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What's next for the Chicago Bulls' front office? It starts with Billy Donvan
The Bulls made it clear on Tuesday: Whatever happens with the team's front office will start with Billy Donovan. Tina Nguyen details what's next for the team after cleaning house.
The Chicago Bulls are looking for a new front office. Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley have been fired, and the future of the Bulls is in the hands of whomever is hired.
The Bulls have made a list of things they want in a new top executive, as Bulls President and Chief Operating Officer Michael Reinsdorf said he’s looking for someone that’s process-oriented, who has conviction and someone who’s a great communicator.
Apply within?
Here are a few names the Bulls could target to lead their front office, ranked into two tiers:
Make them say no
Bob Myers – Former Golden State Warriors General Manager & president of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment
Myers is not employed by an NBA team. That’s a good start. But, does he want the grind of building a contender from scratch again? You’ll only find out by making the call.
Myers has four NBA titles to his name. He built the Warriors dynasty in the 2010s and would have had four-straight titles if it weren’t for LeBron James epic comeback with the Cleveland Cavaliers down 3-1 to the Warriors in the NBA Finals.
He drafted the likes of Jonathan Kuminga, Jordan Poole, Moses Moody, and Kevon Looney, all players who became key role players for championship teams.
The Warriors changed the game under Myers. His ability to build winners transcended the sport. If he’s interested in running the Bulls’ front office, that’s not something the Bulls can afford to ignore.
Sam Presti – Oklahoma City Thunder President & General Manager
Make the guy say no!
It’s not a realistic option, considering Presti was the architect of an NBA Championship roster with one of the best young stars in the game in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. But, Presti’s name came up multiple times during Reinsdorf’s press conference on Tuesday as someone the Bulls could try and emulate in building a contending team.
Why not call the guy who everyone else is using as an example?
More realistic candidates
Mike Dunleavy Jr. – Golden State Warriors General Manager
Dunleavy knows the organization well. He’s a former Bull who was with the team from 2013 to 2016, playing in 176 games for Chicago. He’s the opposite of what Karnisovas was, too. Instead of a reserved type of personality, Dunleavey is someone Chicago is familiar with and can embrace. He’s been transparent as the Warriors’ GM, too.
He helped engineer an NBA championship in Golden State in 2022 as an assistant GM, but it should be noted that was also with a roster that included Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.
Since then, he’s engineered moves to get the Warriors in playoff contention. He got Jimmy Butler to be next to Curry, but Butler’s injury made the season difficult.
Matt Lloyd – Minnesota Timberwolves General Manager
This is someone with an acute understand of the Bulls.
Lloyd worked for the Bulls for 13 years. He started as a gameday and special projects employee in the video room, and joined the media relations room in 1999.
His resume also speaks for itself.
Lloyd also spent 10 seasons with the Orlando Magic, including two years as the team’s Vice President of Basketball Operations. In his last five years with the Bulls, he was the team’s director of college scouting from 2007 to 2012. In that span, the Bulls drafted Joakim Noah, Derrick Rose, Taj Gibson and Jimmy Butler. Lloyd was promoted to the Timberwolves general manager position in 2024.
He’s also familiar with the Reinsdorf family. Along with his 13 years with the Bulls, Lloyd spent five years as an employee with the Chicago White Sox in the team’s video department.
Lloyd is highly regarded in the NBA, and this would be seen as a smart hire.
Mike Zarren – Boston Celtics VP of Basketball Operations
Brad Stevens runs the show in Boston, make no doubt. But, Zarren is one of the most highly regarded executives in the NBA who isn’t a general manager.
The Celtics were assumed to be in a down season in 2025-2026 after the departures of Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, plus the Achilles injury to Jayson Tatum. Instead, Boston is heading to the playoffs as one of the top seeds in the Eastern Conference.
There’s also the fact Zarren helped build the Celtics into an NBA Champion. Boston won the 2024 NBA title as Jaylen Brown emerged as a star, Tatum became one of the faces of the NBA and the supporting cast grew into a winning team.
This came after the Celtics made it to the 2022 NBA Finals, too.
Zarren has worked his way from being an unpaid intern to the VP of Basketball Operations. There’s some speculation he’d never leave Boston, eventually taking over when Stevens retires. Maybe the Bulls can convince him with the right ask.
Zarren isn’t a stranger to Chicago, either. He’s a University of Chicago graduate.
Zach Kleiman – Memphis Grizzlies General Manager
This would be a tough pull, as landing a sitting general manager would only come with a massive title and pay upgrade.
But, Kleiman could fit with the right offer.
Kleiman was born in Chicago, grew up in Lincoln Park, attended the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and was a Bulls fan in his youth.
In his NBA executive career, Kleiman has exclusively been in Memphis. He joined the Grizzlies front office in 2014 and became the primary decision maker in 2019. Since then, he helped turn Memphis into a playoff contender.
He’s been solid on draft night, landing Desmond Bane in a trade while also selecting Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. But, he’s also aware of when to make a big swing.
Kleiman broke up the old Grizzlies core of Morant-Jackson-Bane and got eight first-round picks in trades involving Bane and Jackson. Famously, the last Bulls’ regime waited too long to sell and got minimal returns on their core.
The 2022 NBA Executive of the Year would be tough to pull from Memphis, but not many would have a better grasp of the situation than a Chicago native.
Donnie Nelson – Former Mavericks General Manager
Nelson has been out of the game since 2021, when the Mavericks and Nelson "mutually agreed to party ways."
That ended his 24-season run. However, during those two decades, he was one of the best international scouts in the NBA. In his time as a lead decision maker, he acquired Steve Nash (Canada), Dirk Nowitzki (Germany), Kristaps Porziņģis (Latvia) and Luka Dončić (Slovenia) via draft and free agency. He would have drafted Giannis Antetokounmpo had Mark Cuban not vetoed that draft pick.
His track record speaks for itself. So does the NBA title he helped win in 2011, upsetting the Miami Heat. If he's interested in running a team again, he could be a fit as an executive with years of experience.
Putting simply, Nelson wouldn't have traded Doncic.