<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"FacebookPinterestGetty Images\n\nThe Chicago Bulls have the best record in the league, picking up right where they left off last season. Actually, scratch that: Reigning MVP Derrick Rose has spent much of the season troubled by injuries. He'll likely be on the court for tonight's mega-matchup with the Heat, a borderline grudge match that will probably serve as a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals.\n\nAny time that Rose, LeBron James, and Dwyane Wade appear in the same game, all god-fearing fans of above-the-rim play can't help but tune in. But the Bulls have been winning without Rose, who had faced accusations in 2010-11 of being Iverson-ian in his domination of the offense. Rose's teammates have stepped up in his absence, but despite the recent boost in John Lucas III's Q-rating, it's been on the defensive end that the team has laid down the low. This has put a spotlight on another, less-heralded star: head coach Tom Thibodeau.\n\nThibs, as he's affectionately known, was the architect of the Celtics' smothering 2007-08 scheme, which allowed that collection of aging stars to immediately win a title (in retrospect, they're darn lucky he was around to help them.) He was named the 2010-11 Coach of the Year for the Bulls' league-best record and maximization of the team's admittedly thin talent base. But at least then, he had one of the league's most explosive scorers to lean on. What he's done this year is nothing short of miraculous, except that makes the Bulls sound like they are riding one long hot streak. That's not it. Thibodeau faced down the most dire problem possible and found a solution. It's somewhat like Steve Nash's 2005-06 season, when he helmed an even more effective offense, and captured a second MVP in a row, with Amar'e Stoudemire out for the year. Lucky for Nash, that was only the second award for him. A year later, voters said \"enough is enough,\" and refused to make the obvious choice and grant him a third.\n\nThibodeau has bested last year's accomplishments, so he richly deserves a second COY. That would make him the first coach in history to win the award back-to-back; the only others to net two of them, period, are Don Nelson, Gene Shue, and Bill Fitch. Make of that what you will. If you put any stock in awards, this would place Thibodeau, barely along in his NBA career, in something like an elite class. Dwight Howard will almost undoubtedly win his fourth Defensive Player of the Year, an award that has belonged to him since 2008-09. But the DPOY is like that. Ben Wallace, Dennis Rodman, Dikembe Mutombo, Alonzo Mourning, and Hakeem Olajuwon have all taken their turn with the award. Coach of the Year, even more so than MVP, is an almost random beast. To secure it twice in a row when the trophy seems almost intent on bouncing around counter-intuitively is almost like a triumph against the forces of nature.\n\nOf course, in an attempt to keep the slapdash integrity of the award intact (remember, Jerry Sloan never won it), voters might shy away from Thibodeau. They could look to Erik Spoelstra, who has further tightened up Miami's ferocious defense and found an offensive philosophy that works for them. Then again, he has James and Wade; Thibs has had to make due without Rose.\n\nGregg Popovich has quietly started retooling the Spurs for post-Tim Duncan era, turning Tony Parker into a dark horse MVP candidate and rehabilitating the careers of intriguing, but seemingly lost, Boris Diaw and Stephen Jackson. Oh, and let's not forget all the still-anonymous players he dug up to play major roles this season. With all due respect, though, these two are mere coaches compared to Thibodeau, who has taken the Bulls on his back in a way that only players are supposed to be able to do at this level of basketball."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.gq.com/story/tom-thibodeau-god-among-coaches>