Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan has announced he will be stepping down from his role with the team following a six season run.
According to reports, the team was hopeful that the two sides could work out a deal for Donovan to remain in place, but that the club would “respect his choice”. News of Donovan’s departure comes on the heels of sweeping changes to the team’s front office and management group earlier this month.
After a 4th straight season of missing out on the playoffs, the club relieved GM Marc Eversley and Executive VP of Basketball Operations Arturas Karnisovas of their duties on April 6th. Donovan and the team’s ownership group held extensive meetings over the last week regarding the direction of the team and his future with the organization. Ultimately, Donovan opted for a fresh start and informed the club he would not be picking up the option in his contract for next season.
“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,” Donovan said in a statement released 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.”
“My gratitude for this community and this organization is permanent,” Donovan continued. “Thank you Jerry and Michael for giving me this opportunity and more importantly, for the relationship that has been forged. I was so blessed to be able to work with such great owners. I owe so much to my players and staff over the last six years. You all have worked side by side with me, day in and day out to drive the Bulls organization forward. And a huge thank you to Bulls fans, your energy, passion and unwavering support provided a home-court advantage that is generally unmatched around the league.”
This development throws a bit of a wrench into Chicago’s search for a new GM as Michael Reinsdorf publicly vouched for Donovan, telling reporters that whoever was selected as the team’s general manager would be required to work alongside the veteran bench boss.
“If I interview someone and they’re not sold on Billy, they’re not sold on a Hall of Fame coach,” Reinsdorf said. “… If Billy wants to be our coach and someone’s not interested in that, then they’re probably not the right candidate for us.”
Elected into the basketball hall of fame in 2025, Donovan led the Bulls to a 226-256 record in Chicago following a 5 year run with the Oklahoma City Thunder. While with OKC, the team made the playoffs every season with Donovan along the sidelines, but that kind of on court success never materialized in the Windy City.
“We wanted Billy to continue as our head coach — that was never in question,” Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf said. “But through honest conversations, we all agreed that giving our new Head of Basketball Operations the right to build out his staff was the most important thing for the future of this franchise. That is the kind of person Billy is — he put the Bulls first. We are deeply grateful for everything he has given to this organization.”
According to sources, Donovan doesn’t plan on retiring, and is still very much interested in coaching. Whether he decides to take on a role with a new team for 2026-27, or sit out a year until a preferred destination becomes available remains to be seen.
As for Chicago, they’ll now add “head coach” to their list of offseason hires to make. The club is currently in the process of interviewing for their head of basketball operations role, and have received permission to interview Matt Lloyd (Minnesota GM, Dennis Lindsey (Pistons SVP), Bryson Graham (Hawks SVP), Mike Gansey (Cavaliers GM), and Dave Telep (Spurs assistant GM) from their respective teams.
Photo: Mack Male. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.