The Chicago Bulls have hired Acting Head Coach Tiago Splitter away from the Portland Trail Blazers. Splitter will become the Bulls’ 22nd head coach, replacing recently-departed Billy Donovan in the position. Splitter spent the 2025-26 season guiding the Trail Blazers to a 42-40 record, a Play-In Tournament win over the Phoenix Suns, and a first-round loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Playoffs. Splitter took over Portland’s lead role in the second game of the season, taking over from former
head coach Chauncey Billups after Billups was indicted on federal gambling charges. The promotion gave Splitter his first NBA head-coaching experience. He had previously coached Paris Basketball and the Brazilian national team.
Splitter was reportedly a finalist, along with Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori and Boston Celtics assistant Tyler Lashbrook, to take over Portland’s head coaching position permanently.
Shams Charania of ESPN broke the news about Splitter’s hiring.
Sources said top Bulls officials, including Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Bryson Graham and his front-office staff, met with four finalists for the head coaching job last week in Chicago: Splitter, Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, Atlanta Hawks assistant Ryan Schmidt and current Bulls assistant Wes Unseld Jr.
The Bulls conducted a thorough search that spanned double-digit candidates before narrowing the process. They landed on Splitter due to his ability to lead the team’s player development, organizational alignment on the franchise’s direction and vision, and his leadership and knowledge base as a coach rising through the ranks since 2018 as well as a seven-year NBA player with one championship with the San Antonio Spurs.
Charania also states that Nori and Lashbrook are still under consideration in Portland and are expected to meet with the Trail Blazers in the near future.
Editorializing, it’s hard to tell whether this is a case of Portland not having Splitter as a true main candidate or whether their currently-drawn-out coaching search cost them an opportunity in a case of Fiddle Around and Find Out. What’s your take on the situation? Will you miss Splitter or are you ready to move on? Share thoughts in the comments section below.
