Vinny Del Negro to Coach Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls have been waiting to hire the right coach since April 17 when they dismissed interim coach Jim Boylan. Their fans (and by fans, I mean me) have been waiting all season for someone anyone capable of leading a group of young players.

According to Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald, the Bulls have finally found their man in Vinny Del Negro. Um, what?

Del Negro was a late arrival to the search process and has no formal coaching experience. He spent last season as an assistant to Phoenix Suns general manager Steve Kerr. Prior to that, he was a broadcaster for the Suns and San Antonio Spurs.

Though never officially an NBA coach, Del Negro has a history of working directly with players and will be expected to hire experienced assistants to fill his staff. He impressed Bulls general manager John Paxson during a two-day visit to Deerfield last week.

I think we can agree that the Bulls are team that lacks experience and need leadership. They are the youngest team in the league, and with the first pick, they are set to get younger. For some reason, hiring someone who has never coached on the NBA level seems illogical to me. That being said, my worries have been put on ease a bit; a Suns announcer was on the Chicago radio today and said two experienced coaches were interested in joining Del Negro's staff if he were to be hired.

Del Negro's coaching experience aside, he does come from Phoenix. His familiarity with an up-tempo offense would be great in Chicago because--wait for it, wait for it-- they lack a go to post scorer. At least that is what I am told. Really, it would just be nice to have athletes like Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah, who are might no be great in a half-court set, get easy baskets by outrunning the opposing bigs.

So, Vinny Del Negro (whose last name is just hilarious when you start learning Spanish) will be the Bulls coach. Things could be worse.