Back in the days when Derrick Rose’s torn ACL dominated headlines and various Bulls dropped in and out of the lineup with aches and pains, Tom Thibodeau consistently used a phrase that defined his mindset during his five-season run in Chicago.
We have more than enough to win.
Sunday afternoon at the Target Center, against Thibodeau’s young and hungry Timberwolves, the Bulls played without Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade, Nikola Mirotic and Paul Zipser.
They didn’t have enough to win.
Only the franchise record 53-point loss on Nov. 8, 2001, after which Charles Oakley blasted Tim Floyd and drew a $50,000 fine from Jerry Krause, marked a worse loss at the Target Center for the Bulls. In their third straight defeat of 18 points or more, they trailed by as many as 30 and fell meekly 117-89 to the Timberwolves.
And if you think sweeping the season series from the Bulls didn’t mean much to Thibodeau, then you also believed when he called Luol Deng "day to day" as Deng had a near-death experience after a botched spinal tap during the 2013 playoffs.
"Without a doubt; I know him too well," Taj Gibson said when asked if these victories are relished by Thibodeau, the coach and president of basketball operations of the Timberwolves. "When most people think it’s not a big deal, it’s a big deal to him. You see he kept coaching the whole game. He even left some of the (starters) in late. I could see his hand shaking from all the way on our end. I knew he really wanted to win that game. Nothing is going to change. He’s going to be the same guy every day.
"He doesn’t forget things. He’s going to always have the Bulls on his radar. That’s the way the game goes. A lot of people tend to hold grudges. But that’s none of my business. That’s between him and the guys up above."
Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau on the Bulls
Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau discusses the Bulls. (K.C. Johnson/Chicago Tribune)
Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau discusses the Bulls. (K.C. Johnson/Chicago Tribune)
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The Bulls, who dressed 10 players, allowed 54.3 percent shooting, 56 points in the paint and committed 18 turnovers that led to 26 Timberwolves points. Michael Carter-Williams had six, including one on a botched four-on-one fast break. Rajon Rondo added five.
The Bulls fell to three games under .500 for the first time under Fred Hoiberg.
"We weren’t getting back in transition," Hoiberg said. "A lot of that was because we were turning the ball over. That led to easy baskets. But we had a lack of rebounding and physicality that cost us early."
Hoiberg burned three timeouts in the first quarter.
"Start hitting somebody," Hoiberg said of his message during those. "Try to play physical. They out-horsed us inside. When our bigs were locked up, our guards leaked out. We’re not very good when we’re taking the ball out of the net."
Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 and Gorgui Dieng posted a double-double of 10 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves. Doug McDermott and Bobby Portis each scored 16 to lead the Bulls.
"You see the effort and heart that Tom’s teams play with night in and night out," Hoiberg said. "I think he’ll be great for this organization with this young team he’s got — some really special pieces, some of the top young talent in the NBA. You know he’s a great teacher who will get them playing hard every night. I think the future is very bright here in Minnesota."
Thibodeau hugged Butler at the buzzer.
"I’ve been around, so there’s a lot of those teams and it’s always hard when you’ve been through things with people," Thibodeau said of facing the Bulls. "I really root for that team and those guys, particularly the ones I’ve coached before. I want them to do well except when we play against them."
kcjohnson@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @kcjhoop
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