"At some point, Vinny Del Negro no longer will coach the Bulls.

Only management knows if that day will come soon to taint another holiday season, come later this season or perhaps at season's end with one year left on Del Negro's contract.

Executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson and general manager Gar Forman didn't travel to witness the Bulls' 88-81 loss to the Knicks in person Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.

Whether the Bulls' comeback from a dreadful first half in which they trailed by 22 points puts their decision-making process back to where it stood before Monday's historic collapse to the Kings is unknown.

Then, despite 11 losses in 15 games and eight blowouts, there were no plans to remove Del Negro.

The Bulls don't want to travel the long-term interim route they took two seasons ago when Jim Boylan replaced Scott Skiles. And they hadn't identified a preferred unemployed candidate.

But Monday's loss, in which the Bulls coughed up a 35-point, third-quarter lead, led to organizational soul searching. At the very least, the mood of the team was monitored.

That mood played out in the form of lethargy and listlessness early.

The Bulls arrived at their hotel rooms near 3 a.m. Eastern and two players said they didn't sleep at all, reliving the Kings' loss in their heads."