Bulls appoint Vinny Del Negro as head coach

CHICAGO: The Chicago Bulls named Vinny Del Negro as head coach on Wednesday, hoping the inexperienced former NBA role player can help restore the young team to its 1990s-era glory.

"Many guys have stepped into this job without experience and done very well," Bulls' general manager John Paxson told reporters in introducing Del Negro, whose previous job was assistant general manager of the Phoenix Suns.

Del Negro, 41, said he was confident he could join the list of former NBA players who have achieved success on the bench despite a lack of coaching experience at any level.

Those include current Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers, Indiana Pacers executive Larry Bird, and former Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson - each of whom won Coach of the Year honors, though all were subsequently fired or quit their respective teams.

"I'm not a magician," Del Negro said. "It's not going to happen overnight. But I feel very confident that, over time, we'll get things moving in the right direction - back in the right direction that the Bulls are used to."

Led by Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, the Bulls won six NBA championships in the 1990s under coach Phil Jackson, who is now coaching the Los Angeles Lakers and trails Rivers' Celtics 2-1 in the NBA Finals.

The Bulls are one of the youngest teams in the league, led in scoring by guard Ben Gordon, 25, and forward Luol Deng, 23. The team will get another injection of youth if it uses the very first pick in this month's NBA draft, as expected, to take one of two teenagers who completed one year of college: point guard Derrick Rose or forward Michael Beasley.

The Bulls' team discipline suffered this past season with a few player absences and the Christmas Eve firing of coach Scott Skiles, who was replaced on an interim basis by assistant Jim Boylan.

Last month, the team's top rookie, Joakim Noah, was arrested in Florida for drinking in public and possession of marijuana.

Paxson said he wanted his new coach to instill "passion and enthusiasm" as well as confidence in the players that he thought was missing this past season after two promising playoff runs.

Del Negro said his coaching philosophy would stress a "defensive presence" while hoping to play "fast and quick" on the offensive end. He planned to have experienced assistants to compensate for his lack of coaching experience.

Del Negro played 12 seasons for five NBA teams, averaging 9.1 points and 3.2 assists per game, retiring in 2001. A role player with a deft shooting touch, he also played from 1990-1992 for Italy's Bennetton Treviso, leading the team to a championship.

The Bulls had sought to hire Suns' coach Mike D'Antoni, but he spurned them in favor of the New York Knicks.

Agencies

(China Daily 06/13/2008 page22)