From Kerr's Expansion Bulls to Splitter's Rebuild

By the Bulls Nightly Desk · Wednesday, September 16

Tiago Splitter takes over a Bulls team stripped down to its youngest core in years, chasing a return to the playoffs after four seasons out. The franchise's history says the payoff, when it comes, has usually followed hard losses rather than preceded them.

Bulls Nightly artwork — Illustration by Hoops Nightly.

The first playoff run. In 1966-67, expansion coach Johnny Kerr took the Bulls to a 33-48 record and the playoffs, still the only first-year franchise in NBA history to get there. Kerr won Coach of the Year for it. Splitter now inherits an unproven roster carrying the same assignment: get results before the talent fully arrives.

Gibson comes home. Taj Gibson retired as a player on Sept. 14, 2026, and joined Splitter's staff as an assistant, according to Hoops Rumors and ESPN. Gibson was drafted by Chicago and became a defensive rotation piece across two stints here; he's now the clearest bridge between the old identity and this new group.

The Pistons blueprint. Detroit eliminated the Bulls three straight postseasons, 1988 through 1990, before Chicago broke through with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and new coach Phil Jackson. This rebuild hasn't hit that kind of wall yet; the record is still 0-0. History says the breakthrough came only after the losses piled up, not before them.

72 wins, gone missing. The 1995-96 Bulls went 72-10 behind a defense-first identity that still defines what this franchise is supposed to look like. Last season's team finished 31-51 with a defensive rating of 117.4, 22nd in the league. Closing that gap, not just the win total, is the real measure of this rebuild.

New names in the rafters. The Ring of Honor, started Jan. 12, 2024 with Dick Klein and Tex Winter, added six more names on Sept. 12, 2025: Johnny Bach, Bill Cartwright, Neil Funk, Horace Grant, John Paxson and Norm Van Lier. It's a franchise that tracks itself in decades, a useful frame while Splitter's group looks for any foundation at all.

Four years and counting. Miami has knocked the Bulls out of the play-in three straight years, 2023 through 2025, and Chicago hasn't reached the actual playoffs in four seasons. Giddey, Buzelis, Claxton, Powell and Williams carry that streak into camp this fall, with an average roster age of 23.9.

Owning its own picks. This front office controls every first-round selection due to it through 2030, unlike some past Bulls rebuilds. Caleb Wilson, taken 4th overall, and Dailyn Swain, taken 15th, are the first two players added under that plan, alongside a coaching staff built around Splitter and now Gibson.

On deck The preseason opens Oct. 7 at home against Phoenix, with the regular-season opener set for Oct. 21 at Toronto.

Who's on the Bulls' Ring of Honor?

It began Jan. 12, 2024 with Dick Klein and Tex Winter, alongside players and coaches with retired numbers; Johnny Bach, Bill Cartwright, Neil Funk, Horace Grant, John Paxson and Norm Van Lier joined Sept. 12, 2025.

Is Taj Gibson still playing for the Bulls?

No, Gibson retired as a player on Sept. 14, 2026 and joined Tiago Splitter's staff as a Bulls assistant coach.