Thibodeau’s way: Pieces, harmony and a 24-12 record

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Updated: August 4, 2011 4:20PM

Have the Bulls found the right man to lead them through the Derrick Rose era? Tom Thibodeau’s name is starting to get mentioned in coach-of-the-year talk, and it seems warranted.

The Bulls are 24-12 with a nine-game lead over the Indiana Pacers in the Central Division. Only the Los Angeles Lakers have a larger cushion — 11 games over the Golden State Warriors before the Lakers played late Sunday. That’s a major statement for the Bulls, who haven’t had a winning season since 2006-07 and have only two winning seasons in the last 12 years.

Thibodeau has managed to get it done without forward Carlos Boozer and center Joakim Noah for large chunks of the season. Those absences easily could have been used as excuses for failure.

Aside from Thibodeau’s benching of Boozer in the fourth quarter against the New Jersey Nets last week, there hasn’t been an iota of controversy surrounding the team. The day after his curt postgame remarks, Boozer put out the fire — another sign of the respect the Bulls have for their rookie head coach.

Except for Boozer, none of the other free agents has made a big splash. You can make a solid case that Keith Bogans, Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver have performed below expectations — all three are scoring fewer points per game than their career averages.

But Rose’s improved play has made up for the injuries and the underperforming additions, and Thibodeau deserves some credit for that. Rose has risen from an All-Star level to a near-MVP level, a progression that would have been difficult in previous coach Vinny Del Negro’s system, which seemed to involve giving Rose the ball and hoping he could figure it out from there.

The biggest criticism Thibodeau is taking revolves around Bogans. The veteran guard has started every game despite nearly dismal offensive numbers. He’s only averaging 17.8 minutes, though, while Brewer is getting 22.8 and Korver 21.6.

The vast majority of Bogans’ minutes come at the start of each half, and those are key times to Thibodeau.

‘‘There are four parts of the game that we really want to be strong in: the first five minutes of the first quarter, the last five minutes of the half, the first five of the third and obviously the last five of the game,’’ Thibodeau said after the Bulls’ win against the Boston Celtics on Saturday.

Bogans is playing in two of those four stretches. Defense is definitely his main contribution; he significantly helped Rose contain Celtics guard Rajon Rondo at the start of the game and the start of the third quarter.

Thibodeau has said it’s up to Rose and Boozer to keep the Bulls’ energy and focus up from tip-off to the final buzzer, repeatedly saying the Bulls need to become a 48-minute team.

And moving Brewer into the starting lineup would leave a glaring hole on the bench. There isn’t another player on the roster who can provide the energy burst the Bulls get when Brewer checks in.

‘‘[Brewer] brings a lot of energy, hustle, steals, rebounds, whatever you need,’’ Rose said. ‘‘He’s knocking down shots. His game is improving a lot.’’

Brewer has accepted the role of Thibodeau’s shot in the arm off the bench and is growing into it. So why change things now?

By guiding the Bulls to their impressive start, Thibodeau has earned the benefit of the doubt.