Bulls name Karnisovas Head of Basketball Ops in series of huge front office moves
The Chicago Bulls made several key front office moves yesterday. First, the team officially hired Arturas Karnisovas as Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations. Shortly after that, Chicago announced they are parting ways with General Manager Gar Forman. Lastly, the Bulls released a statement saying former VP of Basketball Ops, John Paxson, will be taking on a new role as Sr. Advisor of Basketball Operations.
The 48-year-old Karnisovas joins the Bulls after serving as General Manager of the Denver Nuggets for the last three years. Since the start of the 2017 NBA Season, Denver has finished every year with a winning record. Most notably, the Nuggets finished the regular season last year as the second-best team in the Western Conference. In his new role with the Bulls, Karnisovas will be responsible for all decisions made by Chicago’s Basketball Operations Department.
It wasn’t all good news though for the Bulls. Chicago announced that it is parting ways with Gar Forman, who had been with the team for 22 years. Forman joined the Bulls’ organization as a scout in 1998 and was eventually promoted to General Manager in 2009. During his ten-year stretch as GM, Chicago made the playoffs seven times. Forman was also named the NBA Executive of the Year in 2011.
For the time being, John Paxson will still be a part of the Bulls’ organization. Paxson had served as Chicago’s GM from 2003 to 2009 when he was eventually replaced by Gar Forman. From 2009 until this off-season, Paxson had been the VP of Basketball Operations for the team. Bulls’ Owner Jerry Reinsdorf applauded Paxson’s transition to his new position by saying, “his decision to take on a new role reflects what I’ve always known about John – that he is forever a willing teammate on and off of the court and always does what he believes is in the best interest of the Chicago Bulls.”
The Bulls are hoping these moves will be the change they need to start playing good basketball again. Chicago last made the playoffs in 2017. Since then, the Bulls have finished every year with a losing record, going 71-158 over the last three years combined.
