They can spin this all they want, but the fact remains that this is the latest example of a longstanding tradition of Reinsdorf loyalty to its front office regardless of team performance. While it's fine to be on good terms with your employees, it isn't worth anything if your product is mediocre. People don't go to the store to buy mediocre groceries. They want high quality at a reasonable price and the Bulls expect fans to pay one of the most expensive tickets in the NBA for inconsistency.
While regular sellouts and the United Center's large capacity allows the Bulls to lead the league in home attendance, the eye test at these games indicates people aren't showing up, and that's embarrassing. The fans have never been as loud as say, Warriors and Thunder fans, but with fewer people wanting to see a shoddy product, folks being fed up gets harder to ignore. At least it should for fans watching on TV.
But as long as the bottom line is good enough, the Reinsdorfs will see no reason to make drastic changes. Never mind that every draft pick since Jimmy Butler in 2011 has failed to live up to expectations. Forget about going back on the vow to get younger and more athletic by signing Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade. GarPax can do no wrong, even with the third head coach since the duo came together, so it's here to stay.
How is anyone supposed to believe in a future for this team? Players and coaches keep changing and yet, those in charge of basketball operations never suffer the consequences of their failure to produce winning results. Just getting to the playoffs isn't enough. You have to contend for championships to keep fans interested and yet, the organization has no interest in trying a different path.
Perhaps most annoying of all is that we still haven't reached the All-Star break on this season, meaning there's still two months before the playoffs. That's at least 14 months before we can even consider the possibility that one or both of these guys will be replaced. Tell me how we're supposed to expect the Bulls to blow people away when most of their fans are ranging from pissed to apathetic. Without changes to enter the next winning era of Bulls basketball, it ain't happening.
They say you should value people over anything else, but pro sports is a business with millions of outside followers, something no other industry can boast to the extent it does. That's why when the majority of those people are calling for you to do something, loyalties have to put aside. Paxson in particular has contributed a lot to the Bulls for over 30 years, but eventually, patience and chances have to run out. And besides one great year, Forman has not earned the benefit of the doubt because he and his scouts and failed to properly identify quality talent to build with.
You don't have to follow the Bulls to see how the opinions of one or two can affect the entire operation. We're seeing that with America itself as we speak and how upset people are. Maybe it's a stretch to draw that parallel, but how poorly people can take certain actions or inaction is on full display. Reinsdorf is running a professional sports organization as opposed to the most powerful country in the free world, so when put that way, making changes should be a lot easier.
Until anything happens, we as the fans have to deal with an organization stuck in its ways until it indicates otherwise. While we may not like it, we just have to endure it because we can't call ourselves true fans without putting up with the crap that comes with following one team your whole life. Someday, we'll look back on this and laugh. Maybe.
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