Taj Gibson is back in Chicago, this time carrying a clipboard instead of checking in at the scorer’s table. The longtime Bulls forward announced his retirement Monday and immediately joined new coach Tiago Splitter’s inaugural Chicago staff.
Taj Gibson retires and joins Bulls coaching staff
Gibson, 41, closes a 17-season NBA career that began with the Bulls as a 2009 first-round pick. The 6-foot-9 big man spent more than seven seasons in Chicago before moving through Oklahoma City, Minnesota, New York, Detroit, Charlotte, Memphis and New Orleans.
Quick facts
- Gibson played 1,012 NBA games across 17 seasons and eight franchises.
- He finished with career averages of 8.3 points and 5.7 rebounds.
- Chicago drafted Gibson in the first round in 2009.
- He joins assistants Wes Unseld Jr., Blake Ahearn, Jamelle McMillan, Rex Kalamian and Jonah Herscu under Tiago Splitter.
- Splitter became Bulls coach in June.
Gibson was waived by New Orleans after arriving in a trade with Memphis last week. Rather than chase another roster spot, he turned the transaction into the closing line of a career built on interior defense, hard screens and second-unit stability.
“This is the start of another chapter,” Gibson wrote in his retirement message. After 31 years in basketball, he said he could leave with no regrets and felt blessed by the path.
His message also pointed to the role he hopes to bring into the Bulls’ coaching room. Gibson said he always wanted teammates to see him as a dependable presence who supplied toughness, energy, leadership and heart whenever he took the floor.
That description tracks with his Chicago tenure. Gibson became a reliable frontcourt piece during the Bulls’ playoff runs of the early 2010s, providing rebounding and physical defense while often working as a reserve alongside the club’s starting bigs.
Now he joins a staff being assembled around Splitter, the former NBA center hired by Chicago in June. Unseld, Ahearn, McMillan, Kalamian and Herscu are also on the bench group as the Bulls move into a new coaching chapter.
SEO Title: Taj Gibson retires, joins Tiago Splitter’s Bulls coaching staff
SEO Description: Former Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson has retired after 17 NBA seasons and will join Tiago Splitter’s first Bulls coaching staff.
