As the site header has said for the past couple weeks, and as the last few posts have explained, I'm not overly thrilled at how the inaugural campaign of Vinny Del Negro has been going.

That said, I'm not disapointed to the point to where he needs to be fired, or that his hiring was a mistake. Considering that the intended coach for the Bulls, Mike D'Antoni, is coming to town tonight with a team surpassing early expectations (albeit with an easy schedule), here's a pick-me-up for our coach Vinny:

• He has put no restraints on Derrick Rose whatsoever. Plays him a ton, lets him play through mistakes.
• Was the first coach to realize Ben Gordon is really good and doesn't need magic 6th man juice to be effective. Didn't freak out at the idea of starting two small guards together.
• Managed (with some help from Paxson) to keep Larry Hughes happy in a limited role. I think it was under the promise that he'd eventually be traded...though that's even better.
• Promised and delivered on being a fast-paced team. The Bulls are 5th in the league in pace.
• Overall, the players seem to like him and want to play hard for him.

And most importantly: He's not Doug Collins.