Chicago Bulls: Kenny Atkinson mentioned as favorite to get HC job

Finding their way in a new coaching search to replace the departed former head coach Jim Boylen, could the Chicago Bulls hire Kenny Atkinson?

The rumor mill is already starting to circulate as to who the Chicago Bulls will look at in the initial phase of their coaching search to try and replace the now former head coach Jim Boylen. On the morning of Aug. 14, the move that we all expected was going to happen once the front office personnel turned over back in spring actually transpired. The Bulls made the move to officially part ways with Boylen heading into the weekend, in what has turned out to be a wild few days in terms of NBA coaching news.

Not only did the Bulls part ways with Boylen heading into the weekend, the New Orleans Pelicans got rid of former head coach Alvin Gentry on Aug. 15. But the Pelicans does look like the much more appealing coaching job right now since they have a very stout core headed up by the likes of rookie forward Zion Williamson, small forward Brandon Ingram, and point guards Lonzo Ball and Jrue Holiday.

The Bulls do have some interesting young pieces like shooting guard Zach LaVine, rookie point guard Coby White, power forward Lauri Markkanen, and center Wendell Carter Jr. But none of those are really bona fide stars yet like Ingram, or even Holiday.

This makes for a situation where the Bulls might want to pursue a head coaching candidate that has proven he can build something out of nothing in recent memory. That’s why the former Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson could be the perfect candidate for the Bulls to prioritize pursuing.

According to a piece from Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype on Aug. 15, the front runner to get the Bulls head coaching job should be Atkinson. Apparently an anonymous NBA scout told Scotto that Atkinson is the “no brainer” choice on the shortlist of Bulls coaching candidates.

Scotto also mentioned that tangible connection that Atkinson has with the former Nets assistant coach and current Bulls lead assistant Chris Fleming. At this point, Fleming should be considered the best assistant that the Bulls have on staff.

And the point that Scotto keeps hitting on in this piece is the fact that Atkinson might be able to do something similar with the Bulls that he did during the 2018-19 season with the Nets. The Bulls still have a pretty talented young core heading into the fourth year of the rebuild, and Atkinson really did make something out of nothing in Brooklyn two seasons ago.

Atkinson was let go from the Nets organization earlier in the 2019-20 season after starting out with a record of 28-34. It looks like the Nets are trying to take their core of superstar forward Kevin Durant and point guard Kyrie Irving to the next level next season, and they didn’t feel like Atkinson was the guy to get that done.