Both the Chicago Bulls, and the New Orleans Hornets have found a new head coach. Both had Tom Thibodeau as main targets, which allowed for Tommy T. to pull his name from the Hornets as he landed his top-choice-job in Chicago. The Hornets, somewhat jilted, then decided to go with Monty Williams.

Both Thibodeau and Williams have no NBA head coaching experience, however they’ve been assistant coaches to very solid teams. Tommy T. is currently on the bench for the 2010 Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, while Monty was an assistant to Nate McMillian in Portland and Gregg Poppovich in San Antonio. Monty Williams, at 38, supplants the Miami Heat’s Erik Spolestra as the youngest coach in the league.

For Chicago, they’re getting a very well seasoned assistant coach, who definitely is solid from a basketball IQ standpoint. This is the most important offseason for the Bulls in recent years as they look to acquire a big name player to go with their young roster who includes bright players Derrick Rose, and Joakim Noah. I feel like Thibodeau will have no effect on free agent signings in Chicago, but at the same time, no effects are good effects. If he had a volatile history, then he could players might be disinterested.

The Hornets on the other hand are financially strapped, but still have arguably the best point guard in the league with Chris Paul. Looking at both of these hirings, it seems interesting to me that Byron Scott, Avery Johnson, and others have still not found a gig. I guess it shows that NBA teams are looking for some new blood to lead their teams. I think this is a good thing, because not enough guys get a solid chance.

-G