Chicago Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas’ season-ending press conference contained many of the same elements as his previous speaking appearances.
He repeated that he wants to bring back DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Williams.
Karnisovas expressed sorrow about how the season ended and showed confidence in Head Coach Billy Donovan. He also noted ownership’s confidence in him to do his job.
But it was Karnisovas’ comments about the larger group as a whole that stood out the most. Especially after the Bulls’ lost to the Miami Heat in the second round of the Play-In Tournament for the second year in a row.
“Going into free agency, I think we’re going to be pretty aggressive the way that we showed before going into draft and free agency,” Karnisovas told reporters on April 20. “We, obviously, cannot roll with the same team again and expect different results. So we definitely understand that even with some of the positivity – the clutch wins and overtime wins – we’re still at 39, and we’re Play-In. And we somehow have to generate additional 10 wins.
“Even with injuries that we suffered this year, I think we need to change things.
“This group, something doesn’t work. I’ve got to find ways to find a group that’s going to make improvements. Because we’ve done that for a couple of years now and it hasn’t worked. So everything is on the table.”
He did say they looked into making deals at the deadline in February but didn’t find anything to their liking. He said they will remain aggressive in trying to improve the roster.
Karnisovas preached continuity as the path to success and practiced that ideology for two years.
Arturas Karnisovas’ Vow of Aggression Not Backed by Recent Trends
Karnisovas has not traded for an established player since August of 2021. This is despite trade rumors ensnaring several Bulls players in that time since.
He has also staunchly pushed against calls to go a different direction with this group.
“That’s been thrown around all this season, ‘blow it up’, ‘rebuild’. It’s not on our minds,” Karnisovas said in this same situation last year on April 15. “The moment we changed our minds in 2021 season to focus on winning and try to build a sustainable program here, I think that’s where we’re focused now.”
Now, faced with many of the same questions – including plans for Zach LaVine after failing to trade him this year, Lonzo Ball’s health after two years away from the court, and Donovan’s job security – Karnisovas is left to face the music of his creation.
It took a lot of assets to put this group together, something Karnisovas has pointed out before when faced with the idea of blowing it up.
And there have been some encouraging developments along the way.
But they are often overshadowed by the negatives, such as Karnisova’s call to improve their three-point shooting. The Bulls improved their volume (28.9 3PA to 32.1) but their efficiency from deep took a step back (36.1% to 35.8%).
With Karnisovas indicating few if any changes to the executive staff, there is little reason to expect a significant shift in how the Bulls operate.
Karnisovas also set a top-four goal for the conference qualifier. getting into the luxury tax.
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Karnisovas has made four clear successful decisions in his four years leading the franchise.
His first success was recruiting DeRozan and Alex Caruso. Both players have shown the work ethic the organization wanted for the younger players, and their contracts, initially thought to be overpays, have turned out to be great deals.
Karnisovas also did well to choose Dosunmu in the draft and keep White when he revamped the roster.
On the other hand, giving LaVine a max contract – especially when considering their attempts to trade him – re-signing Nikola Vucevic, and drafting Williams look like mistakes.
Vucevic’s a $60 million contract over three years was badly received coming into the season. His ability to create space on the floor was at its lowest during the season. Now committed to him, the Bulls are also going to lose his backup Andre Drummond to free agency.
They decided not to trade Drummond at this year’s deadline.
Drummond has often been as effective, if not more so, than Vucevic despite an inconsistent role under Donovan. He almost chose to leave his contract last offseason.
LaVine’s injury history undermined his already doubtful trade value. Williams’ failure to live up to expectations as a former No. 4 overall pick leaves his future uncertain. Both players were supposed to be crucial to the franchise’s success.
Ball’s presence has been the perfect addition.
