(670 The Score) Amid a disastrous start to a season in which they expected to make a playoff push, the Bulls have given coach Jim Boylen a vote of confidence.
The Bulls are committed to Boylen and aren't considering a coaching change, executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson told NBC Sports Chicago on Saturday. Paxson spoke to a select few media outlets, reiterating the same point to the Sun-Times as well.
"We're committed to Jim," Paxson told NBC Sports Chicago. "There's no quick fix to this. We're not thinking of making any changes. Jim is a grinder. He's going to keep grinding. One thing I respect immensely about him is he's willing to listen to ideas. The thing he and I do is talk basketball. When I see things, he listens to what I have to say. Not that I'm making the decisions and I don't tell him to play, but we talk basketball. And he's open. He's going to continue to grow and get better."
The Bulls have started 9-18 against a soft schedule. Most of their struggles have come at the offensive end, where they rank second-to-last in the NBA in efficiency. That includes the Bulls setting an NBA season-low for points in an 83-73 loss to the Hornets on Friday night.
Since taking over in early December 2018, Boylen has registered a 26-59 record leading the Bulls. That .306 winning percentage is the second-worst for a coach in franchise history, trailing only Tim Floyd, who worked during the post-dynasty rebuild.
The Bulls have also seen their attendance take a dive recently, which included drawing only an announced crowd of 14,775 in a loss against the Raptors on Monday. That was the Bulls' smallest crowd at the United Center since 2004.
"We're all aware of it," Paxson told NBC Sports Chicago. "And our fan base is so important to us. I feel really bad about it. I own where we're at. What I want more than anything, and I told this to the players before the season started, is to have a team our fan base can root for and that competes. We all want to win at the highest level. We're not at that stage. But I've always felt our fan base will support us if they see guys really giving everything they have and competing and showing they're in it with them. So it is disappointing that we're not drawing the way we have. You get back to winning and people will come and support you."
