04/06/26 05:47:00
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04/06 17:45 CDT Bulls fire Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley after six years
in a front-office shakeup
Bulls fire Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley after six years in a
front-office shakeup
By ANDREW SELIGMAN
AP Sports Writer
CHICAGO (AP) --- The Chicago Bulls gutted their roster prior to the trade
deadline. The team's top two basketball executives won't be around for the next
phase of the revamp.
The Bulls fired executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas
Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley on Monday, ending a six-year run
that produced just one playoff appearance.
Chicago was 224-254 during their tenure. The Bulls entered Monday sitting in
12th place in the Eastern Conference at 29-49 and missing the playoffs for the
fourth straight year.
President and CEO Michael Reinsdorf said in a statement that Karnisovas and
Eversley "led with a deep commitment to the Chicago Bulls" and that the change
is "about positioning our team for sustained success moving ahead."
"I want our fans to know that I hear you and understand your frustration,"
Reinsdorf said. "I feel it as well. I know this will take time, and I am fully
committed to getting this right. At the Chicago Bulls, our focus remains on
building a team that can compete at the highest level and ultimately contend
for championships. We are committed to taking the necessary steps to move the
Bulls forward in a way that makes our fans proud."
The Bulls tore up their roster leading up to the trade deadline in February,
dealing Nikola Vucevic to Boston, Kevin Huerter to Detroit, Coby White to
Charlotte and Chicago product Ayo Dosunmu to Minnesota in an effort to shake up
a franchise mired in mediocrity. They hung on to Matas Buzelis and Josh Giddey
with the idea of building around those two. The Bulls have the salary-cap room
to make some big moves this offseason.
"Being in the middle is what we don't want to do," Karnisovas said at the time.
"I think we've seen that for the past four years and we want to change that."
That's mostly where the franchise has been since Karnisovas was hired out of
Denver's front office in April 2020. The Bulls brought in Eversley from
Philadelphia a few weeks later and hired coach Billy Donovan that September.
Donovan's future is uncertain.
The Bulls' lone playoff appearance since all three were hired came during the
2021-22 season, when they finished sixth in the Eastern Conference at 46-36 and
got knocked out by Milwaukee in the first round. The Bulls lost point guard
Lonzo Ball to a knee injury during that season, and he missed the next two
years.
Chicago's most recent All-Star was DeMar DeRozan in 2023. The lack of a
franchise cornerstone player was glaring, and Karnisovas' reluctance to launch
into a major rebuild was a big source of frustration among Bulls fans. Rather
than give the team the best shot at winning the lottery, he stressed patience
and not skipping steps.
That changed this year when Karnisovas made seven trades before the deadline.
The Bulls mostly loaded up on second-round draft picks and didn't get any
first-rounders in return.
Among the players they acquired were Jaden Ivey from Detroit, hoping the No. 5
pick in the 2022 NBA draft could regain the form he showed before knee surgery.
But the Bulls waived him last week following anti-LGBTQ+ comments about
religion he made in videos posted on his Instagram account.
Ivey had been sidelined since Feb. 11 and appeared in just four games for
Chicago. His contract was set to expire at the end of the season.
The 60-year-old Donovan, meanwhile, got a contract extension last offseason. He
could seek another NBA coaching job or return to the college game if he doesn't
remain in Chicago. If he stays, the Bulls could give him a bigger say in
basketball operations while remaining their coach.
Donovan has consistently said he still has a passion for coaching, is committed
finishing the season and will then discuss the direction of the franchise with
management and ownership. He did it again prior to the Bulls' win over Phoenix
on Sunday.
"I love the organization," he said. "I love the relationship with Jerry and
Michael Reinsdorf and the relationship with the front office. All those things
have been great, the players have been great."
Donovan has a 467-411 record in 11 seasons as an NBA head coach. He was
arguably the top candidate on the market when the Bulls hired him in September
2020 to replace the fired Jim Boylen following a five-year run in Oklahoma
City. He led the Thunder to a 243-157 record and playoff appearances each
season while working with stars such as Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Paul
George and Chris Paul.
Donovan previously coached for 19 seasons at the University of Florida and won
back-to-back NCAA titles. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of
Fame in September.
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