Billy Donovan steps down as Chicago Bulls head coach after six seasons, completing a full organizational reset. The 60-year-old plans to continue coaching as Chicago searches for new front office leadership and a head coach.

Billy Donovan’s tenure as the Chicago Bulls head coach is over.

The 60-year-old Hall of Fame coach informed the organization Tuesday that he is stepping away from the position after six seasons, completing a sweeping organizational reset that has now claimed the team’s top executive, general manager, and head coach in a matter of weeks.

The move came as a surprise, not because Donovan’s departure was unthinkable, but because the Bulls had gone out of their way to make clear they wanted him back. Just two weeks ago, after firing executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley, Bulls president and CEO Michael Reinsdorf told reporters that any front office candidate who wanted to bring in their own coach was “probably not the right candidate for us.”

Donovan saw it differently.

“After a series of thoughtful and extensive discussions with ownership regarding the future of the organization, I have decided to step away as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls, to allow the search process to unfold,” Donovan said in a statement released by the team. “I believe it is in the best interest of the Bulls to allow the new leader to build out the staff as they see fit.”

In other words, if the Bulls were truly cleaning house, Donovan wanted the slate wiped completely clean.

Story continues below.

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Ownership Wanted Him to Stay

According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Donovan held meetings with Bulls ownership over the past week and was offered the chance to remain in Chicago for as long as he wanted, even in a managerial capacity if he chose to step off the sideline. The organization made every effort to keep him.

“We wanted Billy to continue as our head coach — that was never in question,” owner Jerry Reinsdorf said. “But through honest conversations, we all agreed that giving our new head of basketball operations the right to build out his staff was the most important thing for the future of this franchise. That is the kind of person Billy is — he put the Bulls first.”

Michael Reinsdorf echoed the sentiment: “While we clearly wanted Billy to return as our head coach, we had open dialogue about the importance of respecting the process of bringing in new basketball operations leadership. Together, we mutually agreed that giving that person the freedom to shape the organization was the best approach for everyone involved.”

A Mixed Legacy in Chicago

Donovan arrived in Chicago in September 2020 as arguably the top coaching candidate on the market, fresh off five seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder. He inherited a rebuilding roster and was tasked with accelerating the Bulls’ return to relevance.

The early returns were promising. In his second season, the Bulls posted a 46-36 record, their only winning season under Donovan, and made the playoffs for the first time since 2017, though they were eliminated in the first round. The team qualified for the play-in tournament in 2023, 2024, and 2025 but never advanced further.

This season was the low point. Chicago finished 31-51, good for just fourth in the Central Division and 12th in the Eastern Conference. A February trade deadline fire sale sent Nikola Vucevic, Coby White, and Ayo Dosunmu out the door, gutting the roster around Donovan down the stretch.

Donovan leaves with a 226-256 record in Chicago, the 226 wins ranking fourth-most in franchise history. But one playoff appearance and a single postseason victory in six years tell the story of an era that never gained sustained traction.

What’s Next for the Bulls

Donovan’s departure means the Bulls are now searching for both a head of basketball operations and a head coach, a full organizational rebuild from the top down.

The front office search is already underway. According to Charania, the Bulls have received permission to interview Timberwolves GM Matt Lloyd, Pistons senior VP Dennis Lindsey, Hawks senior VP Bryson Graham, Cavaliers GM Mike Gansey, and Spurs assistant GM Dave Telep. The team also hopes to speak with CAA basketball division head Austin Brown, a Chicago native and one of the NBA’s most powerful agents.

The Bulls are targeting a hire around the mid-May draft combine, and the expectation is that the new top executive will then lead the coaching search. Chicago joins the Milwaukee Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans as teams currently seeking a new head coach.

What’s Next for Donovan

Donovan has made clear he is not retiring. Sources told ESPN he plans to continue coaching and will be “a viable target” for NBA teams with openings.

His resume speaks for itself: back-to-back national championships at Florida, five seasons guiding the Thunder through the Western Conference gauntlet, and a reputation as one of the league’s most respected communicators and developers of talent.

Earlier this spring, Donovan was widely considered the top target for the North Carolina coaching vacancy before the Tar Heels pivoted to former Nuggets coach Michael Malone. He has also been linked to potential openings with the Orlando Magic and Philadelphia 76ers.

Whether Donovan returns to the NBA sideline or considers a college homecoming remains to be seen. But at 60, with a Hall of Fame plaque and decades of experience at the highest levels of basketball, he won’t be on the market for long.

For the Bulls, the Donovan era ends not with a firing, but with a handshake, a mutual acknowledgment that the best path forward for Chicago requires starting over entirely.