Chicago Bulls (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
Many Chicago Bulls fans never thought they would see the day, but John Paxson could finally be on his way out.
I struggle to actually believe what I am writing at the moment, because of all the negativity surrounding the Chicago Bulls over the years. I’ve grown accustomed to disappointment, as I’m sure many other fans have as well.
This offseason (if you can call it that) or, suspension, rather has been full of interesting storylines for the Bulls. Whether or not the regular season ever comes back, Chicago is going to look a lot different at the top of the organization.
The team has used this COVID-19 pandemic to start looking towards the future, and they are officially in the heat of their new basketball executive search. While a couple of notable names have already stepped out of the running, the Bulls are still hopeful to find someone who can come in and be the center of all basketball decision-making.
As we’ve noted recently, this will mean both John Paxson and Gar Forman are no longer going to hold a lot of power — if any. The GarPax era is effectively over.
But, up to this point, all the talk has been about Paxson staying with the organization. He has stated he will do however much or little the team would like him to do as he steps back from his role as VP.
Now, The Chicago Sun-Times has reported that Paxson is taking it a step further.
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“A source told the Sun-Times on Tuesday that not only is Paxson all for stepping aside from his position and acting more as an adviser to the Reinsdorf family when the front-office restructure is finalized, but would completely step down from the organization if the Reinsdorfs and the new-look executive group deemed it better for the rebuild to continue.”
I am stunned by these words — absolutely stunned, but in a good way, of course.
How many fans saw it coming to this? How many fans actually believed that, at some point in their lifetime, they would see Paxson ready to remove himself from the Bulls organization altogether?
On one hand, it’s shocking and somewhat unbelievable. On the other hand, though, it’s a remarkable act of humility on Paxson’s part.
I think it’s safe to say Paxson’s ego has gotten in the way at times, especially with how he’s wanted the new executive to come in with an open mind about head coach Jim Boylen. Paxson has shown firm belief in Boylen, even when everyone else sees how blatantly incompetent he is as a coach.
Paxson has stuck to his guns with Boylen over the last several months, but now, he’s willing to admit he may have been wrong. The fact that he’s willing to take a step back and allow the Bulls organization to move on completely from his services speaks volumes about his character.
It is truly a day I never saw coming, at least not yet. I was fully prepared for a few more years in basketball purgatory, but alas, it looks like the Bulls are ready to turn the page.
