Former Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau has reportedly been left ‘hurt’ after reading the organisation’s statement in which he was fired earlier this week.
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After months of speculation over his future, Thibodeau was finally dismissed by the Bulls after years of clashes with the front office and problems on the court.
Aside from having issues over coaching staff changes, player minutes and various other off-the-court situations, Chicago losing in the Eastern Conference semi-finals this year was also a difficult one to take for the organisation.
Given that the Cleveland Cavaliers were depleted by injuries, the Bulls’ failure to get beyond them was assessed as a huge failure for Thibodeau and the writing appeared to be on the wall as they missed out on their best chance yet to eliminate LeBron James in the post-season.
However, the pettiness and bitterness surrounding the split has also led to ill-feeling between the two parties even after their split with rumours of both sides causing issues for one another.
“Several confidants of Thibodeau have encouraged him to take next season off, collect his Bulls salary and survey potential jobs for the 2016-17 season,” the Chicago Tribune reported.
“According to three people who spoke to Thibodeau, Bulls Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf’s stinging statement on his firing hurt but otherwise he sounded buoyed and optimistic about his future.”
Thibodeau still has $9m owed to him by the Bulls through his contract, and so he shouldn’t be in too much of a rush to find a new job.
With the New Orleans Pelicans hiring Alvin Gentry, the list of possible positions is dwindling and so it could come down to Thibodeau waiting for an opportunity to arise next summer rather than rushing back in.
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