As NBA teams look to improve their team during the off-season, front offices around the league decide the part ways with players and coaches. The Chicago Bulls took their first step towards changing their team’s identity by firing their head coach, Tom Thibodeau on Thursday.
— Have you seen the ‘Bleed Purple and Gold’ phone case? —
The team released a press release as reported by Bleacher Report’s Sean Highkin to an announce the decision:
Here’s the press release pic.twitter.com/fhTJRH2o3s
— Sean Highkin (@highkin) May 28, 2015
Thibodeau’s dismissal comes as no surprise. Despite leading the Bulls to multiple playoff appearances, his teams never made it out of the second round. In addition, his clashes with management have been well reported on in the past.
There are a number of teams who will consider Thibodeau as their next head coach. Currently, the Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans, and Orlando Magic also have coaching vacancies. The Los Angeles Lakers were also rumored to be interested. However, general manager Mitch Kupchak quickly denied them and stood up for current head coach Byron Scott.
Scott will be entering his second season with the team and will seemingly have much more to work with for the upcoming year. In addition to the returns of Kobe Bryant and Julius Randle, the Lakers were awarded the second overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft to give them a total of three selections. The team also owns the 27th and 34th picks.
In preparation for the draft, the Lakers are currently in the process of inviting prospects for workouts. Supposedly up to 60 different players will come through and perform in front of the Lakers scouting staff. Free agency is also an option for the Lakers given their ample cap room available. The Lakers have many holes to fix but will have more than enough tools to improve on last season’s disastrous season.
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