President Barack Obama is bummed that the Bulls fired Tom Thibodeau
Noted Chicago Bulls fan and governing enthusiast President Barack Obama took a break from a Thursday afternoon Twitter chat about climate change to offer his opinion on the Bulls’ decision to fire head coach Tom Thibodeau after five successful but acrimony-filled years.
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Back in 2010, when the Bulls snagged Thibodeau from the Boston Celtics, where he’d helped helm a defensive renaissance that resulted in two NBA Finals trips in three years and one championship, Obama praised the move:
“When the job was open again, I talked to [U.S. Secretary of Education and 2014 All-Star Celebrity Game MVP Arne] Duncan several times on the subject, and he still strongly recommended Thibodeau,” [Bulls chairman Jerry] Reinsdorf recalled. ‘‘So we hired him. Then in July 2010, the White Sox were playing in Washington, and we invited President Obama to come to the game.
‘‘First, David Axelrod [then Obama’s senior adviser] arrived and said, ‘Thanks for hiring Thibodeau.’ Then a little while later, President Obama came in and the first thing he said to me was, ‘Great hire.'”
As you might expect, then, the president — who cheered his Bulls on and talked some trash at Verizon Center shortly after his inauguration in 2009, has played pickup hoops with multiple generations of Bulls stars and even got a 50th birthday present (on which his name was misspelled, but whatever) from Michael Jordan — wasn’t so happy to learn Thibodeau had been shown the door:
Thibodeau is expected to draw interest from the New Orleans Pelicans, who have recently interviewed Van Gundy and met with Warriors assistant Alvin Gentry about their vacancy, and from the Orlando Magic, although former Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks coach Scott Skiles is reportedly the front-runner for that position.
Obama also decided to spare a moment to offer a brief take on the now-set NBA Finals matchup between the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers and Western Conference-winning Golden State Warriors:
A decidedly reasonable take from a man who’s been known to scream at teammates who take bad shots — “They’re not bad, Mr. President, they’re just more fun” — and who’s not shy about letting you know when he’s got his jumper working.
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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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