Cavaliers' Jim Boylan recalls ups and downs as Bulls interim coach

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Cavaliers' Jim Boylan recalls ups and downs as Bulls interim coach
By K.C. Johnson
Chicago Tribune
May 7, 2015

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/basketball/bulls/ct-jim-boylan-bulls-cavaliers-spt-0508-20150507-story.html

Last July 11, Jim Boylan was working a summer-league morning shootaround in Las Vegas, still in the early stages of getting to know new boss David Blatt, when the NBA world shook.

LeBron James was coming home.

"It was kind of hard to focus on the rest of the shootaround when you get news like that," Boylan said with his typical dry sense of humor. "All of a sudden, there was a wave of energy bouncing around."

And all of a sudden, Boylan, in his second season as a Cavaliers assistant coach, worked for an organization that had moved from rebuilding to rebranding with one major announcement.

"You're excited because this changes the fortunes of the franchise and gives you an opportunity to be around the best player in the world," Boylan said. "And as a coach, when you have a chance to coach great players, it's the pinnacle."

Boylan said this with the perspective of a coaching veteran. It's what happens when you beat tongue cancer that had advanced between stages 2 and 3 in 2009 and use your knowledge and competitiveness to flourish through the nomadic life of an NBA assistant for 23 seasons.

This playoff series represents a homecoming for Boylan, 60, even if he grew up in New Jersey. His first NBA job after international and college coaching stints was with the Cavaliers in 1992 as an advance scout and video coordinator. And he spent four seasons with the Bulls, including a 24-32 mark as interim head coach after Scott Skiles got fired in the 2007-08 season.

Only Kirk Hinrich and Joakim Noah remain as players from Boylan's Bulls stint. But a 2004-05 joy ride that produced the Bulls' first playoff appearance since the championship years remains memorable.

"I always look back at that job and I'm proud of what we were able to accomplish with a young team," Boylan said. "Kirk was in his second year. (Chris) Duhon, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng and (Andres Nocioni) were rookies. We had great leadership from Antonio Davis. We had Tyson (Chandler) and Eddy (Curry), such a young team.

"It was really satisfying from a coaching perspective to work with those guys and mold them into a team. It was exciting and fun and the energy of the city was great. It was one of my most memorable stops in the NBA for sure."

Boylan says this despite the rocky finish. Replacing Skiles, whom he had coached at Michigan State under Jud Heathcote, gave Boylan his dream opportunity in Noah's rookie season.

Instead, with a style he admitted focused too much on keeping the job rather than seeing the big picture, Boylan was let go.

"You look back and see some things and say, 'Maybe I should've done this different,' " Boylan said. "You try to learn from those experiences. But I have great memories of the fans and the players and the people I worked with."

Two major memories linger from Boylan's stint.

Noah's difficult rookie season boiled over at a March morning shootaround in Philadelphia when he berated assistant coach Ron Adams, with whom Noah is still friendly. Boylan, who also still talks to Noah, handed down a one-game suspension.

The next day, players, led by current Bulls assistant Adrian Griffin, voted to extend Noah's suspension by a game. This led to a surprising reaction, with some critics saying inmates were running the asylum.

"I have the greatest amount of respect for Griff," Boylan said. "If someone else came to me and said it, maybe I might not have listened as much. But when Griff came to me, I knew it was something I needed to deal with.

"Everyone always wants players to take responsibility for their actions and take control of the team. I talked it over with (executive vice president) John Paxson and I believe (Chairman) Jerry (Reinsdorf) got involved a little bit. So we made the decision to listen to the players collectively.

"I was kind of surprised with the amount of pushback there was from some people. Especially because I just wanted to side with my players. And I think it has helped Jo, who was a rookie still trying to find his way."

Noah has consistently cited the incident as part of his maturation process.

"That's my guy," Noah said of Boylan. "I've got a lot of respect and love for Coach. He's the one who gave me my first opportunity to really play. I always show him love, even though he's on the other side."

The other memory came after Boylan's first victory in his first game as interim head coach. Replacing Skiles, a close friend, was difficult. A whirlwind day of practice followed. After the victory, Hinrich presented Boylan with the game ball.

And in the postgame news conference, Boylan looked up to see his wife and two daughters, stopping to fight back tears.

"They've been through it all with you," Boylan recalled this week when asked about that night. "They've been your biggest fans and on the ride, the ups and downs. Pro sports and coaching can be difficult at times because you're in a city for a bit and then you move on to the next spot. It's easy for the coach but most difficult for the family. That's why I got emotional."

Boylan won a national championship at Marquette playing for the ultimate heart-on-his-sleeve coach, Al McGuire. He later addressed Jimmy Butler's team at Marquette.

More than anything, Boylan is a survivor and competitor.

"He's a Marquette brother, and I'm happy for him winning Most Improved Player," Boylan said of Butler. "But it's the Bulls versus the Cavaliers. So we're competing right now."