BOSTON, MA - APRIL 26: Fred Hoiberg Head Coach of the Chicago Bulls reacts during the third quarter of Game Five of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on April 26, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Fred Hoiberg had no desire to answer a question about Isaiah Thomas’s ball-handling following the Chicago Bulls‘ 108-97 road loss to the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night.
A reporter asked the second-year Bulls coach if he saw the Celtics guard carrying the ball in Wednesday’s Game 5. Boston leads the first-round series 3-2 after losing the first two games against Chicago.
After being asked the question, Hoiberg curtly replied “No” and stormed out of the media conference.
Sports Illustrated’s Ben Golliver shared the moment:
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The query was likely made as a follow-up to comments Hoiberg made about Thomas after the Bulls’ Game 4 loss to the Celtics on Sunday. The coach praised the All-Star for his performance, noting how particularly impressive Thomas has played given “everything he’s going through,” a reference to the Celtics star having lost his younger sister Chyna to a deadly car accident. However, Hoiberg also said Thomas’s occasional carrying makes it “impossible” to guard him.
“Let me say this: Isaiah Thomas is a helluva player. An unbelievable competitor. He’s a warrior — everything he’s going through right now, he had a helluva game tonight,” Hoiberg said on Sunday. “But when you’re allowed to discontinue your dribble on every possession, he is impossible to guard. He’s impossible to guard. When you’re able to put your hand underneath the ball, and take two or three steps and put it back down, it’s impossible to guard him in those situations.”
The coach was booed for his remarks before Wednesday’s game in Boston.
The question does seem awkward, yet not entirely surprising or unreasonable given Hoiberg’s statement about Thomas from three days prior.
In another strange NBA Playoff press conference moment on Wednesday, Washington point guard John Wall showed up to his post-game interview wearing a cape after the Wizards defeated the Atlanta Hawks 103-99 in Game 5 at Verizon Center. The Wizards lead the first-round series 3-2.
The Wizards next visit the Hawks for Game 6 Friday night, when the Bulls will host the Celtics.
BOSTON, MA – APRIL 26: Fred Hoiberg Head Coach of the Chicago Bulls reacts during the third quarter of Game Five of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on April 26, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts.
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