Chicago Sports Bits & Pieces

 November 19, 2020

Recent changes in the Bulls organization have the arrow pointing up. John Paxson is now in an advisory position. His confidant, Gar Forman, was let go. The Bulls then went outside the organization to hire Arturas Karnisovas as V.P. of basketball operations. Make no mistake, he is the lead decision maker of this team. His first move was hiring former Senior V.P. of Player Personnel of the 76ers, Marc Eversley, as his general manager. The second order of business was getting rid of the coach, Jim Boylen. He was probably the worst coach in the Bulls' history. The new hierarchy also hired their first head coach with previous experience, Billy Donovan.

I’m hoping that Patrick Williams can turn into another Scottie Pippen. I have to have faith in Karnisovas' eye for talent. However, as he was projected to be a middle first round pick, they might have been able to trade down to obtain him along with a better number two pick. Aside from Williams' development, Donovan’s main focus is unlocking the key to Laurie Markkanan‘s talent. This is a young team with tons of potential. They won’t win a championship but should be vastly improved.

With offensive coordinator Bill Lazor calling the plays, the Bears had their worst offensive game of the year. Therefore, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that coach Matt Nagy announced he’ll be calling plays in their next game against the Packers. Lazor’s biggest problem is he has Nagy’s playbook of bad schemes and plays that don’t work (think wide receiver screen). I think this is Nagy’s way of deflecting criticism for the job he is doing. Last year’s bad offense was not his fault-it was the coaches. With the exception of Dave Ragone, he fired everyone else.

Tony LaRussa is the new White Sox manager. Many fans are upset with a choice which should have been made by GM Rick Hahn, not Reinsdorf. However don’t fret, his DUIs won’t impair his decisions on the field. The Sox have the American League MVP and Silver Slugger Award winner Jose Abreu. Eloy Jimenez and Tim Anderson were also Silver Slugger Award winners. Luis Robert won the Gold Glove and will be a star in the near future. A couple good moves by Hahn and they could be in the World Series.

It was bound to happen sooner or later, Theo Epstein resigned. Cub fans should always have a soft spot in their hearts for a man who built a World Series Championship team. He will pass the reins to his long-time assistant, Jed Hoyer. Hoyer has the unenviable task of dealing with impending free agency of the team’s core. He also has to acquire players to bolster the Cubs starting rotation. He will be under severe scrutiny to keep the Cubs competitive and have success in the postseason.