A Royal Pain
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Kings: Dave Joerger Could Be On Bulls Radar

By Anthony Cardenas

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - MARCH 28: Head coach of the Sacramento Kings Dave Joerger yells from the sidelines during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on March 28, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Cassy Athena/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - MARCH 28: Head coach of the Sacramento Kings Dave Joerger yells from the sidelines during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on March 28, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Cassy Athena/Getty Images) /
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The Chicago Bulls will likely be conducting a coaching search in the coming months, and former Sacramento Kings coach Dave Joerger could be a candidate.

When an NBA team makes a change to their front office, it usually means a change to their coaching staff is coming as well. The Chicago Bulls have bought in a new general manager, which means that Jim Boylen will likely be relieved of his duties. One of the candidates that they could bring in for an interview is former Sacramento Kings head coach Dave Joerger.

Boylen likely would have been out of a job either way. The team didn’t seem to improve under his watch despite a slew of young talent, and it seemed as though the players themselves had grown tired of the coach that took over for Fred Hoiberg in December of 2018. The changing of GMs is just the icing on the cake.

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Joerger led the Kings to surprising success during the 2018-’19 season, and his firing is still questioned given Sacramento’s performance after his departure. He has a career win/loss record of 245-247, not bad considering the three losing seasons with the Kings. Joerger could bring a grit and grind mentality to the Bulls, and has had proven success in developing young teams and establishing identities for them.

But would the Bulls prefer to have Joerger around? He is said to be vocal and hard-headed behind closed doors, which could create turmoil that a brand new front office doesn’t need to deal with. It was reported long after his firing in Sacramento that Joerger butted heads with general manager Vlade Divac, and couldn’t get over the fact that the Kings passed on Luka Doncic.

Despite him being out of the game this past season, Joerger’s stock has seemed to grow with every passing day. The Kings were seemingly stripped of their identity when he left, and they struggled to regain a new one under the new coaching staff. Their record suffered because of it, and Joerger seemed to get smarter with each passing loss. Add that to the fact that he wanted Doncic, who is on the path to super stardom, and he looks even smarter. (To be fair, we all knew that was a wrong decision.)

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We will see if his shortcomings are enough to deter the Bulls in to heading in a different direction. They would be smart to at least bring him in for an interview.

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