Chicago Bulls Fire Head Coach Vinny Del Negro
The Chicago Bulls have sacked their head coach Vinny Del Negro. Before firing Del Negro, Bulls general manager Gar Forman held a meeting with him over his future with the team.
Earlier, Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf had talked to Del Negro over the same issue.
Del Negro was signed for three years and he has one year worth approximately $2 million remaining. Bulls players have expressed shock and surprise over the decision. "It's always a tough decision when someone gets fired. I learned a lot from him and I got two great playoff appearances with him. Coaching the Bulls is a tough job; there are a lot of demands and expectations. I wish him the best. He's a good guy. With the way he developed the players here I'm sure he won't have too hard of a time finding another coaching job," Bulls center Joakim Noah told ESPNChicago.com via text message.
Noah has performed well under Del Negro's guidance and he had last week that he would endorse Del Negro's return to the side. The names of coaches including candidates like Doug Collins, Maurice Cheeks, Eric Musselman, Phil Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy, Byron Scott, Sam Mitchell, Tom Thibodeau, Lawrence Frank, Dwane Casey, Avery Johnson and John Calipari, are ding the rounds as a possible replacement for Del Negro.
In December, ESPN had reported that the Bulls would fire Del Negro very soon. Del Negro did not enjoy a good relation with executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson and the two had a heated argument on March 30 over the playing time of Noah. Meanwhile, Del Negro's friends and acquaintances like Reggie Miller and Charles Barkley have criticised the manner of sacking.
