Chicago Bulls: 3 players that have suffered since the Nikola Vucevic trade

Lauri Markkanen, PF

There was once a time when it looked like fourth-year power forward Lauri Markkanen was going to salvage a future with the Bulls. At the outset of the current regular season, Markkanen was hot and looked like he was going to have a career year. As he’s in the midst of the final year of his rookie contract, it made sense that this could be a career year for Lauri.

Markkanen also struggled with injury issues at times this season, which didn’t help his case to stick around in the Windy City beyond this offseason. The Bulls new front office regime had a chance to bring Markkanen back for next season but elected not to do so last offseason when he was up for a contract extension.

As Markkanen draws closer and closer to the time when he’s set to hit the restricted free agent market, his play seems to dip more and more. In the month of April alone, Markkanen averaged 8.5 points per game, 4.3 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.1 blocks. And he’s shot 48.6 percent from the field, 38.5 percent from beyond the arc, and 80.0 percent from the free-throw line.

Just like was the case in prior years where Markkanen struggled for the Bulls, getting him space and rhythm from the field is key to making him effective for the frontcourt rotation. It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense that a big man shooting nearly 40 percent from beyond the arc in the last six weeks is seeing his number of field goal and three-point attempts cut in half since the Vooch trade transpired.