Jazz general manager Justin Zanik interview with Bulls president Michael Reinsdorf on Monday, the Sun-Times reported. Nuggets general manager Arturas Karnisovas is scheduled for an interview soon as well.
So what are the Bulls looking at in the 48-year-old Karnisovas? Well, he has worked in Denver's front office since 2013, helping the Nuggets build a Western Conference contender primarily through a series of good decisions in the draft. The Nuggets selected star center Nikola Jokic in the second round in 2014, when they also engineered a draft night trade to send wing Doug McDermott to the Bulls for a pair of later picks in the first round that turned into guard Gary Harris and center Jusuf Nurkic, whom Denver has since traded.
In 2016, Denver drafted point guard Jamal Murray at No. 7 overall, helping form the foundation for a team that was 43-22 and third in the West when the NBA suspended its season in March due to the coronavirus.
Karnisovas has been a big reason for the Nuggets' success, Denver Post beat writer Mike Singer said in an interview on the Mully & Haugh Show on Tuesday morning.
"AK definitely has a vision of his own and sees an imprint for the Nuggets," Singer said. "That's just not on his shoulders right now. That's (president of basketball operations) Tim Connelly's decision. They do work well in collaboration, so AK has that experience. But I think (if he took the Bulls job) he'd really lean on his vast wealth of basketball experience -- international experience, NBA experience.
"I have a hard time seeing him fail if he were to get this gig."