Fired!

I checked out ESPN.com today and learned that Scott Skiles was fired. Some reactions:

• After watching the Bulls in Boston on Friday I can't say that I'm surprised. They were dead. On top of that Skiles looked like a beaten man.  
• I do buy the argument that coaches can only be in a place for so long before the players start to tune them out. That is not always the case but it seems to have happened here. But how can anyone say that it is on the Bulls now? Were they not responsible up until this point?
• All of the sudden the Bulls are in an interesting situation. This is chaotic and the they have contract issues looming.
• I caught Chris Duhon on an ESPN.com podcast (not sure how to link to it) saying that some of the guys had quit on Skiles.
• It is easy to call for a coaching change. Ask Celtics fans. It is a lot harder to figure out a replacement. Furthermore, firing a coach does not guarantee success. For example I'm not sure we'll ever no exactly what went down in Houston last summer. But in the end a change was made. Are the Rockets better?
• Jim Boylan, an assistant with the Bulls, is the front runner to take the reigns. Shades of Jim O'Brien replacing Rick Pitino with the Celtics? Think about it. In each case the players had quit on their coaches and actually appeared to dislike them as well.
• I always thought that Skiles took himself a bit too seriously. The headband fiasco comes to mind, which was a John Paxson thing as well. However, he helped change the culture with the Bulls and brought them back to respectability.  
• As expected Blog-a-Bull is buzzing about the news.
• In related news what exactly does Isiah Thomas have to do to get fired? Did anyone catch the Knicks loss the other day? I know Thomas didn't throw the pass. David Lee did. But their ability to find a way to lose is comical.