Column: Chicago Bulls rebuild won’t be easy, but Bryson Graham’s openness and humility are signs of a new era
When he finished his introductory news conference Wednesday at the Advocate Center, new Chicago Bulls executive Bryson Graham walked off the podium and ventured into the media seating section. He proceeded to introduce himself to the writers, TV and radio reporters, cameramen, podcasters and anyone else in the room. Whether he would remember everyone’s name by the end of the day was irrelevant.
I’m not convinced his predecessor ever made eye contact with anyone in the media, much less took the time to shake their hands. That was the first real sign that times are changing on the West Side. It was almost like the scene in “The Wizard of Oz” when the black-and-white film turns into technicolor.
We’re not in Kansas anymore. Graham even admitted he cried when Bulls President and CEO Michael Reinsdorf told him Sunday that he got the job as executive vice president of basketball operations, culminating a journey from the bottom of the New Orleans front-office food chain to the top of an iconic NBA franchise. “He’s not a crier,” his wife, Tiffany, told me afterward.
“So that was really beautiful to see because when he does cry, it’s a big deal for him to share that with anybody. But everything people are saying about him, it is who he is. It’s not fluff, not just making him look good.
And it’s always been who he is. ” The 39-year-old Graham has big shoes to fill — but they didn’t belong to Artūras Karnišovas, the man he replaced, who had no people skills and survived much longer than he deserved. No, the relevant shoes belonged to one Michael Jordan, who showed Chicago and the world what sheer excellence looked like in the 1990s, then left the franchise on its own and rarely returns to the place he helped build.
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