Chicago Bulls head coach Jim Boylen has received plenty of flak for his methods coaching this young team, but he has been rather direct and transparent with his approach, his goals, and how he plans to achieve them.

The 53-year-old helmsman made one thing clear: while he has confronted players on this roster, he hasn't taken it to the extreme. Boylen noted the main difference is how unused these players are to hearing what they need to hear:

“If you run from confrontation, I don't think you're going to last very long in this business. Now, I have not been combative. I have not been degrading,” said Boylen, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. “We just have to address the things that we have to do better as a team. I go back to: You violate the essence of the team. We're going to have a tough conversation. These are really different conversations because maybe there's some newness to it. But also: People don't like to hear sometimes what they need to hear.”

Boylen then took a page out of Georgia football coach Kirby Smart's book, taking his saying to a practical level:

Article Continues Below
More Chicago Bulls News
Noa Essengue stands with NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the 12th pick by the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Buzelis
Bulls’ Noa Essengue draws Pascal Siakam comparisonZachary Howell ·
Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) defends Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) during the first quarter at United Center.
Bill Simmons piles on Bulls for Lakers tradePreston Byers ·
Chicago Bulls guard Coby White (0) reacts toward an official after an offensive foul as Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) holds him back at FedExForum. White received a technical foul.
Bulls GM teases offseason plans with list of players ‘all coming back’Scotty White ·
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) drives the ball against Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey (3) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena.
Bulls labeled ‘unserious franchise’ for Lakers draft tradeJulian Ojeda ·
Lakers head coach JJ Redick gestures to his team during a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter at Paycom Center
Lakers make 2nd-round draft trade with Bulls to jump 10 spotsScotty White ·
Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan reacts to a call during the fourth quarter of the game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center.
Marc Eversley’s ‘patience’ take after Noa Essengue NBA Draft pickScotty White ·

“Who's the coach at Georgia? Kirby Smart. I love his saying. We gotta keep making the main thing the main thing,” said Boylen. “I believe in that. Sometimes, we get sidetracked. But the main thing is the essence of the team. The main thing is building the team up and do whatever you can in your minutes to make the team better. When we don't make the main thing the main thing, that bothers me. And you're going to hear from me on it. That's just coaching. That's family. In your household, if you don't do what you're supposed to do, I hope you're going to hear about it.

And finally:

“I don’t know where we lost that coaching a guy with directness and honesty and clarity is old school. When did holding someone accountable to their dreams, to who they want to be, become old school? I don’t get that.”

Boylen is old school to the core, having developed under two legends of the sport in the legendary Jud Heathcote at Michigan State and Rudy Tomjanovich, longtime former coach of the Houston Rockets.

While the vetted assistant has lauded Gregg Popovich's way as a potential building block for this roster, he has a plethora of mentors who have propelled their teams to winning seasons by being upfront and honest with them, which is a strategy he plans to use with this young roster.