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Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley’s honeymoon phase is over
The Chicago Bulls are 6-9 on the season after losing their last three games and five of their last six. If the season ended today, they would miss the play-in tournament, and executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley are being questioned.
Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley are under the microscope
ESPN 1000’s David Kaplan said on Wednesday’s edition of the ‘Kap & J Hood’ podcast that Karnisovas and Eversley disappointed him.
“Arturas and Marc Eversley, to this point, have been wildly disappointing to me, wildly,” Kaplan said. “What have they really done? They won one playoff game in a gentleman’s sweep... and if Khris Middleton doesn’t hurt his knee we get swept away.”
Last season the Bulls had their first playoff series in five years, and it was a disappointment, with the Bucks outscoring them by an average of 14.6 points per game.
The Bulls were without Lonzo Ball since January, and two-time NBA All-Star Zach LaVine was not at 100 percent. LaVine played in the first four games but missed Game 5.
Those injuries were why Karnisovas wanted to see this Bulls’ roster at full strength before making significant changes. LaVine is back, but he’s missed some games due to ‘left knee management,’ and Ball is still out.
The Bulls didn’t add three-point shooting
No one questions Karnisovas and Eversley’s credentials, but the Bulls failed to add three-point shooting in the last two offseasons, which has been an area of concern during their regime.
The Bulls ranked last in the NBA with 28.8 three-point attempts last season, but they made 36.9 percent (fourth in the league), which masked the issue. This season, the problem is back. They rank 28th with 29 three-point attempts per game and 15th in efficiency, shooting 35.9 percent.
Offensive continuity, defensive focus, turnovers, and rebounding are the other problems for the Bulls. All might be resolved when Ball finally returns from injury, but they should not use this as an excuse.
