CHICAGO (WGN) — The ever elusive Artūras Karnišovas appeared for his end-of-year press conference with the Chicago Bulls Thursday. After 20 minutes, he left as many question marks as there were this time last year on the direction of one of basketball’s most storied franchises.
“I want to go back to last year, this time, sitting in front of you and talking about making changes and making difficult decisions, and we made a bunch of them,” Karnišovas said in his opening statement. “We traded Alex [Caruso], DeMar [DeRozan] and at the trade deadline, we moved Zach [LaVine]. All those changes were basically in order to accomplish four goals.”
Those four goals were to define their style of play and the Bulls’ shooting profile, retain their 2025 first-round pick and other picks moving forward, target young players and how they’re going to build the roster, then focus on the internal development of the young players they identified, according to Karnisovas.
Chicago identified their playing style—fast—and their shooting profile—attack the rim and heave from deep, while finding opportunities to attack the mid-range from inside the free-throw circle.
The Bulls had the second-highest pace of play this year (102.83) behind the Memphis Grizzlies (103.26), while finishing at or above league average in 3-point shooting from the left wing to the right corner, field goal percentage at the rim, and far above league average on short mid-rangers from 12-15 feet straightaway from the basket.
In a roundabout way of doing it, Chicago got their 2025 first-round pick back in the three-team trade that sent Zach LaVine to the Sacramento Kings. The Bulls originally sent that pick to the San Antonio Spurs when they acquired DeMar DeRozan in 2021.
Chicago also identified players like Josh Giddey, who they acquired in the Alex Caruso trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder last June, and Matas Buzelis, who they took with the 11th overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft.
And to those young players’ credit—Coby White, Giddey and Buzelis among the most notable—their play did improve drastically down the stretch of the regular season, even if it saw the Bulls finish the season in the same sub-.500 purgatory that has become the norm.
Chicago went 15-5 over their final 20 games to surge back into the fringe of the NBA playoff picture by year’s end.
Giddey averaged 21.0 points, 10.3 rebounds and 9.0 assists per game while posting shooting splits of 50/47.1/80.5 during that 20-game stretch.
“[Giddey] found that niche. He found, you know, belief in himself. This group, they found another gear,” Karnišovas said. “That would be Coby, Josh, even Matas with his new role so, I think [Giddey] fits really well here and I hope to see him here for years to come.”
White was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month in March after he tallied 27.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 35.3 minutes across 15 games.
“Coby’s progression every year has been unbelievable. he always found another level,” Karnišovas said. “After the All-Star weekend, he improved his scoring average by six. He was player of the month. He found his voice with this group.”
Buzelis averaged 13.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 blocks in 31 consecutive starts to end the regular season, which included a 31-point performance on 12/18 shooting in a 31-point win over the Los Angeles Lakers in LA back on March 27.
Even with all of that progress from their young pieces, the Bulls still finished 39-43 and lost by 19 points in their play-in matchup against the Miami Heat Wednesday—the third straight year Chicago’s season has been ended at the hands of the Heat in the play-in tournament.
It’s a nauseating cycle that Karnišovas and crew seem to rinse and repeat every year in the Windy City, and Thursday, he said little to assuage concerns they would finish next season anywhere else but in near-identical fashion.
“Obviously, everyone is disappointed, the way we played the last month and a half, to finish like that,” Karnišovas said of their play-in loss to Miami. “Nobody wanted that. Players, coaches and the front office are disappointed to go out this way. However, we’re going to focus the next two month on how we can improve this roster.
“We’re going to prepare for the 2025 draft, and then free agency, and going into the 2026 season, how we can be better getting to the summer of 2026 [with] financial flexibility. I think we can improve our roster that way as well.”
That’s where things get tricky though. Karnišovas said he wants to pursue a premier free agent this offseason, but there are variables in the equation that could make that tougher to achieve than previously imagined.
On top of that, Karnišovas asked fans to be patient, given it will take time for the franchise to sort through those factors this offseason.
“I am asking for fans of patience because we are in the first year of that transition,” Karnišovas said. “I thought the way we finished the year shows some promise. It’s hard to win games in this league and to finish 15-5, yeah, it’s not a victory lap, but I think there’s some positives.”
On the surface, the Bulls are heading toward this offseason as a Top 5 team in cap space across the entire NBA. According to Spotrac, Chicago is projected to be $59.8 million below the first luxury-tax apron, and $71.6 million below the second luxury tax apron, meaning they could have the financial flexibility to pursue a premier player this offseason. But that’s without factoring in potential new deals for Giddey and White, as well as the status of this year’s free agency class.
Before this season, Giddey was looking for an extension in the $30 million per season range, which the Bulls walked away from without really having any serious conversations, according to the Chicago Sun-Times Joe Cowley in February. He’s set to test restricted free agency this offseason.
White is set to become a free agent at the end of the 2026 NBA season. Under the NBA’s 140% rule, Chicago could offer him an extension worth about $18 million a year—a number White would likely scoff at if he continues to put up averages anywhere near his numbers from this March.
“When the time comes, we’ll talk to him,” Karnišovas said. “But I think he’s done an unbelievable job this year.”
Then there’s the strength of this free agent class. It’s particularly weak when it comes to finding that franchise-altering player most teams back up the Brinks truck for in free agency.
When it comes to unrestricted free agents, Malcolm Brogdon or D’Angelo Russell may be the Bulls best option to replace Giddey if a team lures him away with a contract Chicago’s unwilling to match.
The Bulls also need a center who can help anchor their defense and protect the rim. Options there include Brook Lopez, Clint Capela, Myles Turner or Steven Adams.
Chicago may need to cross their fingers and hope a couple higher higher-profile players exercise their player option and test free agency. Naz Reid could be their center, or a player like Kyrie Irving, James Harden or Khris Middleton could be the X factor that helps lift them outside the play-in tournament.
But that would all hinge on one of those players 1) opting into free agency, and 2) deciding the Bulls are the team for them.
Toward the end of the press conference, Karnišovas wouldn’t provide a firm timeline of when he expected the franchise to go into a full rebuild, or miraculously make the NBA playoffs without qualifying for the play-in tournament.
All he mentioned was that the ultimate goal for the Bulls is to shrink the championship timeline, and somehow get there faster than expected.
“That’s the goal, shrinking the timeline. Basically, to have a faster turnaround,” Karnišovas said. “But I think there’s a lot to like about this young roster. I think they’ve showed it the second half of the season. We’re going to try to add pieces and get better for next year and especially in the Eastern Conference.”
*Karnišovas’ full press conference can be watched in the video embedded below this article.