Boylan: I run the team/Thought about sending Noah Home

[TB#1]

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=115392&src=150

MIAMI -- Asked before Wednesday night's game how he's enjoying the experience of being a head coach, Jim Boylan made a statement about his authority over the Bulls.

"All the decisions that were made in the last week or so were made by me," Boylan said. "Not by anybody else. Not by Ben Wallace or Adrian Griffin or anyone else like that. They were made by Jim Boylan.

"I'm the head coach of the Chicago Bulls and I run the team. I discipline these guys. They respect me. I try to respect them. This is my team right now and I'm the coach, and I think people need to know that."

Boylan's comment seemed to be in response to criticism that he caved in to his players when they voted to increase Joakim Noah's original one-game punishment to two games last weekend.

"It was ultimately my decision to do that," Boylan said. "I had the veto power on that. I could say yea or nay on that, and I thought about it for quite awhile. I decided that it was the best move for our team, so that's why I did it."

Plane trip averted: Chris Duhon gave some additional insight into Joakim Noah's rant against assistant coach Ron Adams last week and Jim Boylan's reaction to it.

"As soon as it happened, Jim wanted him gone for the whole trip," Duhon said Wednesday during an appearance on WMVP 1000-AM. "When it happened, Jim was really upset and just wanted him to get on a plane then and there and go back to Chicago."

Boylan eventually settled on a one-game suspension, which was increased to two games by recommendation of the players.

[ikeziskash]

This freakin loser is taking the path of least resistance.

This is like the teacher who just throws a kid out of his class because he has no clue how to handle him and just teaches the subject without giving a damn if the students get it or not.

His students are the team. Their only use is to get him a future job, NOT to make this team or franchise better.

[Wingy]

The fact he's making these statements gives me the feeling the opposite is true.

[TB#1]

He referred to himself in the third person. I dig that about him.

[lxAsTrOxl]

This pathetic excuse for a coach just sounds like a complete douche bag.

It's real encouraging how he just says hes TRYING to respect the players ... but the players respect him without a doubt according to that douche bag.

"They respect me. I try to respect them."

[ikeziskash]

Wingy,
What do you mean the opposite is true? What do you think Boylan IS doing?

[TB#1]

Wow. This article has unleashed a whole lot more hating than I anticipated.

[DuckIII]

Wow. This article has unleashed a whole lot more hating than I anticipated.

Aren't you just outraged that Boylan is accurately re-confirming what was actually reported all along - that he was the ultimate decision maker?

Boylan carefully weighs and adopts a recommendation made by the players on his team with regard to punishing a rookie who called an assistant coach a **** repeatedly during practice!!!! Its a "public relations nightmare" for everyone but the player who angrily called the coach a ****!!!!! The inmates are running the asylum!!!!!!!!! Fire John Paxson!!!!!!!!!

(The fan and media reaction to this whole story has been an absolute embarrassment from minute one.)

[Rerisen]

Boylan doth protest too much that he is 'da man'.

[ikeziskash]

I stick by my points. This team will NOT win anything short term and having a coach who's goal is to win short term is counter productive.

[DuckIII]

Boylan doth protest too much that he is 'da man'.

Based on the insanity that followed in the Chicago media market and fan base in response to a non-issue story (other than the real issue which was that, oh, by the way, Noah angrily called his coach a **** during practice), can you really blame him for wanting to be emphatic?

[Wingy]

Wingy,
What do you mean the opposite is true? What do you think Boylan IS doing?

As in, he doesn't command the respect of the team that a normal head coach would. Though we're young, we are somewhat of a veteran club and with Boylan's interim status, he doesn't have the same authority most coaches have.

[DuckIII]

I stick by my points. This team will NOT win anything short term and having a coach who's goal is to win short term is counter productive.

And what does that have to do with this particular story?

[ikeziskash]

and I am not all that upset about the Noah thing. It's the fact that the players DID make the call on that and Boylan is changing his story now. The guy is kowtowing to the "vets" in minutes and in management of the team. None of this is good.

[JackFinn]

Man, we always have the gayest controversies.

[ikeziskash]

Duck,
If the guy says he wanted Noah sent home and he didn't get sent home this is just ANOTHER example of him not controlling the team.

Did he want a one game suspension as originally happened? Did he "want" the two game suspension? O wait, the players ..... I mean Boylan, ya Boylan did that...the players had nothing to do with it. Now we see that he wanted Noah suspended longer.

This guy is not in control and what he is controlling (minutes) he's not doing very well. Even in a win last night he has Deng and Wallace playing WAY too many minutes. The guy is in over his head. He is not an NBA level coach.

[Rerisen]

To overreactions. People are looking for reasons and explanations to explain this team's terrible performance this year, including under Boylan. To that extent the idea that there might be trouble behind closed doors is certainly not surprising. We will probably never know what truly went down between Noah and Wallace, if anything, but just because Boylan and the team (obviously) plays it down as nothing, doesn't necessarily mean everything has been hunky-dory between the team this year.

Maybe it has though, but then there are other reasons. When a team so pitifully underperforms as the Bulls have this year, its more than just they 'haven't been shooting well'. That works for a few games or even a road trip, but not half a season.

[DuckIII]

Duck,
If the guy says he wanted Noah sent home and he didn't get sent home this is just ANOTHER example of him not controlling the team.

No it isn't. Its an example of a guy who was understandably initially outraged when a rookie called his assistant coach a ****, but allowed cooler thoughts to prevail following the heat of the moment.

Nowhere does it say that anyone told Boylan he couldn't send Noah home.

Did he want a one game suspension as originally happened? Did he "want" the two game suspension? O wait, the players ..... I mean Boylan, ya Boylan did that...the players had nothing to do with it. Now we see that he wanted Noah suspended longer.

No, we don't see that. We see that he was super pissed, calmed down, and issued a one game suspension. We see that the players on the team, who were also super pissed, recommended that Boylan extend the suspension one more game. Boylan considered it, discussed it with John Paxson, and then made the decision to approve the recommendation within the discretion of his power as head coach.

This guy is not in control and what he is controlling (minutes) he's not doing very well.

You can say he isn't in control. But you can't use an example of him actually exercising his authority as factual support for that statement.

And while I agree that his minute distribution has been flawed, that has nothing to do with this particular story.

Even in a win last night he has Deng and Wallace playing WAY too many minutes. The guy is in over his head. He is not an NBA level coach.

Again, separate issues. And for what its worth, I don't agree about Deng's minutes. Normally, I would. But Deng is getting back in the flow after missing 3 games. I didn't have a problem with Boylan putting him back out there.

P.S. - Gordon played more minutes than Wallace or Deng. Why no mention of that?

[DuckIII]

and I am not all that upset about the Noah thing. It's the fact that the players DID make the call on that and Boylan is changing his story now.

That isn't accurate. Every single story reporting what actually happened states that: (a) Noah screamed at Coach Adams; (b) Boylan suspended him for 1 game; (c) The players voted that the suspension should be extended 1 game; (d) recommended it to Boylan; (e) Boylan and Paxson discussed it and thought it was a good idea; and (f) Boylan approved the recommendation.

That is the story and it always has been.

[ikeziskash]

Duck,
It just fits a larger pattern to me. The guy is not a good coach. I don't think changing his mind multiple times on Noah's discipline is a matter of "cooling off." It's a matter of not knowing what he's doing.

He's running this team, as I said before, via the path of least resistance.

"How will the players react if I do this?" "Which min distribution will cause the most mild reaction from players?" etc.

I just hate seeing this season going down the tubes as one in which we have a coach too worried about offending the wrong people and thus wasting a time to gain experience for young guys and cripple the organization and this is just (to me) resonates to me as reinforcing the wishy washy pussyfooting coach that I peg Boylan as being.