As far as Bulls fans know Gar Foreman is out, maybe not completely, but out as the Bulls General Manager when the offseason officially begins. Gar is out, Pax is staying, so should we even be excited about any of this? Chad Buchanan is the first name thrown in the ring for the search of a new GM. Who is Chad Buchanan?
The Bulls are looking for an “empowered presence” in their search for a new GM. That could be a great thing, or an awful. To me being an empowered presence can be a good thing because that could attract stars in this league. Someone like Buchanan is hard headed, makes firm decisions, and when he sees an opportunity to go after it he goes after it without looking back. Stars could respect that because he wants to win just as much as they do. That could be an awful thing because to me being an empowered presence also means you could be an asshole and who wants to work for someone who’s an asshole? I suspect not many people.
Chad Buchanan is the general manager for the Indiana Pacers, previously he worked for the Charlotte Hornets for three seasons as the Assistant General Manager. Before that he spent 10 seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers as Director of College Scouting. Since he’s the GM for the Pacers the Bulls are going to have to ask for permission to interview Buchanan.
Buchanan is someone who was highly respected as a college scout, and is known as a rising star in the executives club in the NBA. Buchanan is known for embracing analytics.
Notable moves by Chad Buchanan:
- Drafted Brandon Roy: Some will laugh or groan because of how Brandon Roy’s career ended up being, but can we take a moment and remember how great Brandon Roy was at one time? Roy was someone who was ahead of his team. A 6’6 guard with the shot of a sharpshooter, and the handles of a true blue point guard. Kinda like Zach LaVine, seriously. His first four seasons he was a three time All Star, averaging a clean 20 points, 35% from three, and a effective field goal percentage of 49.5%. From the legendary Kobe Bryant, Brandon Roy was the toughest person he had to guard. His motor, his relentlessness, and his will to keep fighting made Roy a special player.
- Acquired/Drafted LaMarcus Aldridge: Okay this one is actually pretty funny because LaMarcus Aldridge should have been on the Bulls, but of course amazing leadership from John Paxson saw Tyrus Thomas and thought that guy was the star we were missing. Rose, Aldridge, Noah. Fuck, that stings. Anyway we know who Aldridge is. When you think of Aldridge now you think of someone who’s washed, but someone like Aldridge is in a bad spot because the game has passed him by. Coming into the league you see players like Aldridge down in the post, or ready to pull up from mid range. Even though he’s forgotten about, Aldridge is still producing! He’s a 7 time All Star, 2 back to back in 2018 and 2019. 19.6 points per game, 8 total rebounds, and 49.7 effective shooting percentage.
- Traded Gerald Wallace for a first round pick (Damian Lillard): If you get a first round pick, ever for Gerald Wallace you’re pretty amazing at your job. Buchanan wasn’t there to draft Lillard as he was an interim GM at the time, but still to set this up for Portland to land a top 3 point guard in the game, plus being one of the best pure scorers, that’s a feather in his cap. The Blazers also drafted Will Barton which resulted in a trade that Buchanan made earlier on that season. Two of his trades resulted in drafting a future Hall of Famer, and a solid everyday role player for the next 10 years.
- Traded Paul George for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis: When this trade happened everybody, me, you, every single person that was breathing that night destroyed the Pacers for that trade. Looking at it now, the Pacers won this trade and it isn’t even close. Oladipo and Sabonis are 2 stars that you build a franchise around. Oladipo is one of the best two way guards in the NBA, and Sabonis who is improving as a scorer, is one of the five best defenders in the league. The Pacers have built their team, and now they’re enjoying playoff basketball.
- Acquired Malcolm Brogdon and TJ Warren: Should I really put a spotlight on these moves you might ask? Hell yes I should. This is the epitome of what fully embracing analytics, and being bold in trade talks looks like. This is everything the Bulls are missing. Adding two winning players on both sides of the court, above average three point shooters, and overall just smart players on their team, which didn’t put the financial handcuffs on the Pacers for when they have to extend Oladipo and Sabonis.
What you see right here is a guy in Chad Buchanan who finds those diamonds in the rough, just as well as picking the right star in the NBA Draft. You see a guy who’s not afraid to make big trades, and when he makes those trades he usually comes out the winner. And finally you see general manager who correctly reads the market signing good to potentially great players that adds value to his team. Some of these guys aren’t superstars, but your team and player development they perform above expectations within their system and play winning basketball. If this is where the Bulls are starting, this is a fine start.
Twitter: @realJohnStocco
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