Chicago Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg ran into many issues last season as a first-year coach.
Jimmy Butler took to the media to ask Hoiberg to coach the players harder because he wasn't a get-in-your-face type of coach.
This season will be different, and with the acquisition of veteran and champion Dwyane Wade, things are already changing.
Wade has been given the green light to stop practice to call out his teammates, and forward Taj Gibson confirms that Wade has gladly accepted.
The coaching staff really doesn’t need to say much because before you know it, every time I turn around D-Wade is stopping the play and he’s cursing guys out as well, And it’s great and our young guys are understanding to it. They’re still in here early; they’re staying late. And they understand what we need to do and that’s really good for us early.
Wade heard what Gibson said and didn't quite put it the same way, but he won't be backing down anytime soon either.
Yeah, that was so harsh, Taj. I read that. I wouldn’t say cussing out. I would say getting my point across — tough love. But good love. I would stop practice if I see something. We got to police each other. And I want people to do the same to me. There are certain times I’ve done things that I need to be better at, and you’ll hear Rondo say something to me or Jimmy say something to me.
And I want it to be like that with everybody. I don’t want it just be us three always talking. I want everyone to feel confident that they can maybe not yell at everybody but pull a guy aside and say, ‘Hey, D, you should’ve been there on this.’ We want to get everyone comfortable with that. I’ve been around a long time. If I see something that I think we can nip in the bud early, you want to nip it in the bud.
The Bulls players have committed to holding each other accountable and changing the culture of the team in the process.
Last season the team missed the playoffs, but veterans such as Wade and Rajon Rondo weren't there to show the young players how to be professionals in the NBA.
It won't be acceptable for the team to be hovering around .500 all season and that's a great thing for the fans in Chicago.
The Bulls are setting the tone early although they still have some questions to answer.
Will they commit defensively, can they manage despite not having enough shooters on the team, and how will they handle adversity this year?
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