Next two seasons pivotal for both the Chicago Bulls and Otto Porter’s future

Otto Porter Jr. has the potential to elevate Chicago’s long term future and championship aspirations.

When the Chicago Bulls traded for Otto Porter Jr., they took on a massive contract and a banged-up player who had never quite reached the expectations of his status as a third-overall pick.

But on a woefully-bad Bulls team—Chicago was 12-41 when they made the trade—the weight of Porter’s contract dissipated.

What use was there to hem and haw over Porter’s paycheck when only two other players on the team were making more than $10 million? There was no need to frame his performance within the context of his $106 million contract and the Bulls were able to enjoy Porter in ways the Washington Wizards, who had strained against the luxury tax line since they re-signed him, simply could not.

In his 26 games following the trade, Porter helped revitalize the Bulls. He shot just shy of 49% from three on 5.3 attempts per game while averaging 17.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and a steal. Porter’s ability to space the floor and do all the little things that Chicago’s young guns couldn’t was sorely needed, and he instantly became the team’s marquee defender.

Amidst the tumultuous first few months of the Boylen era, which put the Bulls in the national spotlight for all the wrong reasons, Porter’s arrival seemed to lift the team out of the muck. Chicago finished the season 10-19 with Lauri Markkanen and Zach LaVine playing some of their best basketball yet. The narrative around Chicago began to once again resemble that of an up-and-coming team, and not that of the much-mocked team on the border of mutiny from two months prior.

But Porter’s contract, and his future, will begin to matter again this season and next. Porter will enter unrestricted free agency in 2021, the same year Markkanen will become a restricted free agent—although the Bulls may have already extended Markkanen by then.

The lure of big-name free agents will no doubt linger in the minds of Chicago’s front office—Anthony Davis, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bradley Beal, Paul George, Jrue Holiday and Victor Oladipo, among many others, could all be available that summer.

The Bulls will have eight players locked into just $65 million of cap space, plus whatever deal Markkanen ends up netting either via extension or in restricted free agency. If the Bulls can position themselves as a young team with some track record of success, they have the potential to make themselves an ideal landing spot for free agents.

The Los Angeles Clippers are the obvious model for such an approach. They had the roster flexibility and culture to lure Kawhi Leonard, as well as the assets to nab a star who wanted out in Paul George. Chicago may not have quite the loaded hand that the Clippers had this summer—both George and Leonard are from the area, and the Clippers had a front office willing to deal a treasure trove of draft picks in addition to their star rookie—but that type of jumping-off point will be ideal entering the summer.

Cap space means nothing to superstars if you can’t sell them on winning, and the Bulls will need to develop their young talent if they hope to make that pitch. Markkanen and LaVine will be entering or in their primes by then, and talk of potential will give way to the ability to win in the playoffs. A fan base clamoring for success won’t be as understanding of the growing pains of players like Wendell Carter Jr. and Coby White as they were Markkanen.

The elephant in the room, of course, is that Chicago has historically struck out in free agency, with their biggest signing in recent memory a 34-year-old Pau Gasol. The much-maligned deals for Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade, which netted a fractured locker room and an exit in the first round of the playoffs, epitomize most Chicago free agencies—teetering on the border of forgettable and laughable.

The potential is still there, however. And with the allure of hometown kid Anthony Davis always in mind, the Bulls may feel like they have a shot at making waves.

That’s where Otto Porter comes in.

His massive contract coming off the books in 2021 will provide the space for the Bulls to either chase superstars or fill in the gaps of their core. Even if you are skeptical of Chicago as a landing spot for stars, there are plenty of solid players the Bulls could bring in that summer to support their current roster.

In the meantime, If Porter takes a step forward, he may be worth another payday—probably not the max-level deal he got in 2017, but a contract worthy of a legitimate playoff option. Whether or not that step happens this season or next could dictate his future in Chicago.

The Bulls might be comfortable extending Porter in 2019-2020 if he can prove he hasn’t hit his ceiling. And even if Porter largely stays the same as a player—a stable wing with a great shooting stroke who plays good team defense—he could be the perfect complimentary third or fourth option on a hopefully cheaper contract.

Or Chicago could find a willing trade partner for an improved Porter in 2020-2021, sending a potential missing piece on an expiring contract to a contending team and netting assets in return. The Bulls could take the Clippers’ approach and use that return as part of a trade for a star or as part of the supporting cast for one.

The next season or two could very well turn out to be Porter’s audition tape—it’s just unclear whether it will be for the Bulls or another team.