The Chicago Bulls made all sorts of noise this summer through the free agency negotiation window thus far. It all started when the Bulls pulled off a big-time sign-and-trade deal to nab restricted free agent point guard Lonzo Ball from the New Orleans Pelicans.
Then, we would see the Bulls sign the likes of the former Los Angeles Lakers point guard Alex Caruso, OKC Thunder center Tony Bradley, and sign-and-trade for former San Antonio Spurs star shooting guard/forward DeMar DeRozan. Definitely, the biggest head-scratcher of the four free agent signings for executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley thus far was DeRozan.
It’s not just that the Bulls signed DeRozan, it’s how he fits into the current construction of this roster. And it’s also how much the Bulls had to give up to pull off this sign-and-trade with the Spurs. The Bulls dealt out another first-round draft pick, two second-round picks, veteran forward Thaddeus Young, and forward Al-Farouq Aminu, for the return of a sign-and-trade for DeRozan.
That is a whole lot to give up for a player that was an unrestricted free agent and isn’t really a perfect fit with the Bulls as the roster is currently constructed.
Chicago Bulls building an interesting dynamic between Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan
But this also presents the question of what tying down more of the cap sheet for three years means for the contract negotiations between the Bulls and star shooting guard Zach LaVine in the coming months. LaVine is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer if the Bulls don’t re-sign him.
And if the Bulls don’t offer LaVine a new contract extension in the realm of max money, then he is likely to want to explore free agency.
The Bulls did hand DeRozan a three-year contract worth around a total of $85 million, all of which looks to be guaranteed money. And with star center Nikola Vucevic also set to get max money over the course of roughly the entire life of DeRozan’s deal, the Bulls could be in a tough spot to get any more movement in the midst of the LaVine contract negotiations.
Given LaVine’s comments recently about contract negotiations that he essentially just wants his respect, it’s tough to tell where the talks sit at the moment. LaVine’s recent comment on the matter of contract negotiations was a bit confusing, if not at least out of the ordinary.
It seems like the Bulls would try to keep a younger core to build around LaVine, instead of going out to get a player that could be confusing fit and is 31 years of age, in DeRozan.
I’m not ready to declare that the Bulls are in a spot to use DeRozan as the eventual replacement for LaVine. But he might be more of an insurance policy if the contract negotiation talks with LaVine don’t wind up panning out.
But there is the possibility that the front office doesn’t fully buy into LaVine. Karnisovas and Eversley essentially tried to get rid of every other part of the previous young core assembled by John Paxson and Gar Forman. Maybe they don’t believe in a future with LaVine.
That is all pretty bleak speculation, though.
It seems like what this actually means with the Bulls committing so much to a 31-year-old DeRozan is that there is still a lot left for this team to prove. Specifically, there is still a lot for LaVine to prove before the front office is ready to hand him a long-term max deal.
The main goal at hand now looks to be getting this team into the postseason for the first time in more than four years. It’s hard to see what other goal was kept in mind with the acquisitions of pieces like DeRozan and Vooch.
DeRozan surely adds a lot to the Bulls. Between the likes of DeRozan, LaVine, and Vooch, the Bulls could have three legitimate contenders next season to be All-Star selections. That trio now has seven All-Star selections combined.