Former Cholet Basket Executive Arturas Karnisovas Fired by the Chicago Bulls
Apr 7, 2026
Nathan Maguer
Billy Donovan Retained by the Bulls Despite Front Office Firings
Michael Reinsdorf wants to keep Billy Donovan as head coach. The Chicago Bulls executive is making it a condition that the next basketball executive must agree to work with the current coach, following the firings of Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley.
Apr 5, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan directs his team against the Phoenix Suns during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
Photo Credit : © Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
The Chicago Bulls are going through a major shake-up following Monday’s firing of their vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley. Despite these drastic changes, one constant appears to be emerging: Billy Donovan is expected to remain as head coach.
President and CEO Michael Reinsdorf clearly expressed Tuesday his desire to retain Donovan, even making it a prerequisite for future candidates for the basketball executive role. « If I’m interviewing someone and they’re not sold on Billy, not sold on a Hall of Fame coach, not sold on someone who won college championships and made deep playoff runs with Oklahoma City… then they’re probably not the right candidate for us, » Reinsdorf said.
A Decisive Meeting Scheduled After the Season
Donovan, 60, will meet with Bulls management as soon as the regular season ends to discuss his future. The coach, who has led the team for six seasons with a record of 224 wins and 254 losses, could even see his role expanded in basketball decisions.
« I don’t think Billy is going to take long to reach a conclusion on what he wants to do, » Reinsdorf said. « The season ends next week. We’ll sit down with Billy as soon as possible and find out where he stands. »
The Bulls, currently 29-49, will miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. This situation precipitated the firings of Karnisovas and Eversley after six years leading basketball operations, a period marked by just one playoff appearance.
Reinsdorf justified these changes by the need to give the franchise a new direction. « Over the last few months, I started looking at where we were and thinking: ‘How are we going to get out of this mess?' » he explained. The organization plans to hire a search firm to find Karnisovas’s successor, this time favoring a broader approach than the 2020 hiring process.
Jerry Reinsdorf says anyone interviewing for a front office role with the Chicago Bulls MUST be on board with Billy Donovan.
« If we’re interviewing someone and they’re not sold on Billy… then they’re not the right candidate for us. » pic.twitter.com/crPwfJFItb
— NBA Base (@TheNBABase) April 7, 2026
With a background in sports management, Nicolas Flamecourt covers NBA news with a particular passion for the North American league, which he has been following for several years. He also covers the NCAA, including news and scouting of future prospects, and regularly conducts interviews with French players as well as players competing in Europe.
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