Jimmy Butler has no regrets over his recent criticism of Fred Hoiberg.
Butler said on Saturday that Hoiberg needs to coach the Bulls “a lot harder.” He didn’t walk it back on Monday.
“Do I regret it? No,” Butler told reporters after Monday’s shootaround, via ESPN.com. “A little frustrated after a loss, yeah, but then again, I put a lot of it on myself now because I gotta lead better, can’t allow stuff to happen. Yeah, we lost one I didn’t want to lose at home against Detroit and the way that we lost against New York. You got raw emotion right then and there.”
Butler admitted that the media probably wasn’t the best outlet for his frustrations, and said that he thinks Hoiberg has “done great.” Butler and Hoiberg met on Sunday for an hour, and things seem to be cordial between them.
Hoiberg also offered his take on Butler’s comments.
“It’s a great question,” Hoiberg said when asked if Butler was right. “Are there some things I can do better? Sure. Are there some things that all of us can do better? Absolutely. Are there some things I need to demand probably a little bit more? Sure. But it’s something where I thought we made a lot of progress as a team. It’s getting back to those things we demanded leading into that win streak. It’s about staying consistent with that and continue to build off what made us a successful team that week.”
The Bulls are saying all the right things as they try to figure out how to be better as a team. Butler is also learning how to be a leader himself, so these things will happen.
