Cristiano Felicio is the worst player on the Chicago Bulls, and it is not close. Set to make $15 million through 2020, he must leave the Windy City.
Cristiano Felicio might have an argument for the worst contract in the National Basketball Association, with the Chicago Bulls. Sure, guys like Chandler Parsons and Nicolas Batum make far more than Felicio does. But the key difference is that both Batum and Parsons can play the game of basketball at a decent level. By no means are they worth the money that they receive, but they can play the game of basketball.
Felicio, on the other hand, would not be on the Bulls’ roster if it were not for the massive sum of money the Chicago Bulls owe him. It has always perplexed Bulls fans why he ever received this amount of money.
He has never played more than 17.8 minutes per game in any season of his career. He never really showed signs of having a potential that is worthy of anywhere near an $8 million annual salary.
In 2018, Felicio has played a whopping 10 minutes per outing, while posting averages of 3.2 points and 2.8 rebounds. He does not fit the mold of an NBA player. He is undersized for a center at 6-foot-10, has absolutely no offensive ability any further than three feet away from the bucket.
His role has always been to be the roll man & to get rebounds, and on a nightly basis he blows layups and gives up careless offensive rebounds. Felicio’s physical build makes it impossible for him to be even an average defender.
The Chicago Bulls are a bottom-five team in the league, as far as the standings go, and the team has been playing youth over veterans for the past two seasons. With Wendell Carter Jr. being done for the season, Felicio, with this youth movement, should have been a lock for the starting center job. The team basically removed Robin Lopez from the rotation for some time, and Felicio was so underwhelming that the team opted to start the 30 year old.
I don’t know how they are going to move his atrocious contract, and I don’t know who wold take it. However, the Chicago Bulls have to get him off of the books. His contract does not expire until after the 2020-2021 season. His contract can get the Bulls a very serviceable player, and that amount of money is far from pocket change. Even if it means giving up some sort of asset (nothing too absurd), Chicago has to move him.
Felicio on the payroll and roster will leave a long-term negative effect on this team. I don’t expect him to be moved any time soon, however, the need to do so is more urgent than people realize.