Head coach Billy Donovan and the Chicago Bulls have some roster needs heading into Training Camp and the preseason. A lot of buzz keeps surrounding the free agency of fourth-year power forward Lauri Markkanen and how the rest of the roster can be filled out. Obviously, those two storylines coincide.
If the Bulls could re-sign Markkanen, that would take care of one additional roster spot, and fill the looming need at the four. Behind whoever starts at the four for Donovan and the Bulls next season could be Markkanen. But unless he is re-signed (likely would be on a qualifying offer for next season) the Bulls don’t have an option here at the moment.
And according to a report from K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago on Aug. 25, there’s a chance that Donovan and the Bulls could start out next season with a 14-man roster essentially. The impending trade exception that the Bulls have from losing big man Daniel Theis in free agency could mean a valuable roster spot for the team down the line.
Chicago Bulls could be leaving Billy Donovan one shy on the 15-man roster
Theis wound up signing a four-year contract worth a total of around $36 million with the Houston Rockets out of free agency this summer.
With the trade exception now available for the Bulls thanks to Theis signing with the Rockets, there could be more options for the front office to work with down the road. But the loss of depth could hurt in thinner spots in the rotation at the outset of next season.
The trade-off here lies within how the front office values what’s left in free agency. There are some intriguing names out there in free agency still. But clearly, Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley haven’t found anyone they value enough in free agency to make the move yet.
Although a few weeks have elapsed since the start of the free agency negotiation window, it’s hard to find a viable route that makes Markkanen want to come back to the Bulls. Unless that is literally his last option available this offseason, it feels like Markkanen is on the way out.
The Bulls only have about four or five weeks until Training Camp begins, specifically on Sep. 28. Before that time arrives, some potential names to watch in free agency still are power forwards Paul Millsap and Patrick Patterson, sharpshooting veteran guard JJ Redick, and forward James Ennis III, among others.