Make the Bulls better
I know this seems obvious but it can’t be overlooked. The Bulls need to get better and after an unsuccessful year, they feel as though Wendell Carter Jr. is the guy that can help them do that.
Carter Jr. has always been a team-first guy (again, look at his time at Duke playing next to Bagley). While many thought playing next to Bagley would hurt him, I only see positives coming from that situation. He showed he wants to win above everything else and it doesn’t matter how much of the glory he gets.
I think that’s where the Al Horford comparisons come in. The Celtics took the Cavs to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals without their two best players (Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward). Once those two were gone, most casual NBA fans were looking at Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier III as the guys the Celtics needed to win games. While it is true that those guys were key to the Celtics’ success – there’s no question that Al Horford was their most important player.
He only averaged 12.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game, but he controlled the game. He anchored the defense and did all the little things on offense to help players like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown do what they do best.
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That’s what Carter Jr. can bring to the Bulls. He can make them a better overall team. He adds youth, athleticism, outside shooting, and defensive versatility that the Bulls lacked at the 5 last year. His unselfish, team-first mentality is exactly what the Bulls needed to continue making strides forward on their journey back to the top.