Billy Donovan stepping away as Bulls coach after 6 years

As this season wound down, Bulls coach Billy Donovan gave every indication he was happy with the organization and not ready to stop coaching.

However, the Bulls announced Tuesday morning Donovan is stepping away as head coach after six seasons on the job. His record with the Bulls is 226-256, with one playoff appearance and three play-in tournament losses. The Bulls finished 31-51 this past season.

The announcement was made via news release.

“After a series of thoughtful and extensive discussions with ownership regarding the future of the organization, I have decided to step away as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls, to allow the search process to unfold,” Donovan said in the statement. “I believe it is in the best interest of the Bulls, to allow the new leader to build out the staff as they see fit.”

This news will likely make it easier for the Bulls to fill their opening for director of basketball operations. The team fired both Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley on April 6.

“While we clearly wanted Billy to return as our head coach, we had open dialogue about the importance of respecting the process of bringing in new basketball operations leadership,” Michael Reinsdorf said in the statement. “Together, we mutually agreed that giving that person the freedom to shape the organization was the best approach for everyone involved.”

Donovan's statement went on to thank managing partners Michael and Jerry Reinsdorf.

“I was so blessed to be able to work with such great owners,” Donovan said. “I owe so much to my players and staff over the last six years. … And a huge thank you to Bulls fans, your energy, passion, and unwavering support provided a home-court advantage that is generally unmatched around the league.”

The Bulls were facing a tough sell for their basketball operations job if it came with the stipulation Donovan must stay as coach, which Michael Reinsdorf said would be the case. Such an agreement probably could have been done, but it also sent a message that the head coach is more important than the head of basketball operations, which likely made the job less attractive to outside candidates.

ESPN's Shams Charania published a list of six names of interest, with the Bulls expected to begin interviews this week.

The most familiar name on that list is Matt Lloyd, currently the Minnesota Timberwolves general manager.

Lloyd is a Fenton High School graduate who joined the Bulls as a public relations assistant in 1999. He moved to the scouting side when John Paxson took over as general manager a few years later and had a hand in some of the Bulls' successful drafts through 2012, when he joined the Orlando Magic. He moved to the Timberwolves in '22.

Another local candidate mentioned by ESPN is Evanston native Austin Brown, an agent with CAA, who represents Cooper Flagg, ex-Bull Jaden Ivey, among many other NBA players.

Others on the list are Detroit Pistons senior vice president Dennis Lindsey, Atlanta Hawks senior vice president Bryson Graham, Cleveland Cavaliers general manager Mike Gansey and San Antonio Spurs assistant GM Dave Telep.

Lindsey was GM of the Utah Jazz from 2012-21, helping assemble the playoff teams with Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. Graham spent most of his career in New Orleans, working his way up from intern. Gansey is a former West Virginia guard who got his start as an executive by leading the Cavs' G-League team, then became assistant GM in 2017. Telep was an ESPN recruiting analyst before joining the Spurs in 2013.

The Bulls have made the playoffs just twice in the past 11 seasons, since firing coach Tom Thibodeau in 2015. Donovan led one of those playoff trips in 2022, while Fred Hoiberg also made the postseason in 2017.

Regardless of who runs the team, an important day for the Bulls is coming up on May 10. That's when the NBA draft lottery will be held, with the Bulls having a 4.5% chance of landing the top overall pick.