Bulls' Michael Reinsdorf Breaks Silence After Front Office Purge

The media doesn't easily get access to the ownership layer. Management doesn't hold open pressers unless necessary — and that happened on Tuesday.

Before the Chicago Bulls faced the Washington Wizards in DC on Tuesday, team president and CEO Michael Reinsdorf stepped in front of cameras following the dismissals of Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley, taking accountability publicly and addressing the media.

"I want to start by speaking directly to our fans: I hear, I understand the frustrations. And I feel it, too," Reinsdorf said plainly.

Amid the front office overhaul, the first order of business for the Bulls was clarity on the sideline. Reinsdorf made it simple: Billy Donovan, now wrapping up his sixth season in Chicago, isn't going anywhere — at least not by organizational force.

"I want it to be very clear: We want Billy to continue to be the coach of the Chicago Bulls," Reinsdorf said.

The organization will conduct a more rigorous search for its next front office hire, including the use of a search firm — something they notably skipped when bringing in Karnisovas and Eversley. Reinsdorf acknowledged the COVID-time recruiting process left critical blind spots in evaluating candidates up close.

"I actually didn't meet Arturas in person until after we hired him," he said.

This time around, Reinsdorf said the process will be more thorough and that Donovan will have input in recruiting the new front office. An internal meeting will be scheduled next Monday to discuss Donovan's future — whether he stays as a coach or transitions into a front-facing role. But Reinsdorf drew a firm line on one thing: whoever gets hired needs to be sold on Donovan, not the other way around.

"If Billy wants to be our coach, and someone's not interested in that, then they're probably not the right candidate for us," he said.

Reinsdorf was direct about one thing he doesn't want the franchise associated with: tanking.

"Sure, there are some fans who might say, 'lose games on purpose, do whatever you can to hopefully win the lottery'... but there are a lot of fans that go to the games who aren't there to see us get blown out," he said.

Still, the reality is that this franchise is entering a rebuilding phase, whether the word is used or not. The brief window of optimism back in the 2021-22 season — when Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball ignited the Bulls to the top of the Eastern Conference before Ball's season-ending knee injury derailed everything — now feels like a distant flicker. Chicago's lone playoff appearance under Karnisovas and Eversley ended in a first-round sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks that year. This closing season also became the worst of Donovan's tenure in Chicago.

However, to the formers’ credit, the Bulls are projected to hold two first-round picks heading to the draft this year, including one from the Portland Trail Blazers, a lottery-protected selection stemming from the 2021 three-team trade that sent Lauri Markkanen to Cleveland. If Portland slides out of the playoffs, Chicago's pick climbs higher. Meanwhile, the Bulls currently sit at the ninth lottery position with a 20.3% chance at a top-four pick and a 4.5% shot at first overall, per Tankathon.

Add in approximately $65 million in projected cap space that the team could maneuver in future trades, a further growth expected from Matas Buzelis and the return of Noa Essengue — all these building blocks are quietly more intriguing than the current standing suggests. The new front office, possibly shaped by Donovan's input, will inherit a roster with real room to operate.

What comes next, though, isn't without promise. But Reinsdorf said it was time to “clean slate,” eyeing a long-term blueprint.

"I don't want to be just good for one or two years. I want it to be year in and year out, we have a chance to be competitive and win," Reinsdorf said.

When defining the ideal front office candidate, Reinsdorf outlined some specific bullet points: a good communicator who is process-oriented, convinced in their approach and fluent in reading league trends.

Reinsdorf acknowledged that communication has historically been a blind spot in the organization, going back to the Jerry Krause era. It wasn't Karnisovas' strength either.

One recent example might exemplify this: Donovan found it difficult to get involved in conversations about the team's February trade deadline acquisitions under a compressed road trip, with no direct briefing from the front office, at least. That disconnect between the sideline and the front office festered, and the Jaden Ivey situation consequently became the final straw that forced the organization's axe.

"If that (future candidate)'s not communicating, we're going to know it. That's something we don't stand for," Reinsdorf said.