Del Harris' Retirement Leaves a Hole on VDN's Bench
Who will Del Negro turn to now?
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Del Harris (on the right) is retiring after 50 years of coaching.
Over the Bulls' last season, which was quite rocky, one thing that continually reared its ugly head was the inexperience of head coach Vinny Del Negro. What saved him, on more than one occasion, was having Del Harris, a veteran with nearly 50 years of coaching experience, on his bench. Del Negro won't have that luxury this year, as Harris is hanging up his whistle and retiring.
Harris started coaching a Puerto Rican team in 1969, and went on the coach the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association. His first head coaching job was with the Rockets, and he also coached the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers. Besides Chicago, he was also an assistant in Dallas, and coached the Chinese national basketball team in 2004. Needless to say, Harris brought with him a wealth of experience and knowledge, something that VDN lacked, as he is currently in his first coaching position, ever.
Replacing Harris will be no small task. The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the Bulls interviewed Randy Brown, an assistant with Sacramento and a member of three Bulls championship teams, to replace Harris. Pete Myers, already on the Buls staff, could be promoted, as well.
No matter who gets hired, it will need to be someone who can give a perspective to Del Negro that he is sorely lacking, one of a basketball guru who has sat in the coach's seat for more than a year.
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Posted Tuesday, Jul 14, 2009 - 4:27 PM CST
