Bulls fans have known for quite a while that the current regime is not taking the franchise anywhere near the promised land of an NBA championship. After four playoff absences in Arturas Karnisovas's five-year tenure with his leadership group, a postseason berth would suffice for many Chicagoans. Most of the city believes the change needs to happen at the top, starting with owner Jerry Reinsdorf. He also owns the pitiful franchise in South Chicago, the Chicago White Sox, who had a historically pathetic 2024 campaign. More than just Illinois has caught wind of how poorly these franchises have performed in recent years, and this morning's CBS article ranking all 30 NBA front offices from top to bottom exposed how embarrassing the Bulls' last decade has been.
Dead Last In The NBA
The Chicago Bulls are firmly at number 30 in the NBA front office rankings. While this list is entirely subjective and the opinion of a single sportswriter, Sam Quinn, his explanation and justifications for the standing are altogether factual. He's also got north of 16,000 followers on the X platform, has journalism experience with other titans in the sports industry, Bleacher Report and 247 Sports, and is an NBA contributor for one of the most prominent media outlets in the world, CBS. Safe to say, his opinion is most likely representative of many NBA fans and personnel. He had a lot to say regarding Karnisovas's malpractice.
I ranked all 30 front officeshttps://t.co/x1fhEV3ikD
— Sam Quinn (@SamQuinnCBS) February 21, 2025
There have been countless examples of where AK and his staff have dropped the ball since arriving in Chicago in the trade, draft, and free agent departments. What does Quinn highlight as tanking them to the bottom of the entire league?
Not Winning, No Future Assets, No Direction
It's laughable that Chicago finds itself below every other franchise in the NBA on Quinn's list, considering that the organization claims to be one of the most historic and outstanding in American sports history. The fast track to earning the dead-last positioning has been three-pronged for Karnisovas.
First, the draft selections have been lackluster. Their only top-five choice was Patrick Williams, a bust in all regards. The only other draft choice by this front office that would earn minutes elsewhere is their latest pick, Matas Buzelis, who's shaping up to be their lone formidable pickup.
Secondly, the contract extensions, specifically for Zach LaVine when he had no playoff resume, two All-Star nods, zero All-NBA honors, and for Williams, who hadn't shown improvement since his rookie campaign yet somehow netted $18 million annually for five years. Nikola Vucevic's extension could easily be tacked on this list.
Lastly, there is a lack of direction. This franchise hasn't won a single playoff series under his guidance and has only had one top-five draft selection. They've constantly hovered in the middle ground, haven't had an All-Star in three seasons, and don't boast a single player averaging over 20 points per game. Quinn said, "But there's just no argument whatsoever in favor of how the Bulls operate beyond consistently maximizing revenue and minimizing costs."
Artūras Karnišovas speaks to Bulls fans after the trade deadline. pic.twitter.com/USl3q1XOdN
— Bulls on CHSN (@CHSN_Bulls) February 6, 2025
