What the Chicago Bulls had to give up for DeMar DeRozan?
While it might seem like a load for what the Bulls gave up to the Spurs to get DeRozan in return in terms of the players that Karnisovas dealt out, that wasn’t the confusing part of this deal. The part of the sign-and-trade that was a bit of a head-scratcher was all of the draft capital that the Bulls gave up to make this happen.
You can’t argue with the excitement that all of these moves are going to bring to the table for the Bulls heading into next season. When all of the rumors were spilling out at the trade deadline that the Bulls could try to land some combination (or at least one of) star center Nikola Vucevic, DeRozan, and Lonzo, it was hard to think ahead that this team could get all them for the 2021-22 season.
But that is exactly what Karnisovas and Eversley pulled off this week and at the trade deadline back on March 25.
The biggest player asset that the Bulls gave up in this trade deal was Young. The biggest bounce-back player for the Bulls and head coach Billy Donovan last season is a significant loss for this team. But it is likely that either DeRozan or forward Patrick Williams can take his spot at the four in the starting unit.
Aminu was included in this deal to help match salaries. He had exercised his player option this offseason and has one year remaining on his current contract. The Bulls had originally landed Aminu in that deadline day deal that landed them Vooch from the Orlando Magic.
My biggest criticism of this move is all of the draft capital that the Bulls gave up in a sign-and-trade deal. That is an increasing trend of late in sign-and-trades, but the Bulls have now given up three first-round draft picks to land three stars in their 30s that don’t have a single title between the two.