Could the Chicago Bulls capitalize on players going home?

The Chicago Bulls have undergone quite the roster makeover the past two seasons. Can they take advantage of new developments in the player-movement era?

Jalen Rose went and joined the list of those to put it out there in the ether. Chicago Bulls fans have thought about it. But could the Bulls really take advantage of a new wave inspired by Kawhi Leonard and driven home by Paul George? Being in L.A. (going home) was a major factor in their respective journeys to the Los Angeles Clippers.

For their part, the Bulls have assembled an intriguing group. They have proven nothing, but the pieces are there for a strong supporting cast. It remains to be seen if super stardom lies dormant in Lauri Markkanen, but he and Zach LaVine are buckets. Coby White and Wendell Carter Jr. should be nice bookends and they made some smart free-agent additions.

But we are talking about potentially adding a top-five NBA talent here in Anthony Davis.

And this is not just a case of a random thought gone awry, just the latest. Others have seemed to take notice of what has transpired at the Madhouse on Madison, albeit recently. Pit bull point guard Patrick Beverley is also a Chicago native. Before the start of free agency, the Los Angeles Clippers guard was asked what he thought about playing for his hometown team (per K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune):

"“I’m a Chicago kid. So of course I’m open to playing for the Chicago Bulls if that’s a team that’s interested in me…”"

The thought of the Bulls getting a sniff of a top-tier free agent like Davis was unthinkable as recently as last season. In fact, the last time Chicago was close was the summer of 2010 when the Heatles were formed. LeBron James supposedly was close to signing with the Bulls along with Chicago area native Dwyane Wade.

Curse you, Chris Bosh.

Wade would eventually find his way to the Windy City, spending a year with the Bulls. The Three Alphas (the triumvirate of Wade, Jimmy Butler, and Rajon Rondo) even made a surprise trip to the playoffs. Flash forward to this off-season though and you get this Dwyane Wade tweet:

More innocuous words!

Davis himself dumped an oil tanker onto the fire when he said that Chicago was the “basketball Mecca…” per Tony Gill. It is honestly a harmless comment but in the age of NBA Twitter, everything gets people buzzing. He also previously said he would “definitely consider” playing for the Bulls.

Fever pitch officially reached.

Now with Davis as the centerpiece, if Wade came on as an ambassador, Steve Kerr as Head Coach…ok maybe this is going off the rails. In all seriousness, the Bulls front office has had a nice off-season and have set themselves up to attack free agency in 2021; specifically, Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Perhaps targeting Davis next summer would be the more prudent decision, though. Whether it is Otto Porter Jr. opting out of his deal (lol) or some other arrangements are made, we know that finding the money for such a move is not impossible. It is still highly unlikely for any number of very valid reasons. But if ever there was a way to flip a narrative on its ear, this is it.

We just have to remember the source. This is not to say Mr. Rose is never right, but just this off-season we saw him throw out a “99 percent” with regards to Kawhi re-signing in Toronto.