DEERFIELD, Ill. -- The Chicago Bulls are entrusting their future to part of their glorious past.

John Paxson, whose game-winner clinched the 1993 NBA title, was officially introduced as Chicago's executive vice president of basketball operations Monday. He replaces Jerry Krause, who resigned unexpectedly a week ago, citing health reasons.

"I'm tremendously excited about this opportunity,'' Paxson said at a news conference, the Bulls' six golden NBA trophies sitting just a few feet away.

"I understand how big a challenge it is. But I feel very lucky that I'm stepping into a position where we have so much potential, so much upside. ... Ultimately, our goal is to get this franchise to win.''

Stocked with young talent, the Bulls have shown promise this year. But they're still 29-52 going into Tuesday's season finale against Philadelphia, and they won just three road games all year.

If anyone knows how to win, though, it's Paxson. He spent nine of his 11 NBA seasons with the Bulls, and was an integral part of the first three championship teams. A 6-2 guard, he was frequently the open man when Michael Jordan was double- and triple-teamed.

It was, in fact, his 3-pointer with 3.9 seconds left that clinched the 1993 title in Game 6 against Phoenix.

After retiring in 1994, he was a Bulls assistant during the 1995-96 season. He's spent the past seven years as part of Chicago's broadcast team, both on radio and television.

"I've been a member of this organization for 17 of the last 18 years,'' he said. "I think I have a good feel for this organization. What it stands for, what it represents.''

The one thing Paxson doesn't have is management experience. But his brother, Jim, is GM of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Paxson has gotten a firsthand look at the job through him.

But he also knows talking about the job and doing it are two very different things.

"I understand and appreciate, that (Bulls chairman) Jerry Reinsdorf is taking a chance on me,'' Paxson said. "It would have been every easy for him to look outside and see someone with more experience. He has confidence in me and that makes me feel good about the situation.''

Hiring Paxson was an easy choice, Reinsdorf said. Krause had told him three years ago that he wanted to retire after the 2004 season, and Reinsdorf had been casually interviewing potential successors since then -- so casually the candidates might not have realized it.

When Krause stepped down early, Reinsdorf simply dug out the short list he'd already made.

"It was just a matter of refreshing my memory and having one or two conversations to come to the conclusion I came to,'' Reinsdorf said. "And it was a very easy conclusion.''

Paxson already is well versed in the Bulls' strengths and weaknesses, having traveled with the team and seen every one of its games as the radio analyst. But he knows he'll be playing catch-up in other aspects of the job, such as college scouting and salary cap management.

That's where his staff comes in. Paxson met briefly with the Bulls management team Monday morning, and he plans to have more wide-ranging discussions in the coming weeks.

Though he hasn't decided exactly how the management team will be structured, it's clear that former teammate B.J. Armstrong, Gar Forman and Ivica Dukan will all have expanded roles. Armstrong and Forman handled much of the scouting duties as special assistants to Krause, while Dukan is the supervisor of international scouting.

"I'm going to rely tremendously on their input,'' Paxson said. "Ultimately, we're going to sit down as a group, the coaching staff, the scouting staff and myself, and hash out a plan that works well for us in terms of what this team needs.''

Paxson also will be working with another former teammate in coach Bill Cartwright.

"I think Pax will be great in this job,'' Cartwright said. "Everybody knows he's conscientious, he's a hard worker and he'll do whatever it takes to get the job done. I think it's a great selection.''

And one the Bulls hope will translate into another championship dynasty.

"I'm very lucky. I'm not stepping into a situation where everything is empty. We have a foundation,'' Paxson said. "I think we'll be able to do some things here that will make Chicago Bulls fans proud.''