3) Chicago Bulls biggest positional deadline needs
More stability in the frontcourt rotation
Donovan and the Bulls got to witness first hand what it is like for this team to try and make it work with fourth-year power forward Lauri Markkanen and third-year center Wendell Carter Jr. out of the lineup due to injury issues. Even though the Bulls now look to be expecting WCJ back sooner than anticipated in the very near future, it might be longer until Markkanen returns.
With that in mind, the Bulls have ran with the likes of former New York Knicks center Luke Kornet, second-year center Daniel Gafford, veteran forward Thaddeus Young, and rookie forward Patrick Williams getting more minutes in the frontcourt rotation of late. Even big man Cristiano Felicio is getting some minutes off the bench in the last few games, which is by no means what the fan base wants to see.
If Karnisovas and the Bulls can get some added depth in the frontcourt rotation that brings a cleaner injury history to the table, and just more stability in general, it could do wonders for this team. There’s a plethora of potential trade targets out there for the Bulls if they’re willing to part ways with a piece of the young core like Markkanen or WCJ.
Markkanen might make for the most interesting case on the trade block since he’s in the final year of his rookie contract. Karnisovas and the Bulls didn’t make the move to hand him a contract extension last offseason, which could be an indication of how they plan to handle his restricted free agency come next offseason.