Apparently attended last night's Duke-UNC game w/o permission, and then missed team shoot-around this morning (something about a missed wake-up call for his flight back). He is in uniform for game, but reportedly will not play, also faces heavy fine.
From the team's standpoint, they are scrambling to get the #8 playoff spot, and don't need this unprofessional behavior.
The Bulls are a mess. It could not have been that much fun having to put up with Noah antics and now they're just desperate for the eight spot?
Duhon sure seemed like his old friendly self when we saw him on Ninth St yesterday.
I just caught the end of the commentary at the start of the game...I'm glad you posted this so I can understand what's going on.
I love Chris to pieces, but I agree with the Coach's decision. I don't think, under any circumstances, playoff hunt or not, should that happen. If permission was granted, that's one thing.
But I suppose there may be underlying circumstances we aren't aware of. It's kinda out of Chris' character, IMO. Hope things get worked out though.
Well, think of it this way.
You go to work one day. Your boss says, "we're firing you. Find a new job."
The next day, he calls you. "You're re-hired. Turns out we can't fire you yet. We'll fire you in a couple months. Instead of actually working, we're going to sit you in the lobby and make you watch people come in to work. But you get paid no matter what happens from here."
Are you REALLY going to put in 100% after that?
I know Chris well and loved him while he was here, but the way the Bulls are treating him now is a reflection of his rather cavalier attitude about things like team meetings, Sunday practices, drinking too much in public places, etc. He has been flat-out wrong many times with them, and they had his back. But now, they feel they cannot support a player who isn't 100% focused on winning and on the game. And sadly, I don't blame them.
Chris was told some weeks ago that he would not be played any more... they were building toward next year, and he was not a part of their plans. He is hurt and angry... and I don't blame him a bit for that. But he is not without complicity in this.
He also should not have been too surprised. The Bulls are very deep at guard, with guys who are making the All-Star team repeatedly. Chris has been through multiple shooting slumps, and they've continued to work with him because of his on-the-court leadership and defense.
But you can only have a player behave inappropriately so many times before you say adios!
I wish Chris could manage some of his decisions better. While he appears to be extraordinarly mature (see all his focus on helping Louisiana and particularly Slidell in the face of Katrina), my take is that he is really not as grown up as he should be at this point.
We'll see if he gets another chance in the league... but I sort of doubt it. He may be playing in Europe or elsewhere next year too!
DukeDevilDeb
Well, that's one thing about the good ol'DBR, you certainly get a 360 look at just about everything that is posted. Many sides to every issue.
He doesn't shoot well. He does have some off court issues. But the Bulls win when Duhon plays significant minutes and they don't win when he doesn't. It has been that way since he joined the Bulls. His leadership, savvy, and defense are important on the court. I'm glad he is leaving the Bulls - maybe I don't have to root for them anymore.
he had some serious ice in his ears last night.
Why is he having problems shooting? I am surprised to hear this-- not saying it isn't true, I just don't understand why-- this is a guy who came into Duke as the McDonald's All-America game 3-point shooting contest winner, a guy who supposedly was the best pure shooter in HS his senior year-- a guy who Jason Williams and other teammates claimed for years had the best form and best shot of anyone on Duke's team-- why is he having so many problems now?
I agree whole-heartedly. I didn't know he had such drama going on with the Bulls, but I just did some researching and I suppose I should have done so before I spoke.
And I've actually been put in an oddly similar situation myself. (Long story short: I was laid off, then asked to stay a few weeks to train one of my co-workers. HA!) And I reacted the same way. I refused to do it. So, in turn, if he's been treated unfairly, then I somewhat understand. It's still a tiny bit unprofessional, IMO.
Oh, definitely unprofessional. But I don't think we should fault the dude for doing it.
However, if he has been kind of a hassle off the court and hasn't dedicated himself to his craft, then the story is a little different. A change of scenery would be good for both sides.
that's not screwing someone over, thats how it works in the pros. lot's of people are involved in trade rumors/talks all the time. jon paxson is a professional guy and I'm sure he treated chris like a professional.
That's not a good analogy at all. First of all, getting traded is not like getting fired. It would be more akin to getting moved to a different business unit and still have a job, just with different people. Not the case so much when you get fired.
And they won't be "firing" him in at the end of season. They have a contract that lasts 3 years, its the end of the contract. Its not like they are even passing on an option.
Absolutely no one (as I'm sure you know). Ben Wallace was their only one pre-trade, I think.