Checking in on the new Bulls front office

is this the least interesting coaching search ever?

There hasn’t been much news in the first near-month of Bryson Graham’s tenure leading the Chicago Bulls, but I don’t want to let too many weeks pass before providing an update.

I’m going to start with front office, because I think at this ‘stage’¹ of the franchise - the toilet - that is the most urgent need.

The current purely-headcount change in the front office is zero:

3 Out: Karnisovas (!!!!), Eversley (!!), Josh Malone

3 In: Graham, Stephen Mervis, Acie Law IV

Julia Poe at the Tribune is implying, due to their involvement of hiring Graham in the first place, that John Paxson, JJ Polk (previously worked with Graham in New Orleans), and Pat Connelly are staying.

Like the hire of Graham, we have no way of assessing the quality of his new underlings so I will not even attempt it. But in terms of quantity, this is underwhelming so far². In his opening press conference, Graham mostly hit the right notes and certainly came across as more capable than his predecessor. But one statement was likely innocuous but is triggering if you know The Bulls:

There are very very good people, and talented people, in the building already.

There was no follow up question of “how did you determine that?”. And while at the time it could’ve been rationalized as Graham not wanting to trash anybody before more quietly firing them later, there hasn’t been many firings in the time since, and all talk of expanding and spending on the front office has also been next to nothing.

I think would have been a fair question to ask why the certainty in judgement of executives, because in that same press conference Graham said he didn’t have any idea of his coaching search yet because it was so early.

The coaching search has seemingly overtaken the front office one. Bleacher Nation has aggregated the ‘fairly extensive’ reported list of candidates:

• Oklahoma City Thunder assistant coach Dave Bliss³

• Cleveland Cavaliers associate head coach Johnnie Bryant

• Former New Orleans Pelicans interim head coach James Borrego

• Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori

• Atlanta Hawks assistant coach Ryan Schmidt

• Charlotte Hornets assistant coach Lamar Skeeter

• Interim Portland Trail Blazers head coach Tiago Splitter

• Former Golden State Warriors assistant coach Jerry Stackhouse

• San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Sean Sweeney

• Bulls assistant coach Wes Unseld Jr.

I have followed these reports but find myself not really caring. The Bulls are in such a deep hole - and assessing coaches is such an inexact science - that I can’t really tell who would be the ‘right’ hire.

I do think the desired attribute of a coaching candidate is that he shares a vision with Graham. Lottery reform should uncomplicate the incentives in building/development versus winning, and I expect Graham’s hire to agree with him on the Bulls’ course of action in this first year of their latest rebuild. I don’t think conflicting priorities was a problem with Karnisovas and Billy Donovan, the problem there was that their shared vision was stupid.

Unlike with the front office hire, I don’t have a coaching candidate preference of experience and accomplishment. It can be a first time guy, or a retread, I won’t judge what they did in previous stops as they likely had different goals set out by their bosses. I’ll wait to judge, with Graham and the next head coach, on what they set their goals at going forward.

1. AK’s final preferred term. I am still experiencing PTSD from this ineffectual dummy ruining my enjoyment for so many years.

2. I feel a need to preempt counterarguments and acknowledge that this is early and I’m NOT already saying Graham isn’t doing enough fast enough. Just relaying what’s been done.

3. NOT the scandal-ridden former college coach of the same name