As we move closer to the offseason for all NBA teams, more and more Bulls rumors are likely to keep rolling in. But it was one of the hottest impending restricted free agents that found himself in the midst of some free agency discussions around the media landscape again on May 27. Bulls fourth-year power forward Lauri Markkanen is a favorite son of free agency discussions so far this offseason.
Later this week, it was Markkanen being discussed among potential Western Conference landing spots off of the restricted free agent market this summer. Two popular destinations mentioned for Markkanen of late out West are the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs.
It was the latter of those two teams that a piece from Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype tabbed as a good fit with legendary head coach Gregg Popovich and the Spurs this week. In an offseason preview of lottery teams out of the West, Scotto had a Q&A that took a brief flyover of what the Spurs could be looking at roster-wide heading into next season.
Spurs running hot with Bulls rumors for PF Lauri Markkanen
Markkanen was tabbed as a potential very realistic free agent signing for the Spurs to target this offseason. If another team, like the Bulls or Mavs, doesn’t continue to top the offer sheet of Markkanen this summer, then the Spurs could be a viable landing spot.
Here’s more on what this piece from Hoops Hype had to say on the matter of the Spurs pursuing Markkanen.
"They’ve got $50 million in cap space, so they can bring back DeRozan. Let’s say they bring him back at $25 million. Then you’ve got another $25 million to spend. I don’t know if you want to tie that up in Rudy Gay and Patty Mills. They definitely need some frontcourt help and more upside. They’ve been linked to Lauri Markkanen. That would be the type of move I’d try to pursue if I were them. Maybe even John Collins."
If the price tag for Markkanen gets bid up pretty high this summer, then it doesn’t make much sense for the Bulls to continue to pursue him. They don’t have much cap space as is, which means that executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley might let him walk, or ship him off in a sign-and-trade deal.
Markkanen didn’t really finish the regular season on a high note, and he was in a reserve role with first-year head coach Billy Donovan most of the way down the stretch. Although, Markkanen is still due starter-level money in free agency this summer.
Markkanen, Donovan, and the Bulls finished up the regular season with a record fo 31-41 following a May 16 win at home at the United Center over the divisional foe Milwaukee Bucks. They also wound up missing the postseason for the fourth straight year.