The Chicago Bulls made three trades in the past week, including two which happened on the day of the trade deadline. How good were those deals and where does the roster stand now?
The NBA witnessed a trade deadline for the ages. A NBA-record 12 trades were made. The Cleveland Cavaliers stole the headlines with a major roster overhaul. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers made it clear to the rest of the league they aren’t going to enter the 2018 offseason with passiveness. But, the Chicago Bulls were active in making deals too.
The Bulls made a few transactions that went under the radar and trades that were barely talking points among the national media. That’s okay. We’re going to determine how well the Bulls did this trade season and what the moves mean for the franchise moving forward.
Bulls deal Nikola Mirotic
Bulls receive: Center Omer Asik, guard Tony Allen, guard Jameer Nelson, the Pelicans’ 2018 first-round pick (protected 1-5 in 2018, protected 1-8 in 2019) and a 2021 second-round pick swap rights
New Orleans Pelicans receive: Forward Nikola Mirotic and the Bulls’ 2018 second-round pick
We can’t forget about this trade even though it feels like it happened an eternity ago. The Mirotic deal was one of the first deals of this trade season and netted the Chicago Bulls the first-round draft pick they wanted for months.
The unfortunate season-ending injury to center DeMarcus Cousins increases the likelihood the pick the Bulls received from the Pelicans will fall into the lottery. Plus, losing Mirotic makes the Bulls a significantly worse team. So, it’s likely the Bulls’ own pick will fall to the top-5 (the tank is strong!) Receiving the Pelicans’ first round pick is worth bringing on Asik and his horrendous deal. Meanwhile, Allen has already been waived.
My biggest gripe about the trade is the Bulls coughed up another second-round draft pick. They’ve exhibited a carelessness with second-round picks you rarely see out of a rebuilding team.
But, the Bulls were one of three teams who received a first-round draft pick during this year’s trade season and they gave up the worse player. This is still a stellar transaction despite the Windy City franchise sending a draft pick to New Orleans.
Grade: B
Nelson’s time in Chicago cut short
Bulls receive: center Willie Reed and Pistons’ 2022 second-round pick
Detroit Pistons: Nelson and Bulls’ 2022 second-round pick
The Chicago Bulls didn’t waste any time in flipping Nelson. He didn’t suit up in a single game for the Windy City franchise and is in contention to be on the “All-Chicago Bulls ‘We never actually played for the Bulls but we were on the roster’ First Team”.
Trading Nelson made a lot of sense since he doesn’t fit the Bulls’ timeline. But, the details of trade left a lot to be desired.
It feels like the Bulls could’ve received more than just exchanging second-round picks in return for Nelson (and Reed, who they immediately waived). There’s multiple teams that could use a veteran point guard who knows how to effectively run an offense; the Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers to name a couple.
This move benefits Nelson and the Pistons a lot more than it does the Bulls. The possibility of the Pistons’ pick being better than the Bulls’ pick prevent this deal from being a complete failure.
Grade: D+
Bulls receive another former lottery pick
Bulls receive: Forward Noah Vonleh and cash considerations
Portland Trailblazers receive: Rights to Milocan Rakovich
This is the definition of a very little/low risk-medium reward move. The Chicago Bulls acquired another former lottery pick without having to give anything of substance back to the Trailblazers since the Portland franchise was looking to dump salary. The Bulls have five former lottery picks drafted between 2014-2017 on their roster and only missed the playoffs once during that period.
Vonleh’s had a disappointing career since being the ninth selection in the 2014 NBA Draft. He’s only 3.6 points, 0.3 blocks and 0.2 steals per game during the 2017-18 season. He hasn’t made the impact on the league that one would expect out of a former top-10 pick.
But, he’s still only 22 years old. He’s athletic, has an insane wingspan (7’4”) and grabs defensive rebounds at a high level (in the 93rd percentile among big men). Head Coach Fred Hoiberg has shown a strong ability in getting the best out of young players. The Bulls will have almost 30 games to evaluate Vonleh and see if he’s worth bringing back next season.
Grade: B+
Bulls depth chart
Point guard: Kris Dunn, Jerian Grant, Ryan Arcidiacono, Cameron Payne
Shooting guard: Zach LaVine, David Nwaba
Small forward: Justin Holiday, Denzel Valentine, Paul Zipser
Power forward: Lauri Markkanen, Bobby Portis, Noah Vonleh
Center: Robin Lopez, Cristiano Felicio, Omer Asik