Fred Hoiberg missed Saturday afternoon's Bulls practice at the Advocate Center to attend the funeral of Flip Saunders, the former NBA head coach who passed away last week, in Minneapolis.
"It was on his heart to do that," said assistant Jim Boylen, who spoke with media in Hoiberg's place. "As a team, we obviously support him and are thankful he went. Our guys worked and did a great job in his absence."
Saunders, 60, coached Hoiberg in his final two NBA seasons with the Timberwolves. Saunders was diagnosed in early August with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, forcing him to take a leave of absence as president and head coach of the Timberwolves.
Hoiberg was told of Saunders' passing last Sunday after practice and struggled to put into words the loss of a man he called a "fatherly figure" in his life.
[MORE: Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg reflects on mentor Flip Saunders]
“I just … little bit of shock right now,” Hoiberg said on Oct. 25. “Flip played a huge part in my life from everything from bringing me in and giving me a chance to taking a lot of the philosophy that he had. He’s a great mentor, he’s a great leader. … That’s the thing. Riding home on a plane, win or lose, Flip was always upbeat, talking to you, he’d come back and sit down and see how you’re feeling, especially during struggles.
“He’s a great basketball man. He accomplished some really special things with the Timberwolves. … There’s not one person that you could talk to to get to say one bad thing about Flip Saunders."
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Hoiberg will be back on the sidelines when the Bulls square off against the Magic tomorrow night.