Despite their lack of moves for the past three years, the Chicago Bulls need to be planning for the future. Guys like DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic won’t be around forever, and the Bulls likely aren’t going to win any championships with their current core. In turn, it’s all about tomorrow in Chicago.
Leading the way for their next-up group is Coby White, who has enjoyed a breakout season this year. However, a recent injury scare will have White thinking about his preparation process. He’s been playing more minutes than ever, and the Bulls will need him to be at his best every step of the way.
Head coach Billy Donovan recently spoke about how the injury will help define White’s offseason preparation moving forward, especially with his new expectations. (H/t Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune)
“For Coby, it’s been an eye-opening experience in a lot of ways,” Donovan said. “He has an incredible threshold to fight through things. But coming into the season, I don’t know if he would’ve anticipated the number of minutes that he’s gotten this year. … That’s part of his evolution as a player.”
Despite a loss in the play-in tournament, it looks like the Chicago Bulls are intent on keeping Billy Donovan as the head coach.
Following the Bulls 112-91 loss to the Miami Heat that ended its season, executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas endorsed Donovan and said “the group hasn’t worked” which is what has hurt the Bulls’ chances of becoming a contender.
This was the second consecutive year Chicago had lost in the play-in tournament and the franchise has not won a playoff series since 2014-15.
Donovan has been with the Bulls since the 2020-21 season and has compiled a 156-162 overall record. He led Chicago to a 39-43 record in 2023-24, which earned it the No. 9 seed in the tournament.
He was notably a name floated as a potential replacement for John Calipari in Kentucky when Calipari departed for Arkansas. However, Kentucky would instead opt to hire BYU coach Mark Pope before the Bulls’ season ended.
This means that Donovan should be expected to return to the Bulls in 2024-25, but getting more out of the team will be high on the bucket list. This may be a difficult task, considering Lonzo Ball’s unclear future as a result of knee injuries and the potential for DeMar DeRozan to leave in free agency this Summer.
DeRozan has stated a desire to remain with Chicago but has said his priority is winning. Donovan and the Bulls have not done that consistently, so building a competitive team and developing a system will be crucial.
The Bulls are hiring Billy Donovan III, the son of Bulls head coach Billy Donovan, to become the next head coach of their G-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, Bulls PR confirmed to NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson.
Donovan III will replace Henry Domercant, who has been the head coach of the G-League affiliate since 2021. His best season coaching came from the 2022-23 season when the team finished 18-13 in the regular season and 12-7 in the Showcase Cup.
Domercant could land on Billy Donovan’s coaching staff with the Bulls in the NBA, according to Bulls PR.
Donovan III has started as an assistant coach with the Windy City Bulls this past season. Before joining the affiliate, he served as a video coordinator for the Chicago Bulls over the last two years.
He played collegiately at the Catholic University of America from 2010-12. He played then at Florida from 2013-15, which his dad coached between 1996-2015, leading them to two National Championships in 2006 and 2007.
Donovan III started his coaching career at Trinity Catholic High School from 2015-16. The next year, he became the head coach of Saint Francis Academy. He took an assistant coaching job with the Austin Spurs — the G-League affiliate of the San Antonio Spurs — for the 2017 season.
He was also a guest coach for the San Antonio Spurs during the 2019 NBA Summer League.