NEWSLETTER
All anyone needs to do is look at the Eastern Conference standings to know how much has changed for the Chicago Bulls. Missing the playoffs in four-straight seasons and failing to finish better than eighth in the East since the 2014-15 season, the Bulls became one of the most dysfunctional and least competitive franchises in the NBA. But let’s not open old wounds.
The hiring of Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley pumped new life into this organization, finally reversing much of the bad juju the Bulls built in recent years. COO Michael Reinsdorf recently opened up about all that has changed to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and he credited Karnisovas for such a remarkably fast turnaround.
“When we hired Arturas, I was confident that he would help turn things around, but I can’t say I thought it would be this quickly. There are no issues. There’s no drama. Just everyone wanting to get to the next level. It’s a good feeling.”
First of all… *knocks on wood for an hour*
Secondly … *takes a just-entered-a-hot-tub sigh of relief*
I don’t think any of us expected storm clouds behind the scenes, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t encouraging to hear how strong the Bulls’ internal operations have become. For years, all we would hear was the opposite, with mixed reports mimicking the mixed results we saw on the floor. Now, as the Bulls play a refreshing and unselfish brand of basketball on the court, it sounds like there is nothing but a refreshing and unselfish work environment upstairs.
“Karnisovas and Donovan are among the front-runners for Executive and Coach of the Year awards,” Wojnarowski wrote. “With them leading together, Reinsdorf has watched something within the Bulls that had been missing for years: the building of trust and relationships.”
Those two words are all Bulls fans have wanted to hear. Whether it be scouting the right talent, hiring the right head coach, or calling the right players in free agency, this is an organization that failed to build trust and form relationships season after season. Karnisovas and Eversley instantaneously flipped that switch, hiring one of the top names on the market at head coach and convincing big-name talent to tie their knot to Chicago. And what is that good for?
First in the East.
Read Wojnarowski full article below:
Chicago Bulls COO Michael Reinsdorf on franchise’s revitalization under Arturas Karnisovas: "When we hired Arturas, I was confident that he would help turn things around, but I can't say I thought it would be this quickly.” ESPN story: https://t.co/ERt5WtHtO1
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 14, 2022
