Assessing Billy Donovan’s Future With the Bulls

The Chicago Bulls’ season came to a disappointing end after they were defeated by the Miami Heat, 109–90, on their home court. This defeat marked the third consecutive season that the Bulls have lost to the Heat in the Play-In. Yet another failure to make the playoffs has raised serious questions about the Bulls’ plan for the long-term future. The front office has failed to communicate a clear direction of the team to the fans and media, with three seasons of inactivity during the trade deadline, and retaining the players and staff regardless of the results on the court.

Despite a mediocre 195-205 record with the team, Billy Donovan is now the fifth-longest tenured NBA coach after the firings of Denver Nuggets’ Michael Malone and Memphis Grizzlies’ Taylor Jenkins earlier this month. General Manager Arturas Karnisovas has continued to express confidence in Donovan as the head coach of the team. Donovan received a contract extension before the start of the 2022-23 season for an undisclosed period of time, leaving many questions as to what the Bulls’ coaching timeline looks like. While it does not appear that Donovan’s seat is currently hot, the front office needs to strongly reconsider his job security for a chance at contention soon.

Assessing Billy Donovan’s Future With the Bulls

Why It’s Time For a Change

Even with the recent success of Coby White and Josh Giddey, Billy Donovan has struggled with player development. This is an issue for a team entering a youth-focused era. Matas Buzelis‘ lack of early-season minutes is a prime example.

Through the first three months, Buzelis averaged 13.3 minutes per game, an appallingly low figure for a healthy lottery pick. With the minutes restriction lifted, Buzelis’ production jumped from 5.7 to 12.8 points and from 0.2 to 1.9 assists from January to February. His short stint as a reserve may seem minor in the grand scheme of things, but the hesitancy to let Buzelis loose is worrying. Some players cannot afford the confidence hit of resting on the bench, and this is a concerning pattern.

Lauri Markkanen is another example of Donovan’s developmental struggles. Markkanen began his Bulls career looking promising, averaging 15.2/7.5/1.2 as a rookie and 18.7/9/1.4 per game in his second season before stagnating. Once Donovan took over coaching the Bulls, Markkanen never reached the same heights. His numbers dramatically dipped, as he averaged career lows in points, rebounds, field goal percentage, and three-point percentage over the next two seasons before being shipped to the Cavaliers in the 2021 offseason. While he did not find his footing in Cleveland due to playing out of position at small forward, the rest is history once he was traded to the Utah Jazz. Markkanen won the Most Improved Player award in the 2022-2023 season by averaging 25.6/8.6/1.9, career highs across the board.

Donovan’s utilization of these young guys raises concerns. Although he may not be the worst coach in the league at managing young talent, there is enough inconsistency in that area to warrant a fresh start at head coach.

The Last Word

Keeping Donovan around commits to a ceiling of mediocrity. Indeed, Donovan has somewhat overachieved with a less-than-promising roster filled with injuries and mismanaged contracts. However, the last few seasons are concrete proof that the Bulls are simply not a good enough team to contend in an already weak Eastern Conference.

Running back the same squad and hoping for different results has not worked and has kept the Bulls from attaining a top pick in the draft lottery. The Bulls have missed out on elite prospects like Victor Wembanyama by maintaining the status quo, and it is time for a change. The Bulls and Donovan need to part ways to successfully begin their next era.