Bulls willing to let Donovan reshape coaching staff
The Bulls continued the trend of sparing no expense in rebuilding their basketball operations department. The team announced Monday the firing of assistant coaches Roy Rogers, Nate Loenser, Dean Cooper and Karen Stack Umlauf.
This simply means new head coach Billy Donovan will be allowed to build his own coaching staff, a relatively common practice in the NBA.
Rogers and Chris Fleming were added to Jim Boylen's staff last summer on long-term contracts. There was no mention of Fleming in Monday's news release, so it's possible he's staying. No word yet on potential additions.
Oddly enough, the Oklahoma City Thunder added five new assistants to Donovan's staff last summer before his final season in OKC. One assistant that was with Donovan during his entire five-year run with the Thunder is Chicago native Maurice Cheeks.
The Bulls reportedly exercised Loenser's contract option for 2020-21 in the spring, when Boylen was still on the job. Loenser came from Iowa State with Fred Hoiberg in 2015, first serving as video coordinator, then coaching the Windy City Bulls during their inaugural season, before returning to the Bulls bench.
Stack Umlauf has been with the Bulls since 1984, serving as the longtime assistant to the general manager, working for both Jerry Krause and John Paxson.
The Bulls' overhaul began in April with the hiring of Arturas Karnisovas from the Denver Nuggets as the team's new vice president of basketball operations. Marc Eversley was brought in from Philadelphia to be general manager, while J.J. Polk and Pat Connelly are assistant GMs. The team also named a new head trainer in Todd Campbell.