From the Archives: An Expansion Team's Long Way Back

The original underdogs. Dick Klein founded the Bulls in 1966 and hired Johnny Kerr, who won Coach of the Year as the 1966-67 club went 33-48 and became the only expansion team ever to make the playoffs. Guy Rodgers and Jerry Sloan made the All-Star team that year. Sixty seasons later, Chicago is again building from the bottom, chasing a four-year absence from the postseason.

A familiar draft slot. Michael Jordan went third overall in 1984, behind Hakeem Olajuwon and Sam Bowie, and turned into the best player in franchise history. Caleb Wilson arrived this year at fourth overall. Nobody is promising that outcome repeats, but the Bulls have found a cornerstone from a top-five pick before.

A coach becomes a name. The team's Ring of Honor started January 12, 2024, with Klein and Tex Winter, then added six more on September 12, 2025: Johnny Bach, Bill Cartwright, Neil Funk, Horace Grant, John Paxson and Jim Van Lier. Taj Gibson retired September 14, 2026, and joined Tiago Splitter's staff the same day, the newest example of a Bulls locker room name moving to the bench.

72-10, then a wall. The 1995-96 Bulls went 72-10, a record that stood until Golden State topped it in 2015-16, on the way to a second three-peat. Last season's team finished 31-51 with a -5.3 net rating, 23rd in the league. The gap between those two numbers is the whole point of the rebuild underway now.

The rivalry that matters now. Detroit swept Chicago from the playoffs three straight years from 1988 to 1990, and Boston pushed a 2-0 Bulls lead to a 2017 series loss. Neither defines the moment. Miami has eliminated Chicago from the play-in three years running, 2023 through 2025, making the Heat the rivalry this roster actually needs to solve.

Same mascot, new brass. Benny the Bull has worked courtside since 1969, outlasting every front office the franchise has had. The latest change came this year: Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley were fired in April, and Bryson Graham took over basketball operations May 4, 2026, inheriting a roster that averages 23.9 years old.