lol, this is silly.
Butler only got a chance because Deng was hurt. Butler got playing time as the team suffered injuries in the lock shortage 2011-12 season, in his rookie year. He showed some flash, thus his playing time increased. Butler still was on the bench in 2012-13 until Deng went down in the playoffs then Butler started playing 48 mpg. It was then they said "Butler's our SG!" and he started at SG until they traded Deng then moved him to SF where he didn't put up a lot of points, but did play lockdown D. Butler really stepped up last season, and good for him. I think that was more Butler's doing than anything Thibs did though as Butler was motivated to get paid more money.
Niko also only saw playing time thanks to injury. He barely played in the playoffs until enough people were screaming for it, and his confidence seemed rocked in the playoffs last year as he shot awfully. Snell also only ever saw time due to injury or desperation.
I'm sorry Scoot, but some of this rings false to me. Butler didn't just get a chance because Deng got hurt. He was a rotation player until Deng was traded & a solid one at that when you remember his marked improvement offensively in his 2nd season. But why would he have been starting anyway during that time? He hadn't proven much outside of being a solid defender. Deng was a 2x All-Star, one of the best players on the team, and rightfully deserved to start. Butler worked his way into that lineup because he earned Thibs trust, not due to injury.
Niko only saw time cuz of injury?? C'mon man I know you watched last season so how can you say that with a straight face? Analysts were astonished that Thibs was actually giving a rookie solid rotation minutes. Sure he got the starting job due to injury, and he flourished! Why? Because Thibs changed the offense to run through Niko & it basically saved the season. He gave a rookie the keys to the offense. Yea, that's right A ROOKIE! What happened in the playoffs had less to do with Niko lacking confidence and more to do with Niko playing with a sprained knee all 2nd round. He didn't look the same after that. And let's not act like Niko shot gangbusters last year. He shot poorly all season long.
With Thibs, it was always about trust and who he could trust out on the floor to not mess things up. If Thibs could trust you, you would see playing time. It's not a terrible thing cuz trust is very important but it's also not the end all be all when it comes to coaching. You still need talent, even if you can't trust it at times, on the floor to win. That to me was my main complaint with Thibs style, mainly cuz of Kirk Hinrich being played so damn much.
You guys can call me a Thibs lover or apologist or whatever but I find it funny how people really hate on the guy while dismissing the fact that he didn't have his star player (the player the entire offense was geared around) for 60% of his time as Bulls head coach. That fact, coupled with what he accomplished with some pretty pathetic talent, should instantly earn him at least a smidgen of respect from Bulls fans. I don't know, maybe I'm just crazy.