Bulls have a shot to succeed under less-intense Boylan

NEW YORK -- The year's end usually doesn't bring so many farewells.

I thought Scott Skiles would probably get a few more weeks to turn the Bulls around, considering his history of success. But I suppose you can give credit to general manager John Paxson for showing some respect for the fans, because the Bulls' effort in the second half of the Dec. 22 home loss to Houston was nothing short of pathetic.

And that came a night after a blowout loss in Boston where Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce were standing up on the sideline, cackling with laughter and shouting fake instructions during the entire fourth-quarter garbage time. If that wasn't a sign of a team with no life, I don't know what is.

I can only speak for myself, but I doubt if anyone in the media was happy to see Skiles depart. He was great to deal with. He was always professional, treated reporters with respect, didn't back down from tough questions and usually had something interesting to say.

Watching the success Skiles had with the Bulls and how Portland has responded to Nate McMillan, I'm convinced more than ever that today's overpaid NBA players need a taskmaster type of coach to stay on their case. Often times, those coaches have a short shelf life before the players get sick of the message.

I think Skiles could have survived another year or two here if not for the various contract issues that seemed to grab hold of the team at the start of the season. Luol Deng and Ben Gordon didn't get extensions, then the team's highest-paid players, Ben Wallace and Kirk Hinrich, opened in deep slumps.

So the question now is whether the Bulls will succeed under interim coach Jim Boylan. I think it's possible. Boylan is definitely a change-of-pace personality. He's not as intense as Skiles, nor does he have as much of an ego. There is no question he's knowledgeable about the game, with 15 years of NBA coaching experience under his belt.

But can Boylan ease up on the pressure and still coax enough energy out of these Bulls? It was sad to see what happened in Seattle after McMillan left. Some players openly welcomed a less-demanding coach, then the Sonics went from a 55-game winner to one of the league's worst teams under Bob Weiss and Bob Hill.

Most of the Bulls are still young and have something to prove. They also like Boylan and were happy to see him get the job, so there seems to be a decent chance they'll respond. If the Bulls end up making the playoffs, it seems logical that Boylan would continue as head coach through next season.

But timing is everything in the NBA. The easiest part of the Bulls' schedule is coming up in January. They should be above .500 by the end of next month, so don't be fooled into thinking an upswing is solely due to the coaching change. The ultimate fate of this season's team will be judged in March and April.

• This week's column should also include a few words on the passing of former Chicago Tribune Bulls beat writer Terry Armour. I hadn't seen much of Terry in the last eight years, but we bonded long ago covering the Prairie State Games and were tight through the end of the Bulls championship era.

I often joked that no one ever got farther by working less hard than Terry. I know it sounds like an insult, but I think it's a fitting tribute.

Terry had such a strong, positive personality, he made friends easily and his wealth of contacts made him valuable to the paper. Plus, I know it's not easy to hold down full-time newspaper and radio gigs at the same time.

Being someone who was fun to hang out with isn't a bad way to be remembered, and Terry was an overwhelming success in that department.

mmcgraw@dailyherald.com