The relationship between Tom Thibodeau and the Chicago Bulls' front office deteriorated over time. Thibodeau wanted to maintain the ability to run his program his way, while John Paxson and Gar Forman wanted more input, such as how many minutes star players were given.

Sources say Paxson and Forman were most irked by not receiving enough credit for how they assembled the roster for Thibodeau.

"There was definitely a disconnect between the coaches and management," Noah said recently. "It was a little bit of a mess. And to be a championship team, everybody has to be on the same page. It was definitely a missed opportunity."

There were also some players that expressed frustration of Thibodeau's authoritarian approach privately to Forman and Paxson.