Bulls Officially Move John Paxson To Advisory Role

With Arturas Karnisovas taking over the executive VP of basketball operations position that he previously held, John Paxson has been named a senior advisor of basketball operations, the Bulls announced today in a press release.

“John has an invaluable perspective on our organization and where we want to be, and he played an instrumental role in this change by bringing forward the idea of a restructure and reorganization,” Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “I have always held his knowledge and basketball insight in the highest regard, and he has earned my respect as well as that of his peers. His decision to take on a new role reflects what I’ve always known about John – that he is forever a willing teammate on and off of the court and always does what he believes is in the best interest of the Chicago Bulls.”

After spending nine years with the Bulls as a player and then joining the coaching staff as an assistant in 1995, Paxson spent some time as a broadcaster before being brought back to Chicago as the team’s general manager in 2003. He became the executive VP of basketball operations in 2009.

After he and longtime GM Gar Forman ran the Bulls’ front office for the last decade, Paxson’s re-assignment had been expected. He was reportedly prepared to leave the organization altogether if newly-hired head of basketball operations Karnisovas decided that was in the team’s best interests.

However, a report last week suggested that Karnisovas viewed Paxson as “a resource, not a roadblock.” Another report indicated that Paxson will only weigh in on basketball decisions if asked by Karnisovas for his input.

The Bulls parted ways with Forman today after officially announcing the hiring of Karnisovas.