Hopefully you didn’t finish your popcorn already!
While the Chicago Bulls have quickly become the most active team at the NBA trade deadline, Tuesday’s moves were only the previews. Showtime isn’t for another day and a half, as all signs point toward Chicago staying active ahead of Thursday’s 2:00 p.m. CT deadline.
Both recent trades felt like the kind that insist more work will be done. If adding both Jaden Ivey and Mike Conley didn’t further put the status of Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu into question, the acquisition of Anfernee Simons hours later sure did. The Bulls are now in a position to have a hysterical number of guards on their roster with White, Dosunmu, Jones, Giddey, Ivey, Conley, and Simons in the mix (and don’t forget Yuki). One has to imagine the front office realizes this and plans to address it in the coming hours and days.
Likewise, the decision to show Nikola Vucevic the door has left them with a massive hole at the center position. Jalen Smith is currently the only active center on the 15-man roster, as Zach Collins remains out indefinitely with a toe injury. Even if the Bulls did plan to join the tank race after the deadline, finding someone else to eat minutes at the five would be necessary.
More is certainly coming, and the reports that have trickled out in the hours after these trades stress as much. Shams Charania of ESPN said that his phone was flooded with messages asking about the future of White and Dosunmu. Meanwhile, the Chicago Sun-Times’ Joe Cowley called Karnisovas latest work “unfinished.”
Cowley even went on to suggest that Simons could be on the move again. The guard, who is on an expiring contract, was putting together a strong season with the Boston Celtics off the bench. While there is no question that his $27.8 million salary could prove difficult to deal a second time, it at least gives the Bulls a sizable salary to potentially do something more aggressive.
Chris Haynes of NBA on Prime also sent out a similar message regarding Conley. Chicago would have very little need for the respected 38-year-old veteran, but he could make sense on other contending and guard-needy teams. With that being the case, the Bulls are reportedly going to work with him to find a different home. To be sure, this might mean a buyout is on the table, but the Bulls will likely first do everything they can to see if a logical trade can emerge.
For what it’s worth, we have already seen the Bulls flip one piece at this deadline. Dario Saric came in via the three-team deal with the Kings and Cavaliers, only to end up in Detroit as part of Tuesday’s separate three-team transaction.
So, whether it be the Bulls’ current projected roster or the mere fact they have made three trades in the last four days, it’s clear this front office plans to stay open for business. Exactly what things will look like when the dust settles is hard to say, but most are ready to take the unknown over the known in Chicago.