The Reinsdorfs obviously do forgive and forget.
At least in the case of former Bull Luol Deng.
The organization announced on Thursday that they had signed Deng, allowing him to retire with the Bulls after 15 NBA seasons.
“We’re very fortunate and humbled that Luol has chosen to retire as a Chicago Bull,’’ team president and chief operating officer Michael Reinsdorf said in a statement. “He was a role model on and off the court during his nine-plus years in Chicago, and he gave everything he had to help us win.
“I want to thank Luol for not only what he accomplished on the court for the team, but also for the leadership he demonstrated through his philanthropic efforts.’’
Reinsdorf could have also thanked Deng for his unabashed honesty, including Deng’s take on the franchise’s treatment of former coach Tom Thibodeau.
It was during the 2015 season that Deng first took a swipe at the Bulls, criticizing all of the growing momentum surrounding the expected departure of Thibodeau during the 2015 season.
“It’s stupid,” Deng told the Sun-Times of the pending decision on Thibodeau. “He’s one of the best coaches in the league. I really think if you get rid of someone like that, it’s going to be a lot of rebuilding coming afterward.’’
He doubled down the following season, then a member of the Miami Heat.
“I’m still in awe that they went ahead and made that decision,’’ Deng said. “Coach Thibs is one of the best coaches I’ve ever played for, and when you get a coach like that, his basketball IQ is very high. I think it’s smart to listen to him and have a relationship where you always understand where he’s coming from. I don’t know the details of what happened here, but that can’t get in the way of building a great basketball team.’’
It obviously did, and as Deng predicted, the Bulls were eventually forced to go the rebuild route.
Time has healed that, as the Bulls have allowed Deng to retire with the team that selected him No. 7 overall in the 2004 NBA Draft, and plan on honoring him in a game to be determined later this season.
“That was a really cool thing that the Reinsdorfs did, the Chicago Bulls did for him,’’ coach Jim Boylen said of the Deng news. “It’s really cool that he wanted to have it that way.’’
Still on the high road
It was no secret that Boylen and Jabari Parker were on two different pages last season, after Boylen took over the head coaching seat from Fred Hoiberg.
Boylen greeted Parker with a bunch of DNP [Did Not Play] Coach’s Decisions in December, and Parker was eventually traded in the Otto Porter Jr. deal with Washington. Still, Boylen won’t take a shot anywhere near Parker’s direction, with the forward in town with his Atlanta Hawks team.
“I spent a lot of time with Jabari when I was an assistant and I have no issues with him,’’ Boylen said. “I’m glad he’s in a good place. I have a lot of friends on the Atlanta staff, I hear they’re very happy with him, they love his talent like we did, and I wish him nothing but the best.’’
Injury front
Shaquille Harrison and Chandler Hutchison were again sidelined with hamstring injuries, but Harrison did practice the last few days and was expected to be ready for the start of the season next week in Charlotte.
Hutchison could likely miss those first few games, as the 22nd overall pick from the 2018 draft is much further behind.
