The Chicago Bulls have been a franchise in the limelight lately, though for all the wrong reasons. Following the controversy surrounding Jaden Ivey’s departure, the Bulls drew negative press, primarily for the way they handled the situation.
Aside from poor damage control, the Bulls as a whole have been a relatively mediocre organization in need of change. Thus, to facilitate this, Chicago kicked things off by letting Arturas Karnisovas (VP of basketball operations) and Marc Eversley (GM) go. While this would typically see head coach Billy Donovan emerge as the next target, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported otherwise on “NBA Today.”
“Since they introduced this regime in 2020, they have made the playoffs just once. Four straight non-postseason campaigns. I mean, this is a team that, in 2021-22, they were the No. 1 seed at one point in the Eastern Conference… They have completely shifted their direction,” Charania shared.
“Billy Donovan is still there as head coach,” he continued. “My understanding is that the Bulls want to keep him as long as he wants to be there, in Chicago. Their No. 1 priority after the season ends, Michael Reinsdorf and Jerry Reinsdorf will meet with Billy Donovan, they’ll discuss the future, and try to keep Billy Donovan in Chicago.”
This is an intriguing approach on the Bulls’ behalf. Since joining Chicago in the capacity of head coach in the 2020-21 season, Donovan has had a 467-411 record (53.2% win rate) in the regular season.
As Charania mentioned, barring the 2021-22 season, the Bulls haven’t been in the playoffs. In light of this, it may seem strange for the Bulls to prioritize retaining him, but it may factor into their rebuild plans.
Frontrunners For Bulls GM Revealed
With the major front-office overhaul, the Chicago Bulls will have a vacancy that needs to be addressed. On that note, the Chicago Sun-Times’ Joe Cowley revealed that former Raptors GM Masai Ujiri and former Bulls forward Luol Deng may be among the favorites for the position.
“If Donovan leaves and the front office must be replaced first, a name to pay attention to is former Raptors executive Masai Ujiri, whom former Bulls forward Luol Deng has suggested several times this season, according to a source,” Cowley wrote. “Hiring Ujiri could mean Deng becomes general manager.”
This could prove to be an interesting approach for Chicago. Deng’s history with the franchise as a player may make him a popular addition among the fans. Meanwhile, Ujiri’s success with the Toronto Raptors could make him a likely candidate to reinvigorate Chicago’s approach.
Aside from Deng and Ujiri, reports have also suggested that Chicago may be considering Hawks‘ assistant GM Kyle Korver, former Hawks GM Landry Fields, Wolves GM Matt Lloyd, and CAA agent Austin Brown.
On a more ambitious note, Chicago is also reportedly pursuing Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy, a former Bulls player. However, it is highly unlikely that Dunleavy leaves Golden State, thus limiting Chicago’s current pool to the aforementioned names.
