Chicago Bulls: Power ranking the top seven bench guys
By Luke Askew
7. Cristiano Felicio
Cristiano Felicio is on one of the worst contracts in the NBA right now. The 26-year-old Brazilian big man is currently on the second year of a 4-year, $32 million contract.
Sure, roughly $8 million per year isn’t all that much and doesn’t hurt the Bulls too badly, but in terms of production per dollar, Felicio has to be one of the worst guys in the NBA.
This season, he’s averaging 3.3 points per game on 53.4 percent shooting from the field to go along with 2.9 rebounds and 0.4 assists in a little over 10 minutes per game.
It’s not totally fair to judge Felicio based on his contract. It’s not his fault the Bulls overpaid him. He plays hard, he seems like a good guy and he doesn’t demand much. Even if Felicio was making next to no money, though, he would still be the worst guy on the Bulls’ bench.
In all reality, Felicio should be a G League guy right now. He’s big, athletic and young, so there’s a chance that with more time to round out his game, he could turn into a guy worthy of bench minutes. But right now, his contract is one of the hardest to justify in the entire league.