Bucks could take page from rival's playbook to revitalize their future

The Chicago Bulls have finally stirred from a lengthy period of organizational apathy, firing both their general manager, Marc Eversley, and their vice president of basketball operations, Arturas Karnisovas, according to ESPN's Shams Charania on Monday afternoon. For a franchise trapped in Play-in purgatory, the move acknowledges the need to commit to an earnest rebuild. 

It also gives the Milwaukee Bucks a possible blueprint to get their own wheels churning. Watching a Central Division rival clean house, GM Jon Horst should feel the seat warming beneath him. 

A disastrous 2025-26 season has hardly been all his fault, but Horst had a direct hand in the result. His recent offseason maneuvers have blown up in his face. His botched draft picks have done nothing to restock the roster. 

Certainly other Bucks executives could be on the hot seat as well, but few fans would be able to name Dave Dean as basketball operations VP. As far as roster construction goes, by and large, Horst has been the one pulling the strings since being promoted to GM in 2017. In light of the Bulls' example, maybe it's time to ask whether he is part of the reason the Bucks have found themselves stuck in the mud.

Front office decisions mortgaging the future have created a miserable present 

Despite tempered expectations, the Bucks entered this season under considerable pressure due to a lack of recent playoff success and Giannis Antetokounmpo's growing dissatisfaction. Riding a streak of three straight first-round exits, Milwaukee responded by missing the playoffs for the first time in a decade.

Giannis' injuries have had a lot to do with that, as has the serious disadvantage of employing Doc Rivers as head coach, but Horst shares in the blame. His controversial splash of the summer, Myles Turner, has underachieved to disastrous effect. Moves around the edges, like bringing back Gary Trent Jr., signing Cole Anthony, and adding Cam Thomas in the buyout market, have flopped. 

Horst did the team no favors by drafting 19-year-old Bogolijub Markovic, who spent the season overseas. That selection echoes the same failed formula of investing in young project players: AJ Johnson, Tyler Smith, MarJon Beauchamp. Aside from Giannis, Andre Jackson Jr. is the only player on the roster acquired via the draft. 

Most severely, the decision to waive and stretch Damian Lillard last offseason, a prerequisite to sign Turner, has burdened the franchise for years to come. The trade to acquire Lillard in the first place mortgaged most of the Bucks' remaining draft stock, leaving them without control of their own first-round picks until 2030.

It would not be hyperbole to point to that move as the beginning of the end for Milwaukee.

Horst may have run out of magic as title season fades in the rearview

Catering to Giannis' demands, Horst has attempted to construct a contender every season since the title run in 2021. Give him a pass for the 58-win team upset by Miami in 2023, but to judge him by the cold, hard results, he has otherwise failed to do so in each of the last three years. 

In all, the Bucks have won just four playoff games since 2022. With Giannis on the roster, that's just not good enough. 

Injuries have played a role, of course, as has a lack of direction and guidance from ownership. At the end of the day, however, results matter. What this team needs most is a fresh start. 

Moving on from Rivers would be a major step toward that goal. So would roster moves that prioritize young talent. But when Horst is the one overseeing personnel decisions, fully turning the page may not be possible without pulling the rug out from under the whole operation. 

The Bulls are the NBA equivalent of the law of inertia. If they can look in the mirror and recognize a need for fundamental change, the Bucks must challenge themselves to do the same. For Horst, the clock could already be ticking.