Since trading for All-Star center Nikola Vucevic at the trade deadline, the Chicago Bulls have gone just 10-16, and now sit a near-insurmountable three games behind the Washington Wizards for 10th in the East with just three games left to play.
The Bulls have all but finalized another season short of their playoff goal. The most painful reality of this year’s disappointment though is not just the higher expectations that came from having two All-stars for the back half of the season, it’s also the lack of draft compensation.
In past years the Bulls had the NBA Draft to turn to after a disappointing regular season. This year, not so much.
In the Vucevic trade, the Bulls sent their first-round pick to Orlando, leaving them with only their second-round pick in 2021. The pick is protected and will return to the Bulls if it lands in the top four, but the odds of that happening are not too likely, sitting at just 26.3 percent (according to Tankathon).
Chicago Bulls fighting the odds in the draft lottery
If their pick lands out of the top four, for the first time since 2005, the Bulls will not have a first-round selection. But, that doesn’t mean that the Bulls can’t get in on what could be one of the best drafts in recent history.
Just like they traded their pick away, someone else can do the same and send the Bulls one their way. But with such a deep draft class, and teams like the Houston Rockets in need of young talent and holding multiple picks (Houston has three in the first round alone) there aren’t too many options for the Bulls.
These three picks could be on the market though, and the Bulls should jump at the opportunity to grab them in a trade.
A trade with the Phoenix Suns
This season, the Suns have gone from a yearly member of the lottery to a playoff lock. At 48-21, the Suns currently sit at second in the Western Conference, lead by the dynamic backcourt of Chris Paul and Devin Booker.
The Suns have little need for new young talent with Booker, Paul, and center DeAndre Ayton leading the way. Turning this year’s pick, which looks to fall somewhere between 27th-29th, into a future first and a pick about ten spots later in the 2021 Draft could be a boon for Phoenix.
The Bulls, on the other hand, could finally get the backcourt depth they’ve needed. Jevon Carter has struggled to carve out a key role behind Paul and Cameron Payne in Phoenix’s point guard rotation, averaging just 11.4 minutes per game across 57 appearances.
In his time on the court though, Carter has been a solid floor spacer, shooting 38% from three on the season. Carter is also playing in just his second NBA season, giving him plenty of room to improve further.
Most importantly, this trade would net the Bulls a late first-round pick which they could use to further shore up their bench, adding someone like Oregon’s Chris Duarte or Texas’ Jaden Springer.
2. Another deal with the Boston Celtics
The Celtics have already made a deal with the Bulls this season, sending fan favorite Daniel Theis to Chicago in a deadline-day trade.
The play-in tournament makes the status of the Celtics’ 2021 first-round pick more complicated than it should be. The Celtics currently sit seventh in the East, with a two-game lead over the eighth-place Charlotte Hornets.
This will give them two chances to make the playoffs: a game against the Hornets, and if they lose that, a game against the winner of the 9-seed/10-seed game. The Celtics, with their positioning and talent-loaded starting lineup, are extremely unlikely to fall into the lottery, but that doesn’t mean their pick won’t have value.
If the Celtics make the playoffs as expected, they would have the 16th pick in the NBA Draft. If their pick enters the lottery, its value will skyrocket beyond this trade’s value, but some much-needed wing depth in Al-Farouq Aminu and Danny Ainge’s beloved future picks should be more than enough to get the Celtics’ first to Chicago.
With the 16th pick, the Bulls would have the opportunity to draft an extremely high-level talent.
Former 16th picks include Hall of Famers John Stockton and current Bulls star Vucevic, meaning there could be plenty of talent on the board for the Bulls if they were able to pick up the first pick outside of the lottery.
3. The Bulls enter the Lottery
I know a lot of people reading this are already angry at this trade. Many Bulls fans are still extremely loyal to Coby White as the point guard of the future, and honestly… I don’t get it.
White is potentially one of the biggest busts taken in the 2019 NBA Draft. He ranks 27th amongst all sophomores this year in box plus/minus, with an atrocious -2.6 BPM.
His on/off splits are terrible. For an offensive-minded player, Coby does little to help the Bulls attack. The Bulls’ offensive rating fairs 1.1 points better when White is OFF the court than what he’s on it.
His player efficiency of 12.1 is still far below the league average of 15 and is barely better than the 11.9 PER he put up his rookie season. Sophomore year is the season where NBA players normally start to come into their own, and that minimal improvement isn’t big enough to inspire much hope for his future.
All this without even mentioning his defense. But I guess you can’t talk about something that doesn’t exist.
Yes, he can stuff the stat sheet, but those points are the definition of empty numbers. The Bulls could really benefit from a reset, and the Pelicans’ 2021 lottery pick would be the perfect opportunity to start over.
As much as I dislike his play though, there are plenty around the league who would look at his numbers and see untapped potential. If the Bulls can convince the Pelicans of his talents, or any lottery team for that matter, they should take the opportunity to dump his contract for a new shot at a young talent immediately.