationship with Forman, who coached at Iowa State when Hoiberg was a senior there in 1994-'95. He's also considered an innovative offensive mind who's renowned for his interpersonal skills.
While he doesn't have NBA coaching experience, Hoiberg worked in the Timberwolves front office for four years and has led the Cyclones to a resurgence over the past five seasons on the sideline.
None of the answers from Paxson and Forman directly addressed Hoiberg, but all of them did make him sound like the ideal fit.
"We'll be looking for someone who's a leader, who has great communication skills, who's got an excellent knowledge of the game of basketball, someone that's an open and creative learner," Forman said.
"We're really looking for the right fit. I went through some of those things that I talked about, obviously someone that could lead, someone that can communicate at a high level, has a great knowledge of the game. Obviously experience is a plus, as far as coaching is concerned. If they've been a head coach, even more so. But we're not going to limit the search in any way."
Perhaps the most unintentional comedy came later, when Forman was asked if the Bulls might consider an internal candidate -- read: assistant Adrian Griffin -- as the next coach. Initially, Forman said no work had been done in the search, then he conceded to a degree.
"We haven't begun to meet or put a list together," Forman said. "We'll start doing that this evening and into the weekend. I say that so we haven't put together a formal list or made any contacts to this point. John and mine and our front office's job is to continually evaluate --evaluate players, evaluate personnel around the league, evaluate scouts, evaluate coaches.
"With all the years we've been in the NBA and been here, obviously we'll have some knowledge as far as different people around the league that will have interest, anyone around the country we want to talk to. So there's probably an informal list in our heads. But we haven't sat down yet and decided who exactly we'll talk to."
The Bulls brass indicated their search for a new coach would begin immediately. Assistant coach Andy Greer has been let go. Whether the rest of the staff stays or leaves will be up to the new coach.
"As far as the timeframe, it's when we find the right guy," Forman said. "Whether that's a day, a week, a month, two months, whatever it is, we're going to do our work and try to find the right fit for our players and this team."
Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for CBSChicago.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.
