Reinsdorf Speaks Out: this season "has been a disaster" and "embarrassing"

Speaking calmly and without rancor, Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro reacted to team Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf's classification that this season "has been a disaster" and "embarrassing" with an answer that belied his rookie coaching status.
"Managing expectations is the hardest thing in this business," Del Negro said. "They didn't win 60 games last year. They didn't have a rookie point guard. They didn't have the injuries we've had."
You can't compare years. You can't compare teams. You just have to go with what you have, build confidence in these young players, find roles for everybody—which you can't—and try to put your team in position to get some wins."
Reinsdorf made his comments during a Friday morning interview in Chicago on Comcast SportsNet's "Monsters in the Morning." Del Negro spoke following the Bulls' shootaround Friday afternoon at the Kings' practice facility.
The 19-27 Bulls face the Kings Friday night.Asked how he'd classify his working relationship with general manager John Paxson and Reinsdorf, Del Negro said: "Great. No problems. Very open. Very professional. Totally fine."Del Negro chalked Reinsdorf's strong comments up to competitiveness."That's just Jerry trying to motivate and get guys going," Del Negro said. "Jerry wants to win just like every owner and every coach. It's not easy. Managing expectations is very easy to talk about it but hard to do. And it takes time. Some people are more patient than others.
"Jerry is a great owner. He lets you go do your job. We'll talk once in awhile. We'll text once in awhile. He just wants to win like everybody. Frustration builds for him just like everybody else. You always want to do better. That's what we're trying to do. So I focus on what I can control and that's making this team better. And I feel we are."

Here's the full transcript of Reinsdorf's interview with Mike North and Dan Jiggetts on the TV show:Mike North: You have a coach that has a two-year deal. … Going into next year, if you do keep Vinny Del Negro, would he considered a lame duck coach?Jerry Reinsdorf: I think he's signed for three years.

Mike North: Is one an option year?
Jerry Reinsdorf: I don't think so. I don't remember. I don't think so.
Mike North: Where would you rate this season?
Jerry Reinsdorf: You want the grade up till today? What's the lowest grade you can give? This has been a disaster. It's embarrassing. But it will get better.
Mike North: With the same people?Jerry Reinsdorf: Well, we'll see. John Paxson is not going to let this situation continue.
Dan Jiggetts: How comfortable are you with John at the helm?
Jerry Reinsdorf: When you have a team that's not performing it's an organization failure. You win and you lose as an organization. But if there's one person that is not responsible for what's going on right now, it's John Paxson. I have tremendous confidence in John Paxson. He's really one of the best people that I know. He's a great general manager and a great judge of talent. I just worry that he not be too hard on himself. He takes all of this very, very seriously.
Mike North: To say that he's not at all responsible … he brought in the players. So are the players not being coached up?
Jerry Reinsdorf: I have a lot of thoughts about that but they're not thoughts that I really can say publicly. All I know is what we have right now is not good and we have to get it better. They are playing hard in the last half-dozen or so games. We had some games where…
Mike North: You knew they were mailing it in.
Jerry Reinsdorf: They were mailing it in and I felt like standing up and booing along with everybody else. They're not mailing it in anymore.
Jerry Reinsdorf: We have a great player in Derrick Rose. When I first got involved with the Bulls, we had one great player (Michael Jordan). When we won our first championship, he was the only player left from the original team. We will build around Derrick Rose. Every player that's added to this team will be a player who can feed off of him. … This is not going to take changing 11 players. We do have some pretty good players on this club. Obviously what we lack is an inside presence. That's the biggest thing we are missing and somehow we have to find it.

Top Five NBA All-Star Snubs

1. Chris Bosh - Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh was a notable absentee as the NBA revealed its list of starters for the 2009 All-Star Game in Phoenix. Bosh (1,101,052) finished fifth in voting for Eastern Conference forwards behind Paul Pierce (1,238,763), Yi Jianlian (1,813,829), Kevin Garnett (2,066,833) and LeBron James (2,940,823). The top vote getter in the East was Orlando's Dwight Howard, who eclipsed the three million mark (3,150,181).Bosh has played in all 44 games for the Raptors this season and sits seventh in league scoring with an average of 23.3 PPG.

2. Ray Allen - Boston CelticsThe Celtics most consistent player this season is clearly a victim of the Celtics own success. It seemed to come down to one spot between Allen and Magic swingman Rashard Lewis, and Lewis got the nod this time. Ray, who made the East team last year at the last minute when Caron Butler was injured and could not play, will certainly trade an All-Star nod for another ring any day of the week.

3. Al Jefferson - Minnesota TimberwolvesPeople often forget when the Celtics traded for Kevin Garnett, it was the young developing Jefferson who had to be part of the deal for Minnesota to pull the trigger on. Under Kevin Mchale’s direction, Jefferson has evolved into one of the top five power forwards in the league. If you don’t get a chance to watch Jefferson play, you are missing out. Unfortunately, this league is a popularity contest for the fans, so his chances of starting were slim. In the West, it came down to three players and two forward spots. You can argue that Jefferson, Pau Gasol, and David West are all interchangeable regarding their stats this year, with Gasol and West getting the nod due to the better teams they are on.

4. Kevin Durant - OKC ThunderAnother star player who did not get the nod simply because of his supporting cast. I had Durant on my starting five at small forward for the West, based on his play the first half of the season, and the injury of Carmelo Anthony(see number 5. on this list). Durant is the face of the Thunder franchise, averaging nearly 25 points a game this season, and being a leader both on the court and in the locker room. For a league that is all about marketing it’s stars, the young Durant would have done very well to be showcased on the biggest stage of them all aside the likes of Kobe, Shaq, and Duncan so he could showcase his talent.

5. Carmelo Anthony - Denver NuggetsBefore his injury, Carmelo was starting this game. Now, nearly two weeks before the game, he gets cleared to play, yet the coaches don’t even leave a reserve spot open for him. I am sure Melo will take it in stride, but there is no doubt Anthony is a All-Star this year, and for seasons to come.Players like Steve Nash, Paul Millsap, Mo Williams, Rajon Rondo, and Vince Carter are all having solid seasons, but the league is getting deeper with talent in their respective conferences and positions, and they simply don’t have as strong an argument as those who made it in front of them.

Derrick Rose Takes On Skills Challenge

On the day he learned he would play in the Rookie Challenge and that his jersey ranks as the ninth-highest seller in the league, Derrick Rose also confirmed he would participate in the skills challenge as part of NBA All-Star weekend."I've put a lot of thought into it and I'm going to do it," Rose said after the Bulls shootaround at a local health club. "This could be a once-in-a-lifetime thing."That thought is doubtful, but representative of the genuine humility of Rose, whose next appearance at All-Star weekend could be as part of the big-boys game.As it stands, Rose will join rookies including Miami's Michael Beasley, the Clippers' Eric Gordon, Memphis' O.J. Mayo and Portland's Greg Oden in the Feb. 13 game against second-year players headed by Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant.

I never thought I'd be playing in it because I thought I'd have a learning year," Rose said, laying the humility on thick. "You think about the [regular-season] games and the job you have, not All-Star activities. But for me to be in it, I can't wait.

"And we're going to try to win. I know a lot of players in my class are real competitive. For us to be around each other should be fun."Rose said he would gauge his fatigue level after the Feb. 14 skills challenge, then decide whether to stick around Phoenix to watch the Feb. 15 All-Star Game. Averaging 37.4 minutes per game, Rose knows how important rest is, as does coach Vinny Del Negro."Guys who are playing heavy minutes, you want to get them rest when you can and All-Star weekend is a good opportunity to do that," Del Negro said. "But the positives outweigh the negatives with that experience. This was a no-brainer."As for his No. 1 jersey ranking ninth behind such heavyweights as Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and LeBron James, Rose shook his head. He's the only rookie on the list, not bad territory for someone who claims never to have owned an NBA jersey growing up."It's just unbelievable," Rose said.

Who Will Be The Next Coach To Go?

Will It Be Curry or Paxson? Coaches of course, have always been convenient scapegoats for a team's failure to perform, especially as player salaries have skyrocketed. P.J. Carlesimo (Oklahoma City), Eddie Jordan (Washington), Reggie Theus (Sacramento) Sam Mitchell (Toronto), Randy Wittman (Minnesota) and Maurice Cheeks (Philadelphia) Marc Iavaroni (Memphis) all fired this year so far.

Based on how many times "Fire!" has been shouted in a league crowded with 30 teams, we could conclude that the NBA's belief in the importance of coaching soon may reach an all-time high. Unfortunately, such inferences are wrecked when we acknowledge that many of the sharpies handing out pink slips are the same rascals who create coaching predicaments through absurd personnel decisions. Recently Vinny and Curry have been under heavy fire by fans in demand of wins. But it is the GM that is responsible for hiring these guys.

Detroit Pistons: Michael Curry didn't directly deal Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson, but his inability to build a system around the talents of his current roster has allowed the Pistons' winning percentage to drop from .720 to .585.
Yeah, the small-ball lineup didn't work out too well, but how could it when the Pistons check in at 27th in tempo? If you can put Iverson, Rip Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey and Tayshaun Prince on the floor at the same time, don't walk the ball down the floor.
Oh, you're subscribing to that old-time Pistons doctrine of strict defenses, modest pace and offensive structure? Well, Curry's first team is a robust 23rd in offensive rating. It's not a good idea to be slow and inefficient; it's just boring.
Chicago Bulls: If first-year coach Vinny Del Negro had an idea of what type of team he was trying to turn the Bulls into, that tiny dip in winning percentage (.419 to .402) might be easier to embrace.
It seemingly took Vinny and his veteran assistants a while to notice they have no inside game and a penetrate-and-dish philosophy might be the way to go.
The Bulls used to employ a pretty good coach who probably would have seemed a lot wiser if GM John Paxson had drafted LaMarcus Aldridge and not traded Tyson Chandler for Ben Wallace.

Note To Pax and Dumars:

In case you hadn't noticed, NBA players have a tough time respecting anyone. So finding an ex-player for current players to rally around can be a waste of time if that ex-player can't put the current players in a better position to succeed.

Mavs And Pistons Discussing A Possible AI For Kidd Trade

GIVEN a 21-gun salute Friday at The Palace by the Mavericks, the franchise formerly known as the Pistons has gone from the Bad Boys to the Really Bad Boys.
"They are playing with no emotion," says a long-distance viewer. Allen Iverson "has killed the team's spirit with his style of play."
Don't be surprised if Pistons president Joe Dumars trades A.I. before the Feb. 19 deadline, the same team executive e-mailed. "But only if he can get back a similar expiring contract."
Like the Knicks and Nets, the Pistons are all about accumulating mega cap space for the two upcoming classes of free agents. Dallas also looking to shake things up after a failed experiment with Jason Kidd could be willing to swap for AI. Both contracts are equal and both expire next year. Kidd would fit better in Detroits system and would be a great mentor for Stuckey.
So hooked on economics is Dumars, an agent testifies, he was prepared to deal treasured Tayshaun Prince for Stephen Jackson (or maybe it was Ron Artest) whose contract was set to terminate after next season. When the Warriors committed to New Jack City for a three-year extension, Detroit's purported proposal came off the table.
"That's absolutely false! I'm not trading Prince, period," Dumars fumed.
Here's what's true about the 24-18 Pistons. "We're definitely going through a transition and change," Dumars allowed. "We knew we had to eventually make some hard choices to be able move forward. We knew we would have some tough nights. "But we like that we're set up to be good going forward."

Hughes Headed Back To The Wizards

Larry Hughes probably wants to be traded more than any other player in the league right now. He's a talented guy nearing 30-years-old that wants to make the most of his career as he hits the age most players in their prime. The Bulls want to go young, which means Hughes hasn't played a single minute in several games.

The Hughes-to-New-Jersey rumors have simmered down quite a bit lately, but recent reports suggests that Hughes's old team, the Washington Wizards, have probably more interest in the shooting guard than any other organization. The only problem is that they really don't have anything the Bulls want outside of Etan Thomas, who's currently injured and will be through the February 19th trade deadline.

Don't be surprised to see Hughes still on the Bulls' roster through the end of the season, and probably given the option to spend the last third of the games sitting at home to collect a check. He'll be a bigger asset next season when his $13 million salary becomes an expiring contract in the year that everyone's trying to create cap space for the star free agent class of 2010.

Could Paul Silas Be The Next Coach For The Pistons or Chicago Bulls

Former NBA coach Paul Silas said on Saturday that he'd like to coach at least one more time before he's done.
"I'd like to give it [one] more go before I'm done," Silas said. "I'd love to help a team get back to respectability or take them to the next level. I've done it in the past, and I know I can do it again." James credits Silas with helping him develop good habits. He also helped Anderson Varejao adjust to the NBA and made some changes to Carlos Boozer's shot that helped turn him into an impact scorer. He has other success stories on his résumé, and he has had a history of forming a deep bond with his players.
He and Dan Gilbert didn't hit it off, and the rest is well documented. However, Silas did leave with his reputation intact.
Seven coaches already have been fired this season and several more are sure to go by this spring, so there will be jobs open. Plus it seems the NBA, which always has been a trendy league, might head back to Silas' generation of coaches.
Over the past two seasons, first-time head coaches have been falling flat. Larry Krystkowiak made it just one full season with the Bucks as did Sam Vincent in Charlotte. Reggie Theus lasted less than two seasons in Sacramento and it was the same for Marc Iavaroni in Memphis. Two of this season's other rookies, Vinny Del Negro in Chicago and Michael Curry in Detroit, are struggling. Only the Heat's Erik Spoelstra seems to be having much success in his first go-around.
Meanwhile, veteran Larry Brown is turning the Bobcats around while Stan Van Gundy in Orlando, Don Nelson in Golden State and Rick Adelman in Houston have shown improvement by coming in with experience.
With so many established coaches on the sidelines - especially guys like Flip Saunders, Avery Johnson and Eddie Jordan - the league might look in that direction. Which is why Silas is excited about the future.
"I'm not sure some of the younger coaches are spending enough time getting to know and understand their players," Silas said. "If you can give your players confidence, they will perform. They are always better if they're 100 percent behind you."