Chicago Bulls: Grading the 2019 offseason moves
Signed Thaddeus Young: 3 Years, $43.6 Million ($32.4 Million Guaranteed)
The Thaddeus Young signing was seen by many as perhaps the best move that the Bulls made all summer, and for good reason. Young is a starting-caliber four who will come off the bench for Chicago, whose reserve unit was absolutely abysmal in 2018-2019. Young has the ability to both put the ball in the basket and play strong defense on the other end, and appears set to be the go-to guy off the bench.
Perhaps even more than his ability as a basketball player is his skill set as a leader and a locker room presence. On a team that had to form an actual committee of players to deal with locker room and leadership issues, had a mutiny, and has not been to the playoffs since the Jimmy Butler days, signing a player such as Young is much bigger than a basketball move.
The price tag for Young is decently large, but this seems to be the way NBA contracts are moving nowadays. Looking at how Young’s contract sizes up to other NBA players of his caliber, this deal does not look too bad at all.
Perhaps the best part of Thaddeus’ deal is that in his third year he is only guaranteed $6 million, which allows the Bulls to be flexible with the cap if need be. All signs point to Young being a fan favorite and impact player in Chicago immediately.