Billy Donovan tried his best, but even he couldn't fix the Bulls. Can anyone?

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After losses and wins, the former coming slightly more often than the latter in his six years with the Chicago Bulls, Donovan could seem beleaguered by everything that was wrong with the product on the floor without turning to negativity or blaming others. He wanted better. Everyone did. And so it was no surprise that his farewell message showed he saw the same thing you did and the Reinsdorfs didn’t: It would be foolish to handcuff a new regime with an incumbent head coach. “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,” he wrote in an official statement sent out by the team. “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.” He went on to thank everybody, but really, president/CEO Michael Reinsdorf might have set this in motion when he said the next regime would have to inherit Donovan, who signed a multiyear contract extension last offseason. “If Billy wants to be our coach,” Reinsdorf told reporters after firing Artūras Karnišovas and Marc Eversley before the end of the Bulls’ 31-51 season, “and someone’s not interested in that, then they’re probably not the right candidate for us.” Reinsdorf later clarified his position to The Athletic. “The point I was making is that he is a good coach,” he wrote in an email. “I don’t think there’s a candidate out there who would not want to interview with us because I’d like Billy to remain as our coach.” He meant well, but it was too strong a show of support. It unintentionally made Donovan look like some organizational holdover, like some favored coach for Jerry Reinsdorf’s other team, the White Sox. Reinsdorf was promising change while still holding onto the past. The organization needed to pick a lane, and in the end, it was Donovan who had to do the driving. Surely, every candidate out there respects Donovan, a Hall of Famer. But that doesn’t mean the next executive vice president of basketball operations or general manager wouldn’t want their own person in charge. That’s part of the allure of running your own team: making all the decisions. And it doesn’t mean Donovan would want to adapt to a new situation that likely will include a transition period. If the Bulls are really interested in changing a stale basketball operations department, this was a necessary move, and it was well-timed as the team is starting its interview process for the top front office job. Donovan’s graceful step aside reminded me of how Boylen made the team’s media relations staff send out a press release congratulating the Reinsdorfs on the hire of Karnišovas. It was a kiss-up move of the century. He was fired a few months later, and Donovan was brought in to right the ship. Donovan will be missed by the organization, from the players to the front-office staff, for his kindness and professionalism. And yes, there’s a very good chance the next hire would be a worse coach. That’s kind of a tradition in Chicago. They’ll almost certainly be a worse talker. With Karnišovas a reluctant communicator, Donovan was the voice and face for the Bulls during his tenure. Michael Reinsdorf said he would look to hire someone better than Karnišovas in that department. It would be hard to find someone worse. Donovan is coming off an awful year off the court, having lost his father and his mother-in-law. His mom has been sick. The losses on the court were wearing on him as well, as you could see. A 31-51 season wasn’t how he wanted to go out, but six years in one job with one playoff appearance and an open invite back is unusual in itself. The Bulls need to have higher standards when it comes to the bottom line. Donovan passed up on the opportunity to interview for blue-chip college jobs, but there’s a sense that he’ll coach again in the NBA, maybe as soon as this season. He’s only 60. He’s in great shape and has a lot to offer. But let’s be as real as Donovan here. For all his skill as a coach, he didn’t accomplish much with the Bulls, in terms of wins and losses or memorable moments. The Bulls had one decent season that was waylaid by Lonzo Ball’s knee injury. After that, they become a league-wide punchline as a middling, lost franchise with Play-In Tournament dreams. The Bulls went years without even reaching the .500 mark past the early weeks of the season. Donovan adapted his approach to his personnel. Some players really improved. Others did not. He certainly wasn’t given the best rosters by his overmatched, underprepared front office, but he kept those mismatched teams mildly competitive. His work here should be respected, not lionized. This year, after a fire sale at the trade deadline, the Bulls went from mediocre to putrid, which was a purposeful step down to ensure better odds in the upcoming draft lottery. Donovan and the Reinsdorfs were aligned in their aversion to tanking, but the NBA is not the NFL, and there are no quick fixes. You need some luck and a lot of draft picks to build out a contender.  The Bulls have had neither in recent years, and that’s why the front office needed to be fired and why Donovan was realistic in walking away right now. They weren’t going to fire him, so he had to fire himself. (John Paxson found himself in a similar situation six seasons ago.) The next front office and head coach need to be aligned to build something sustainable. Donovan saw that, and hopefully now, the Reinsdorfs do too. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms