How to Make Anthony Davis a member of the Chicago Bulls

Recently, Anthony Davis stated that he would definitely consider a homecoming at some point in his career with the Chicago Bulls.

The Los Angeles superstar has only two years left on his current deal, with one year being a player option that he will most certainly opt out of, the likelihood that Anthony Davis hits the open market is very high. This does not mean that he will be leaving Los Angeles next summer, in fact, odds are that he re-signs with the Lakers next summer. How long would it take for him to land with the Chicago Bulls?

The only thing that is certain with Davis is that he will be signing a massive contract, for which he is worth every penny.

The two most realistic suitors for Davis may just end up being the Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers already have a leg up on the Bulls, as they already have the second greatest player of all time in LeBron James and are also a presumed playoff team to start 2019-2020. With a superstar partner, beautiful Los Angeles weather, a historic franchise, and the attractiveness of Hollywood, why would Davis want to leave for the Windy City?

The first, and most obvious, reason for Davis coming to the Bulls is the fact that he grew up in the city. We have witnessed more and more homecomings in the NBA since LeBron’s return to Cleveland back in 2014. Nostalgia is a driving factor in many business decisions. Perhaps Davis would be inclined to be close to family, live in the city he regards so highly, and win a championship for the team that he grew up cheering for.

Although the sentiment of home is a powerful one, the prospects of playing in the United Center alone is not going to be enough to sway Davis to Chicago. The first step in truly getting into the Davis conversation is to make the playoffs in 2020. Indeed, this is a sky-high goal for the young Chicago Bulls. However, we have seen a very similar situation this past season in which an atrocious young squad blossomed into not only a playoff team, but also a marquee free agent landing spot.

Enter the Brooklyn Nets. The laughing stock of the NBA not too long ago, the Nets found themselves prepared for another lottery-bound season in 2018-2019. For whatever reason, Brooklyn seemed to fire on all cylinders last year, finding themselves their first playoff birth since 2015. This time one year ago, nobody would have believed that Brooklyn would not only be a playoff team, but would also land Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving the following summer.

Nonetheless, the Nets pulled it off. Brooklyn is now set up to be a serious contender for some time, seemingly out of nowhere. Point and case: if Brooklyn can do it, there is absolutely no reason why Chicago can’t too. For starters, the Nets have been plagued with bad trades and signings that have haunted them for years. Chicago is simply just not in that situation. The Bulls have a very talented young core that are mostly all still on their rookie deals, something that GarPax can capitalize on.

There is even an argument to be made that the Chicago roster is much more promising than the Brooklyn one was in 2018-2019. A young roster like Chicago’s can be very enticing to superstars such as Davis, as not only would he be the premier option, but the longevity of the team’s potential success would be much greater than that of a team like Los Angeles that is full of aging veterans.

However, none of this matters if the young Bulls cannot reach their potential, or in other words, make the playoffs this season. Chances are, the Nets would not have been in contention for Irving or Durant if they had not made the playoffs. Rather, because they made the playoffs, they were able to steal the perennial “big brother” New York Knicks’ top two free agent targets who were seemingly set on signing with James Dolan.

If Chicago were to sneak in this year with no true superstar talent, perhaps Davis would be more willing to listen to a pitch from John Paxson come this summer. Even a 7 or 8 seed in the Eastern Conference could give Davis just enough of a glimpse of potential for him to come in and push them to a championship run.

On top of this, another motivation for Davis to leave the Purple and Gold is the fact that playing with LeBron James has proven to be quite taxing on many NBA players, including star-talents. LeBron’s sky-high standards can feel a bit overwhelming and unreasonable for some players, not to mention the amount of power he has in the front office. Not only is Davis immersed in the LeBron camp through the Lakers organization, but also as a Klutch Sports client. Perhaps AD finds a Dwyane Wade-type relationship with James, but if history is any indication of the future, chances are things don’t work out this way.

Cap space could be an issue for the Bulls in 2020 when Davis hits the open market. If Otto Porter Jr. opts into his contract next season worth over $28 million, the Bulls will have no space to sign other free agents. In order to make the numbers work, Otto would most definitely have to opt out of his current deal and come to an agreement on a new one. This is a very reasonable scenario for the Bulls, regardless of their situation with Davis. A price tag of around $16-18 million is reasonable for Porter, which still does not leave enough room for Davis.

From here, the Bulls would have to unload the contracts of Cristiano Felicio and one of either Thaddeus Young or Tomas Satoransky. Felicio’s deal would be very tough to unload, and a trade would look something like the Allen Crabbe to Atlanta deal, in which the Nets sent a lottery-protected first round pick to Atlanta in order to absorb Crabbe’s lucrative deal. Trading Satoransky or Young would be much easier, as both are useful role players that could be very attractive for contending teams.

The Davis to Chicago idea has been floating around as nothing but that: an idea. However, it is a very realistic possibility for both parties. Following a model like the Brooklyn Nets in 2018-2019 is the way to go, but before any franchise-changing player walks through the doors of the United Center, the Bulls must at the very least bring themselves back to relevancy.