One of the most popular franchises in the United States Basketball League (NBA) will have a Brazilian at the helm. This Tuesday (16), former center Tiago Splitter was announced as coach of the Chicago Bulls. The 41-year-old from Paraná was at the Portland Trail Blazers. He started the recently ended season (2025/2026) as an assistant to coach Chauncey Billups. The coach, however, was arrested by the Federal Department of Investigation (FBI) accused of being linked to a match-fixing scheme. As a result, the Brazilian temporarily assumed command of the team. Related news: NBA: Tiago Splitter, from Portland, is the 1st Brazilian coach in the playoffs. Tiago Splitter is the new coach of the Portand Trail Blazers, an NBA team. With Splitter at the helm, the Trail Blazers won 42 games (out of 82) in the regular season and qualified for the NBA playoffs for the first time since 2021. In the quarter-finals of the Western Conference, the franchise could not resist the San Antonio Spurs - who would later finish second in the competition, surpassed by the New York Knicks in the final. Before Portland, Splitter coached Paris Basketball, becoming French champions in the 2024/2025 season. He was also an assistant for the Houston Rockets and Brooklyn Nets. As a player, the former center played seven years in the world's top league, with the Philadelphia 76ers, Atlanta Hawks and, mainly, Spurs. There were four seasons representing the San Antonio team and a title, in 2014, which made him the first Brazilian to win the NBA. "The Bulls represent everything I love about the game. They carry a proud tradition, a passionate city and a young, hungry group of athletes ready to grow," said the coach, on the franchise's website. The Brazilian takes over the role from Billy Donovan, who has led the Bulls since 2020, but took the team to the final stages of the NBA only once, in the 2021/2022 edition. The team has six titles, all won in the 1990s, under the leadership of star Michel Jordan. In the 2025/2026 season, the Chicago team had 31 wins and 51 losses.