Report: Coach Vinny Done, Search On For Replacement

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Dec 28, 2009 3:40PM

According to a report by ESPN, Coach Vinny's days with the Bulls are numbered and a delay in his firing is due to the inability by the front office to find a replacement. Team VP of basketball operations John Paxson mulled taking the position himself but decided against it. The team also reportedly reached out to former coach Doug Collins who also turned down the job. As the ESPN report points out, the Bulls will have some cap space this summer when the league will have one of its more impressive free agent pools in recent history and the team wants a permanent replacement done by then.

Among the names being floated around are Byron Scott - recently fired by New Orleans - and former Dallas coach Avery Johnson. Both are also considered candidates for the New Jersey opening. While there's not date for Coach Vinny to be fired - indeed, he could be head coach for quite a while if no suitable replacement is found, according to the report - there's pretty much no chance he'll be in charge once the season comes to an end.