The Cyclones don't play like a normal college team. When head coach Fred Hoiberg, a former NBA player who will very graciously answer questions about his alleged marijuana consumption, arrived on campus in 2010, he installed a pro-style system that quickly transformed Iowa State into a deadly offensive force. Hoiberg's Cyclones have finished in the top seven of Ken Pomeroy's adjusted offensive efficiency rankings each of the last three seasons, and Synergy Sports ranks this year's team as the 14th-most efficient in the country, producing .993 points per possession. That's a big deal for a small school that consistently gets out-recruited by the big boys, and has only had one second-team and one third-team All-American on the roster during Hoiberg's tenure. But it's not just that the Cyclones play a smart brand of basketball, it's that they play an excitingbrand of basketball. They run like hell in the open court, and their halfcourt sets brim with fast-paced action. They initiate offense early in the clock, run a ton screens, and swing the ball all over the floor. The Cyclones bend defenses to their will with the kinds of actions and sets that would be perfectly at home in an NBA game, creating lanes to drive to the basket and space for spot-up shooters to turn kick-out passes into points. Entire article here: http://deadspin.com/if-you-hate-college-basketball-root-for-iowa-state-1691679630
It may be innovative to use pro techniques on the college level, but there doesn't seem to be anything really innovative he has to add to the professional game.
As I've said before, Hoiberg has some impressive credentials if he should choose to coach in the NBA at some point in his future. If at some point in the future the Bulls engage in a search for a new head coach, I hope Hoiberg's on their radar.
I don't have a problem with Hoiberg as a head-coaching prospect. I'm sure he's a bright guy and knows the game. I have more of a problem with Thibs leaving because he has a 5-year track record that's as good as any coach in the league. And no matter how shiny he is as a coaching prospect, what happens when you get into the NBA is a crapshoot. Everything I've read about Tim Floyd is that he's an incredibly bright guy and decent human being. He didn't work out so well here. I'm not making an apples-to-apples comparison. I know the situations are different. My point is that the circumstances an NBA coach has to deal with can't be replicated elsewhere. I'll stick with the Devil We Have.
I agree with you 100%, with the caveat that Thibs still needs a lot of work in the area of "minutes management". All the regular season wins in the world don't mean a damned thing if you can't win in the playoffs because your team is worn out because they didn't get enough rest in the regular season. The Bulls lead the league in forcing player to play 13+ minutes without a break. The Bulls' 11th and 12th men have played ~1/2 as many minutes as the 11th and 12th men on 14 of the other 15 current playoff teams (TOR being the exception). Teams realize that the end of the bench guys might be called upon in the playoffs due to foul trouble or even is someone twists their ankle and has to sit for 20 minutes of game time. The problem is, so many Bulls fans think GarPax shouldn't address these concerns, but that's just a fallacy. Don't you think that any other GM the organization would bring in would have the same concerns? What if Thibs decided to just play his best 5 players 48 minutes a night, wouldn't that be a problem? What about 47 mintues? 46 minutes?
PTS/G: 100.8 (13th of 30) ▪ Opp PTS/G: 98.9 (11th of 30) Blowouts! Lots of playing time for the end of the bench guys.
Not Blowouts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Most people with 1/2 a brain shouldn't have any problem comprehending that it's not just BLOWOUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'll say it again: The Bulls' 11th and 12th men have played ~1/2 as many minutes as the 11th and 12th men on 14 of the other 15 current playoff teams (TOR being the exception). BLOWOUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! have nothing to do with it. GARBAGE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! has nothing to do with it. I'm sorry you can't accept the simple fact that organizations know it's important to make sure your entire roster is ready for the playoffs. Which means getting the end of your roster minutes throughout the season. As I posted a few days back, and I even added the number of blowouts (10+ point win or loss) for each team, specifically for the mentally challenged who refuse to believe basic facts. ================================================================== The "development minutes on a contending team thing" is just a complete fallacy. You can't say "the Bulls don't have development minutes to give" when all the other playoff teams routinely get the 11th thru 13th men on their rosters minutes. Moore has played 276 minutes, McDermott 211, and Nazr 72 (Bairstow only 58). The other playoff teams' 11th - 13th men: ATL - 464, 255, 167 (30 blowouts) TOR - 206, 205, 58 (34) CHI - 276, 211, 72 (29) CLE - 596, 417, 411 (29) WAS - 691, 393, 210 (28) MIL - 586, 417, 307 (28) MIA - 613, 592, 296 (36) BRK - 345, 324, 265 (30) GSW - 392, 281, 182 (44) MEM - 605, 540, 452 (30) HOU - 424, 393, 369 (38) POR - 473, 422, 391 (32) LAC - 393, 263, 103 (35) DAL - 505, 463, 348 (34) SAS - 653, 504, 339 (29) OKC - 578, 563, 450 (31) =========================================================== I look forward to seeing where the goalposts move to this time.
I'm happy you're so concerned about a handful of minutes for the 11th and 12th players on the team, but I really think you are whining about nothing important as usual.
This has pretty much been, IMO, the lone interesting thing to think about that you have addressed since posting here more. When asked to supply a source weeks ago, you could not / did not. I'm leaning toward could not, since hours after KC Johnson posted his article stating that the Bulls lead the league in this you posted it, so you were certainly willing to post a source once you had one. But that's neither here nor there. Now its on to the remaining questions about this metric. Does it matter? And, if so, how much? Is this something that impacts players in the short run / long run? Do you have any research or data to present that it really makes much of a difference? Or is this just an empty management talking point being floated to the media? Also, assuming KC is correct and the Bulls under Thibs do lead the league in this, by how much? Are there 6 teams all basically grouped at the top or are the Bulls the far and away leaders? How many seasons has this happened for? Do you happen to have that data? We've already shown that from a MPG perspective the current Bulls are far from abnormal. If we're really looking to hammer one of the finest assets the organization has over quibbles like minutes allocated to the 11th and 12th man and leading the league in 13+ minutes, well, I guess that's why "camp thidiot" is a table for one.
Well, looks like the Mayor can start the interview process early. What happens in the NCAA doesn't really matter if you follow NBA ball that much, but its kind of funny to see the Mayor's team lose in the first round, given that people are talking about replacing Thibs with him. The spin from the Bulls org and their shills should be interesting in the next few days. LOL.
[/QUOTE] Or, if Thibs doesn't want to coach the way his bosses want him to coach, he can just quit. But Thibs is no dummy, I'm sure he knows that any team he goes to is going to expect the coach to honor minutes restrictions for players coming off surgery/injuries. And he probably realizes that his new front office won't be happy if one of their players is named Rookie Of The Month and Thibs "rewards" the player with 17 and 14 minutes per game the next 2 months. I'll be very interested to see how Thibs fares when his team doesn't have: An All-Star and an All-NBA Defensive Player Of The Year at PF/C An All-Star All-Defense guy and a 26-year-old former MVP at PG/SG A USA Select Team lottery pick at SF A back-up big man who is about to be named Rookie Of The Month for the 2nd time this season It seems pretty safe to say that Thibs won't find a team looking for a coach this summer with anywhere near as much talent as the Bulls. Of course, first things first - there's still a chance that Thibs won't play Gibson 28 minutes and Niko 19 minutes in the playoffs, like he has so far this season. And we can always hope that once Rose is healthy Hinrich will never see the floor, though I'm not confident in either of those outcomes, unfortunately.
All the accolades you mentioned though happened under Thibs. He gets the most out of his guys. Noone thought Noah would be a All-NBA 1st teamer. Thibs got the most out of him. Noone thought Jimmy Butler would be an all-star. Thibs got the most out of him. Even this year, Niko is blossoming under his care. You are nice enough to compile a report every game about how well he's doing under Thibs. Noah, Gasol, Niko and Gibson are all at the least very good NBA basketball players and when healthy and playing well, all brings strengths and weaknesses to the table. One of the best coaches in basketball is a "thidiot" and the guy who finished second in the 6MOY award last season should only be getting, what, 5-10 minutes a game? The solution to every single problem or matchup that arises on a basketball court isn't going to be a rookie stretch 4, despite his inarguably great numbers during a 4-6 regular season stretch. So far, if you give Thibs competent NBA talent, he gets the most out of them, and oftentimes gets more out of them than anyone thought possible. You give that kind of coach a raise, not call him a "thidiot." Poor Mayor BTW. That was a brutal loss.
Funny how you point to the guys Thibs turned into stars and then rage about him with your other face.
