Chicago Bulls: Should AK cash in on Thad Young’s value while it’s high?

There are a few Chicago Bulls players that still manage to be slept on heading into the offseason. Considering the Bulls had an up and down season under the direction of first-year head coach Billy Donovan, there are some Bulls players that were set to fall under the radar any way you look at it. Among those, veteran forward Thaddeus Young, shooting guard Javonte Green, point guard Devon Dotson, and even former big man Daniel Gafford, were underappreciated at least at one point in time during the regular season.

Bulls fans got to see why a player like Gafford could be effective once he was dealt to the Washington Wizards, along with small forward Chandler Hutchison, back at the trade deadline. The Bulls got a return of shooting guard/small forward Troy Brown Jr. for Gafford and Hutch at the deadline back on March 25.

Moreover, three of the aforementioned underappreciated Bulls players held various roles at different points of the regular season under Donovan. Dotson is a former undrafted free agent signing that got very limited playing time during his rookie campaign but was effective when he got minutes on the floor.

Green was a standout defender at the two-guard and on the wing for the Bulls after he landed in Chicago from the Boston Celtics at the deadline.

But none of these three Bulls players were as effective consistently as Young. The 32-year-old New Orleans, LA, native and former Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets standout had arguably his most efficient season in the NBA to date. And he’s not really getting the proper recognition for that. He also doesn’t look to have a role in this starting unit moving forward.

What value the Chicago Bulls could get for Thaddeus Young on the open market?

During the 2020-21 campaign, Young averaged a career-high in assists per game, box plus/minus, two-point field goal percentage, true shooting percentage, assist percentage, and offensive rating, among other key stats.

Despite that, he still only got 23 starts in his 68 games played during the regular season for the Bulls.

Considering Young is playing at a really high level at the moment, and he’s only got one year left on his current contract heading into next season, his talents might be best served in a place where he can be in a starting unit. His numbers were just too good in too valuable of a role to think that he should just be automatically slotted in a reserve role.

This might also be a time where the Bulls front office can get some key draft and player assets back in a trade while the trade value of Young is at nearly an all-time high. Young can provide a true playoff contender with a piece capable of helping to get over the hump. That’s valuable on the open market this offseason.

While I wouldn’t naturally be a proponent of the Bulls dishing out Young since he’s not likely to get a starting role next season that might be the best move. Executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley should be able to learn here from missing out on the opportunity to trade power forward Lauri Markkanen while his value was high.

Instead, the Bulls rode out the final year of Markkanen’s rookie contract without even starting him near the end of the regular season.

Young is a very good player, and there would likely be a ton of suitors that would get in trade talks with Karnisovas and the Bulls if he were to be shopped. The Bulls might be able to get another piece to help build out their rotation more effectively than having Young in a reserve role.

The final year of Young’s current contract is set to pay him just north of $14 million in terms of base salary. That dollar figure could also help the Bulls match salaries/make room on the cap sheet if they were looking to take on an expensive contract of a star player to help round out the starting unit heading into next season (i.e. trading for Kemba Walker or signing Kyle Lowry).

Young and the Bulls rounded out the regular season with a record of 31-41. That was a nine-win improvement compared to the mark that the Bulls registered in Young’s first year in Chicago, but still not enough to get them into the postseason.