Bulls decide to fire Skiles on the day before Christmas

Coach Scott Skiles (right) led the Bulls to the playoffs last season, but Chicago has shown few signs of life during this year's 9-16 start. John Biever/SI

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Merry Christmas, Scott Skiles.

And enjoy the holiday, Pete Myers, Jim Boylan -- or whoever gets named as interim coach. Your first game is Wednesday at San Antonio against the defending NBA champs.

But before calling Bulls GM John Paxson a Scrooge for firing his coach on Christmas Eve, let's cut him a little slack.

For one, it's a bit of a team tradition. The Bulls fired Tim Floyd on Christmas Eve several years ago.

For another, the Bulls were in disarray and Paxson needed to do something fast. Saturday night they got blown out at home by the Rockets, bringing boos from the United Center fans. In the mushy Eastern Conference there is still plenty of time to get back in the playoff race -- but Chicago can't afford to wait too much longer.

Christmas Eve or not, the NBA is a business.

Some might argue Paxson deserves as much of the blame as Skiles. After all, the Bulls didn't make any upgrades to the roster other than Joe Smith during the offseason. Paxson's decision last year not to trade for Pau Gasol also looks like a mistake now, leaving Chicago without any low-post scoring dimension.

Skiles also can't be blamed for Ben Wallace's sagging productivity, Kirk Hinrich's erratic play, the distractions of the Kobe Bryant trade rumors or the lack of contract extensions to Luol Deng and Ben Gordon.

Those issues, as much as anything, probably have led to the Bulls' dismal season.

But Chicago just hasn't been the same team this year -- and some of it has to go back to coaching. Paxson talked Monday about the team's lack of energy all season. The Bulls just weren't playing as hard for Skiles this year, and Paxson hopes this will light a fire under his club.

Paxson is expected to announce Tuesday who will replace Skiles on an interim basis. Myers reportedly will coach the team Wednesday in San Antonio and appears to be the frontrunner for now. Boylan, who has been Skiles' lead assistant the past few years, also will be a strong candidate. He knows the Bulls system so he would give them continuity in terms of X's and O's. Whether he can communicate better with his players remains to be seen, however, since he is closely tied to Skiles.

The real interesting question is who will get the job full time if it's not Myers, Boylan or the team's other assistant, Ron Adams, at the end of the season. Two names that will get mentioned are Jeff Van Gundy and Larry Brown. Brown took over a Pistons team that was built in similar fashion and took them to the Finals.

But don't look for Travelin' Larry's Act to hit the Windy City. Brown is likely to be way too pricey for Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, who doesn't like to pay big money for coaches. Also, Brown's intense style would make him a poor fit for a club seeking a fresh approach after Skiles.

Bulls fans also might keep in mind that Brown didn't win anything in Detroit until Rasheed Wallace got there and provided a low-post presence. No matter who takes over as coach, he won't be able to win big until he gets a big man who can score inside and draw double-teams in the post. Again, that responsibility now falls on Paxson.

As for Skiles, look for him to get another head coaching job as early as next season. Though he has a reputation for burning out his teams -- and this ending in Chicago won't exactly change the perception -- he did a solid job in his three seasons. The Bulls always played hard (at least until this season) and made the playoffs. Given how putrid they were in the post-Jordan Era with Floyd and Bill Cartwright, it was a major improvement.