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Bulls fire Fred Hoiberg, promote Jim Boylen to head coach
CHICAGO -- The Bulls fired head coach Fred Hoiberg Monday after a 5-19 start to the season, but president of basketball operations John Paxson said the move is less about the record and more about an "energy and a spirit" that the team is lacking.
Associate head coach Jim Boylen has been promoted to head coach to remedy the problem.
Hoiberg was named the head coach in Chicago on June 2, 2015, after spending five seasons as head coach at Iowa State where the former Cyclones player was nicknamed "The Mayor." During his time with the Bulls, he coached the team to a record of 115-155. His 155 losses are the fifth most by a coach in Bulls franchise history.
The Bulls have lost six consecutive games and 10 of their past 11. Chicago's 5-19 start is tied for fifth worst in team history, trailing only Hoiberg's team from last season and three of the teams after the breakup of the Michael Jordan-led Bulls: 1999-00, 2000-01 and 2001-02.
Hoiberg played for the Bulls for four seasons and was recruited by Forman to replace Tom Thibodeau, who was fired after five seasons. Hoiberg had been115-56 at Iowa State, including four straight NCAA tournament appearances and back-to-back Big 12 tournament titles.
The hope was that the freewheeling style Hoiberg used with the Cyclones would work in the NBA and that he would fare better than another former Iowa State coach, Tim Floyd, who went 49-190 in three-plus seasons with the Bulls.
Boylen is a veteran, but this will be his first time as an NBA head coach. He did spend four years as the head coach at the University of Utah. Over 20 years in the NBA, he has been an assistant in Houston, Golden State, Milwaukee, Indiana and San Antonio
Boylen is signed through the 2019-20 season, paying him just under $1 million annually, league sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. It was not immediately clear if the Bulls will ask him to coach under that deal or whether he will negotiate a longer-term extension. Boylen declined to address whether or not he would push for a new deal, but Paxson made it clear Boylen will be in the Bulls' long-term plans.
Associate head coach Jim Boylen has been promoted to head coach to remedy the problem.
Hoiberg was named the head coach in Chicago on June 2, 2015, after spending five seasons as head coach at Iowa State where the former Cyclones player was nicknamed "The Mayor." During his time with the Bulls, he coached the team to a record of 115-155. His 155 losses are the fifth most by a coach in Bulls franchise history.
The Bulls have lost six consecutive games and 10 of their past 11. Chicago's 5-19 start is tied for fifth worst in team history, trailing only Hoiberg's team from last season and three of the teams after the breakup of the Michael Jordan-led Bulls: 1999-00, 2000-01 and 2001-02.
Hoiberg played for the Bulls for four seasons and was recruited by Forman to replace Tom Thibodeau, who was fired after five seasons. Hoiberg had been115-56 at Iowa State, including four straight NCAA tournament appearances and back-to-back Big 12 tournament titles.
The hope was that the freewheeling style Hoiberg used with the Cyclones would work in the NBA and that he would fare better than another former Iowa State coach, Tim Floyd, who went 49-190 in three-plus seasons with the Bulls.
Boylen is a veteran, but this will be his first time as an NBA head coach. He did spend four years as the head coach at the University of Utah. Over 20 years in the NBA, he has been an assistant in Houston, Golden State, Milwaukee, Indiana and San Antonio
Boylen is signed through the 2019-20 season, paying him just under $1 million annually, league sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. It was not immediately clear if the Bulls will ask him to coach under that deal or whether he will negotiate a longer-term extension. Boylen declined to address whether or not he would push for a new deal, but Paxson made it clear Boylen will be in the Bulls' long-term plans.