They were powerful words coming from Arturas Karnisovas on Saturday afternoon at the Advocate Center.
The Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations spoke about failed expectations, harsh lessons that were learned, and changes that were coming.
An admittance of a job gone wrong under his watch.
There was a prepared statement, but then Karnisovas answered questions from the heart. Maybe for the first time since taking the job back in 2020.
Powerful words, indeed.
And that’s unfortunately the issue surrounding Karnisovas and the rest of his organization at this point of his reign. Considering the Bulls missed the playoffs for the third time in four years, as well as some of the roster decisions that have been made, we’re past words at this point.
“In this business you win or you learn, so while I can be happy with some growth and learning this year, I won’t be satisfied until we bring a championship to the city of Chicago,” Karnisovas said. “That’s why I was hired, that’s why I am here, and my mission remains unchanged.
“I’m planning on sitting down with the staff for exit interviews, and then I will sit down with (coach) Billy (Donovan), (general manager) Marc (Eversley), and our front office to see what’s next, what worked, what didn’t. We will look for ways to improve and we will address our shortcomings through the draft, trades and free agency. I take full responsibility, however, and recognize when changes need to be made, and I believe that time is now.”
That’s where it gets tricky for Karnisovas & Co. They can want all the changes they want, but the market must be willing participants in those changes happening, especially if it involves trading the likes of a Zach LaVine – which remains a top priority this summer – or making a tough decision on the medical future of injured point guard Lonzo Ball.
What the Bulls can no longer do is brag about being a global brand but operate like a mom-and-pop store. Locally, several media outlets – including the Sun-Times – have pointed out for years that the Bulls seem to prioritize the business of basketball over actually winning basketball games.
Whether it’s been staying out of the luxury tax, safe moves or no moves at all at the trade deadline, butts in the seat have seemingly gained importance over wins in the standings.
This season, the Bulls are finding out that the national perception has also been growing in that direction. That’s why Karnisovas was asked flat-out about the real priority of this franchise, or at least his priority with it.
“I always think about basketball, I’m thinking about winning and that’s why I am here,” Karnisovas said. “I am not here to stay in the middle. But I think the formula we came up (with) three years ago, I thought it was working. Until a couple injuries and we’re going to have to find these answers in this offseason. Obviously, the results are not what we wanted, and I totally get it and it’s on me to figure it out.”
Which he will continue to have full autonomy to do. He was asked if Michael or Jerry Reinsdorf have turned up the heat on his job security and only responded, “No, I gotta do my job better. It’s my responsibility. This program is my responsibility. They’ve been, Jerry and Michael have been really supportive. Obviously, their expectation is better results. That’s why diving into this off-season I put an emphasis on turning this program around.”
No easy fix, especially with moving LaVine and the remainder of his $138-million max contract, kicking the tires on moving Nikola Vucevic, while still wanting to re-sign DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Williams.
“DeMar’s been great for us for three years,” Karnisovas said. “He’s been invested in the city of Chicago and has been really great to our young guys, so both sides are interested in continuing, so we’ll see what happens in free agency.”
What was refreshing from the executive was that it finally sounded like everything was on the table. Donovan and the rest of the front office were all safe, but the philosophy of staying away from a rebuild or the played-out “continuity” slogan, Karnisovas no longer sounded married to any one idea.
“We obviously can’t roll (out) the same team again and expect different results,” Karnisovas said. “We definitely understand that even with some of the positivity with the clutch wins and overtime wins, we’re still at 39 (wins) and at the play-in. We have to somehow generate an additional 10 wins. Even with the injuries we suffered this year, we need to change things.
“It’s a results-driven business and I’ll be evaluated based on results and I expect that. I just have to do a better job putting the group together and we all want to win. That’s what I’m here for, that’s what I’m going to try to do every year. When we come up short, that’s not the result that we want.”