A pretty portrait was being painted.
One of collaboration and “being on the same page.”
Bulls executive vice president Arturas Karnisovas was asked Thursday about ownership’s backing of his decision-making and said, “We take pride, especially in this building, in everybody being on the same page. It’s very hard to accomplish, but that’s how it is in this building between the ownership, front office, coaching staff, performance staff, so they have always been very supportive of my decisions, my thoughts, about this direction.”
He made it sound like a well-oiled machine.
Less than seven hours after Karnisovas made that statement, however, that machine appeared to be breaking down.
News reached Bulls players that Karnisovas decided to fire director of player development/shooting coach Peter Patton after the loss to the Heat on Wednesday in the play-in game, leaving a core of players “beyond pissed,” as one said in a text.
“Coach Pete was the real deal . . . [messed] up,” another player said.
It wasn’t just smoke coming from the locker room for the wildly popular Patton but a full-blown fire.
Throughout the season, Coby White, Patrick Williams, Dalen Terry, Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis publicly praised the work they put in with Patton and the benefits it had on their game.
But the move also pulled back the curtain on what some feel is a bigger issue.
According to a source, Patton liked to shoot from the hip and speak his mind when asked. The feeling is that Karnisovas often asks for opinions, but “they have to fit his,” the source said.
If someone’s ideas conflict with his on roster-building or player development, there’s a warning to mute it or there could be consequences.
The source said it’s the reason why there has been such a confusing list of fired personnel in the last few years alone. The handling of assistant coach Mo Cheeks, also well-liked by the players, ended in bizarre fashion. Then there was assistant coach Chris Fleming, director of performance health Chip Schaefer, trainer Arnold Lee and, less than a few months ago, vice president of basketball strategy and analytics Steve Weinman.
The training staff did need a makeover, the source said, but, for the most part, everyone else just had differing opinions on a player or the organization, and those opinions did not align with Karnisovas’.
In Karnisovas’ defense, coach Billy Donovan always has pointed out the open dialogue he has had with him, and when Karnisovas was asked Friday about these allegations, he reiterated that the entire building was “on the same page.”
“I spent time with players [Thursday], and they really loved how this group competed [the] last two months and were looking forward to building [on] it,” Karnisovas said in a text. “I am making decisions, not all the time popular ones, but I have information that helps me to make decisions and helps this team row in the same direction. I have good relationships with everyone in that building, and there is nothing lost in translation, but at times I have to make decisions [on] what’s best for the organization.”
Karnisovas is the head man in charge, so he has the right to hire or fire whomever he wants, but the last thing any organization needs is a boss with a bunch of yes-men surrounding him. That was the Gar Forman way of doing business, and it seldom ends well.
The immediate concern is the Patton decision, which has instant ramifications with the players. Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley used to preach about becoming a “players-first” organization when they were hired.
Let the damage control begin.