Chicago Bulls leadership wants to retain head coach Billy Donovan, but the final decision rests in Donovan’s hands about his future with the organization.
During a media video conference on Tuesday, Bulls CEO and president Michael Reinsdorf stated that any incoming front office personnel must be fully committed to working with Donovan as head coach.
“If I interview someone and they’re not sold on Billy, they’re not sold on a Hall of Fame coach,” Reinsdorf said, “they’re not sold on a person who’s won championships in college, who’s gone deep in the playoffs with Oklahoma City. … If Billy wants to be our coach and someone’s not interested in that, then they’re probably not the right candidate for us.”
The critical word is “if.” According to Reinsdorf, Donovan has a scheduled meeting with team ownership on Monday to discuss his future, which comes the day following the team’s final game of the season against Dallas.
Donovan, who captured two NCAA titles while coaching Florida (2006, 2007), had been connected to the North Carolina opening, though former Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone was officially named to that position on Tuesday.
On Monday, the Bulls dismissed executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley. Reinsdorf indicated he wants Donovan to have increased input in roster construction.
“We’d be crazy not to want Billy’s input in player acquisition from players around the league,” Reinsdorf said. “He’s an NBA coach, he coaches against these guys. Some of these guys he’s already coached. Billy will be involved and will be encouraged … I’ll probably push Billy to be more involved.”
Reinsdorf even considered the possibility of Donovan transitioning to a front office role, though he clarified that Donovan hasn’t suggested this option.
“If he came to me and said, ‘Hey, I may want to do a Brad Stevens situation,’ I would sit down and listen to Billy,” Reinsdorf said, referring to the former Boston Celtics coach who became their president of basketball operations. “I don’t think that’s where his head’s at. I don’t think Billy cares about titles. Billy cares about being a head coach, and he cares about the players and cares about the organization.”
Donovan, who will turn 61 in May, has led the Bulls since the 2020-21 season but has only reached the playoffs once. The team has fallen to Miami in the play-in tournament in each of the last three seasons.
Chicago was already eliminated from playoff consideration and entered Tuesday’s matchup against Washington with a 29-49 record while riding a seven-game losing streak. Speaking to reporters before the game, Donovan expressed gratitude for Reinsdorf’s confidence in him.
“I’ve always believed this: The room is smarter than any individual and there are a lot of smart people in that room,” Donovan said. “I think if we can put our heads together and figure out how do we get to that? I don’t have all the answers to those things. I just know the last four years, we have not won at a high level. I want to win at a high level. I want to be a part of that. I think the organization deserves that, I think everyone in the organization wants that, and then everybody has got to put their heads together and figure out, ‘How do we go about doing that?’”
