John Paxson couldn't have appeared any more eager to start media day festivities Monday at the Advocate Center without valet-parking reporters' cars himself.
The Bulls executive vice president took his seat at the dais alongside general manager Gar Forman, clearly intent on addressing issues that have been on Paxson's mind during a transitional summer for the franchise. Photographers were still adjusting cameras and writers fidgeting with tape recorders as Paxson spoke up.
"I'm going to make a few remarks," he announced.
This raised some eyebrows because, for the past several years, Paxson has preferred to let Forman do most of the talking unless the situation required his voice for emphasis. Day 1 of the post-Derrick Rose era of Bulls basketball obviously qualified.
Nothing ushers in an organization's renewed commitment to accountability like having its top basketball executive front and center establishing priorities. You can criticize Paxson for his part in creating a crisis that festered after coach Tom Thibodeau was fired, but, having the blessing of Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, he chose to look forward instead of back _ as he should.
"I'm excited," Paxson said, sounding it.
The Bulls have eight new players. They have Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo trying to mesh with All-Star Jimmy Butler. And, for the first time since 2007-08, they will have neither Joakim Noah nor Derrick Rose _ the two newest Knicks who were the most visible and valuable Bulls in that span.
The construction going on at the United Center is nothing compared with what happened to the Bulls roster since the last time we heard from Paxson.
"I mentioned last April I didn't feel like the group had a collective fight to it," Paxson said. "That was true. Change was necessary. ... We have to start at a base level, and that's culture and how guys go about their jobs every day."
Sports executives abhor the idea of starting over, but here Paxson was, publicly hitting the reset button after blowing up the core that took the Bulls as far as the 2011 Eastern Conference finals. It had to feel liberating to make such a proclamation about the Bulls without having to worry how it would affect the ego of any players _ or a player's brother.
Paxson denied that Rose became a distraction last year, but the truth is, everything about the one-time league MVP had begun to be counterproductive to progress. Despite Forman trying to convince us trading Rose to the Knicks was strictly "a basketball decision," nobody who has paid attention to the Bulls saga in recent years bought it. Everything about the Bulls since Rose's first knee injury in April 2012 revolved around the psyche of Rose, from his availability to his knack for saying strange things to the unseemly lawsuit that surfaced again Tuesday.
Even as Paxson attempted to finally move on from uncomfortable but familiar ground, he answered several questions about a report that Rose remains the subject of a criminal rape investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department. The development came as a surprise to many who had received indications from officials and attorneys that it was a civil matter scheduled to go to court next week.
"We knew what everybody else knew," Paxson said. "Those are legal issues. That's not our purview. ... We wish him well."
In other words, can we please talk about Wade and Rondo again?
The Bulls' signing of Rondo made little sense at the time, but adding Wade salvaged their offseason. Rondo and Wade hardly fit the ideal profile for coach Fred Hoiberg's space-and-pace offense built around perimeter shooting, but together they make the Bulls as competitive as they are compelling. They might hate playing with Butler or they might love it. But won't it be fascinating to find out?
"I'm focused on what I can learn from them," said Butler, who would be wise to defer. "I'm sure Rondo will keep me on my toes as well."
The Bulls were sensitive to criticism over signing two veterans in their 30s after Forman announced plans to get "younger and more athletic" and have spent months proclaiming they have 10 players with three or fewer seasons of NBA experience. OK, so the Bulls technically got younger _ but did they get better? Wade says he expects more victories after spending time in the gym with his new teammates, including center Robin Lopez, whom Hoiberg called "a rock star."
But outside the Bulls locker room, they look like a .500 team, low expectations Hoiberg already has used as motivation.
"We just sat in that room and talked about that," he said.
Unlike last year, this Bulls team probably listened to its coach. By the end of last season, the Bulls had become as hard to like as they were easy to beat. You wonder if part of the impetus for change was less about closing the distance between the Bulls and Cavaliers than the credibility gap between the Bulls and their season ticket customers.
"The vibe that is with this group is really positive," Paxson said.
Good vibes won't necessarily make the Bulls a playoff team, but they have to start somewhere. So Paxson started over because he was tired of it too.
