The Chicago Bulls are going to get put in a position on draft night this week where they can add more quality starters right away.
The week that a lot of basketball fans have waited for a long time has finally arrived. The week both of the 2020 NBA Draft, and the lifting of the trade moratorium and the start of this cycle of free agency is when teams can finally adjust their roster constructions to best suit them for the start of the 2020-21 season. In the case of the Chicago Bulls, most of the news coming out won’t be very tangle to shifts in the roster construction until draft night, set to take place on Nov. 18.
That’s when the bulk of the action could transpire for newly hired executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley. The Bulls have a number of ways they could look to rebuild the roster starting during the looming draft. And one way that the Bulls new front office regime is thinking about reordering this roster is with the addition of a veteran guard.
According to a report in the latest mock draft from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (paid content), the Bulls are interested in looking into the possibilities of trading for a veteran guard this offseason. But a lot of the options are starting to run out for the Bulls if they want to land a veteran guard in the near future.
The likes of the former Oklahoma City Thunder veteran star point guard Chris Paul and the ex-New Orleans Pelicans two-way star floor general Jrue Holiday were already on the move this week. CP3 was traded from the Thunder to the Suns, and Holiday from the Pelicans to the Milwaukee Bucks.
But what other veteran guards are out there for the Bulls to pursue if they want to pull off this sort of trade?
3) Chicago Bulls veteran guard targets
While the option is always out there for the Bulls to sign a veteran free agent guard, there’s not many out on the open market that bring value to the table for them at this point in time. That’s why hitting the trade market might be the best option for Karnisovas and Eversley this offseason. They can also fill other needs up and down the rotation if they trade for a veteran guard.
Since the Bulls elected not to hand out a qualifying offer to their best two defensive impending free agent guards this week, they need to add more ability on that end of the floor. The Bulls seem to be letting the likes of the former Providence Friar and 6-foot-4 point guard Kris Dunn and the former Tulsa Golden Hurricanes combo guard Shaquille Harrison walk in free agency.
The two qualifying offers that the Bulls did hand out this week went to the rookie shooting guard/wing Adam Mokoka and former Michigan State Spartans shooting guard Denzel Valentine.
So if the Bulls are going to target a veteran guard on the trade block this offseason, then why not look into a true defensive stopper to fill the void left by Harrison and Dunn?
That’s where the conversation of adding a guard like the Boston Celtics 26-year-old floor general Marcus Smart comes into play. The two-time All-Defensive Team and 2014-15 All-Rookie Team selection would be a nice fit with what the Bulls need heading into next season.
During the shortened 2019-20 regular season, Smart played in 60 games for the Celtics (40 of which he started in). And he averaged 12.9 points per game, 3.8 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.5 blocks. Smart shot 37.5 percent from the field, an improved 34.7 percent from beyond the arc, and 83.6 percent from the free-throw line.
2) Chicago Bulls veteran guard targets
The inaugural season for the veteran standout Utah Jazz point guard Mike Conley could’ve gone better than it did. The former Ohio State Buckeye and the 33-year-old floor general Conley had a much better run during his latter years with the Memphis Grizzlies than he did last season in his first year with the Jazz.
During the shortened 2019-20 regular season, Conley played in 47 games with the Jazz (all but six of which he started in). And Conley averaged 14.4 points per game, 3.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.1 blocks. He shot 40.9 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from beyond the arc, and 82.7 percent from the free-throw line. In most major statistical categories, Conley largely took a step back last season.
Another downside to forming a trade for Conley is that the Bulls would be taking on a large contract through the end of next season. But that’s all the Bulls would be taking on from Conley’s current contract. He’s due around $34.5 million next season, and then he’s an unrestricted free agent.
While adding Conley would limit the Bulls flexibility on the cap sheet next season, he would be off the books pretty quick if landing him didn’t look to work out over the long haul.
If the Bulls could get more out of Conley next season than the Jazz did last year, then landing him would be well worth it. During his dozen seasons playing for the Grizzlies, Conley averaged 14.9 points per game, 3.0 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.2 blocks. And he shot 44.7 percent from the field, helping him post a box plus/minus rating around 2.5.
1) Chicago Bulls veteran guard targets
Configuring a trade within the Central Division between two teams with playoff aspirations, and involving big name players, will never be easy. And the Bulls don’t have a whole lot of immediate impact players to offer to other teams around the Central Division, like the Indiana Pacers and the Bucks can bring to the table.
But the Bulls do have a lot of future assets and key pieces of their young core that they can bring to the table for any trade discussions/offerings. In a case where the Bulls hypothetically get into trade discussions with the Pacers, two likely names that could come to the forefront are former Indiana Hoosiers standout combo guard Victor Oladipo and former Texas Longhorns two-way big man Myles Turner.
And if the Bulls are looking to add a veteran guard, then trading for Dipo would make the most sense. The 6-foot-4 and 215 pound guard is currently still trying to return to form after suffering a ruptured quad in the midst of the 2018-19 regular season. Dipo showed flashes last season, especially in the bubble at Disney World, but nothing consistent like he was as a two-time All-Star selection previously in Indy.
During the shortened 2019-20 regular season with the Pacers, Dipo played in 19 games (16 of which he started in). And he averaged 14.5 points per game, 3.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.2 blocks. Dipo shot 39.4 percent from the field, 31.7 percent from beyond the arc, and 81.4 percent from the free-throw line.
Trading for Dipo would hopefully bring some close return to form. If the Bulls did get anything close to what Dipo was like before the ruptured quad, he would bring a ton of value.