Prior to Thursday night's game against Philadelphia on TNT, Paxson talked to NBA.com about everything from the recent trade with the Toronto Raptors to having a brother as the competition.

New Bulls head coach Scott Skiles may be considered a more intense guy than the recently fired Bill Cartwright. Was that the type of personality you were looking for when making the change? And or how does his style fit with the Bulls' personnel?
Paxson: "I was not looking for a certain personality. I was looking for the team to have a direction and identity. Yes, Scott has a reputation as a fiery guy that stems from his days as a player, but the thing I liked about him is that he expects the game to be played a certain way. Like me, he thinks that there is a right way and a wrong way to play and we seem to see the game the same way.

"Players need direction and he will give them that. Although I am on the road with the team in Philly right now, I usually stay in Chicago. I came along since this is Scott's first road trip with the team, but I like to let the coaches do their thing. Scott, I think, over the long haul, will be a good fit."

How much did Skiles play in part of the recent trade sending Jalen Rose, Donyell Marshall and Lonny Baxter to the Toronto Raptors for Antonio Davis, Jerome Williams and Chris Jefferies?
Paxson: "I was talking to Toronto about a trade before hiring Scott but we did talk together about it when we brought him in. We both thought that if we were going to make the trade that it was good to do it at the same time he would begin coaching.

"I’ll always clear things through the coach first before making a move like that and if he thought that the trade was not a good thing, we would have had to re-evaluate it."

What do Antonio Davis and Jerome Williams bring to the team?
Paxson: "We gave up a lot of scoring when we let Jalen and Donyell go. However, we were giving up 100 plus per game defensively (100.2 ppg, last in the NBA) and needed to change that. We lost some of our perimeter game but we can address that in the future. We needed to get big vets. Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry will benefit.

"We still have areas to shore up, but I like having the defensive minded bigs and their rebounding. That area of the game leads to easy points and a running game which we did not have."

How will the new make-up of team help players like Eddy Curry, Tyson Chandler and Jamal Crawford?
Paxson: "The presence of the Antonio and Jerome will provide Tyson and Eddy some veteran leadership from big men that they did not have before. And Jamal will actually benefit as well. We’ll run more and we can now use his strength as a scorer and play him at the two as well."

Former teammates Scottie Pippen and Paxson share a moment during a practice session. (Chicago Bulls Photos)

What are your short-term goals for the team and what do see as the biggest areas for its improvement?
Paxson: "Short term we want to win. We got off to a 4-12 start, which put us in a hole. But more importantly we want to create a positive and winning atmosphere. We need to address the position of a wing player who can create and add some shooters."

What has your former teammate Scottie Pippen's presence meant to the team?
Paxson: "Everything I had hoped for. He is helping young guys despite his injuries with his knees. I just talked to him the other day and I told him, 'We are better with him on floor.’ He provides so much for when he is playing. I feel bad that his knees have not responded as well as he had liked, which has limited his playing time. But he is a pro. He is the intangible for us."

Goals for the season? Is a playoff berth realistic?
Paxson: "There still 65 games left; we are trying to stay positive. We need to find out who we are. But we are not out of anything yet. We hope to put a run together. There is always hope early in the season."

Just eight months into your tenure, is it what you expected and how is it going?
Paxson: "Every day is a challenge -- we had some things happen at the start that did not favor us. Jay Williams’ accident has pushed us backed as far as long-term plans. The accident was so unusual but we have to move forward. Jay’s doing well rehabbing in North Carolina but it’s a long process. Other than that it has been good."

How’s your brother Jim, the GM of the Cleveland Cavaliers doing with all the whirlwind surrounding the LeBron James-led Cavaliers and their woes. Any sibling rivalry?
Paxson: "I speak to him frequently and he, like everyone, wants to win. But one guy is not going to come in and turn around a franchise immediately. Jim has put the team in a good spot for the future though. As far as any sibling rivalry, he used to beat me at basketball all the time growing up, but now maybe things will start to turn around."

--Martin C. Sumners, NBA.com