As we look forward to what the Chicago Bulls will be able to do with this upgraded roster next season, it is also important to look back on what this team lost this offseason. While you have to be excited about what the front office was able to add for this team this offseason, there were some losses that are sizable.
Likely the most impactful loss for the Bulls this summer was veteran forward Thaddeus Young. Arturas Karnisovas and the Bulls gave up Young in the sign-and-trade deal with the San Antonio Spurs that brought in the return of star shooting guard/forward DeMar DeRozan.
In that sign-and-trade deal to land DeRozan, the Bulls also gave up two future draft picks and fellow veteran forward Al-Farouq Aminu.
All in all, it was a lot to give up to land DeRozan, but it was something that likely had to happen to make room on the cap sheet. The main knock on that deal, though, was how much draft capital the Bulls gave up in excess of trading Young to get the former Spurs and Toronto Raptors star.
However, in terms of looking back on what the Bulls are losing in Young, it was his valued efficient contributions off the bench that will be difficult to replace. It was a luxury for head coach Billy Donovan to have a player in Young that he could give a significant role in big minutes to off the bench, and know what he was getting out of the reliable veteran.
Last season, Young and star shooting guard Zach LaVine were the two most consistently efficient players. You could throw star center Nikola Vucevic into that conversation too.
Among Bulls players that competed in at least 30 games for the team last season, Young ranked second in box plus/minus (3.2), second in value over replacement player (2.2), second in player efficiency rating (20.3), and first in win shares per 48 minutes (.147). In fact, the only player that ranked ahead of Young in any of those advanced stat categories was LaVine.
Chicago Bulls are losing an efficient two-way veteran presence in Thaddeus Young
According to 538’s RAPTOR, Young also led the team in total RAPTOR and was in the top 15 in the Eastern Conference last season. The next two best in total RAPTOR for the Bulls last season were Vooch and LaVine.
And it wasn’t just the generic advanced metrics where Young thrived for the Bulls. Young registered nearly a career-best +10.2 net rating per 100 possessions. He had by far the highest net offensive rating in the on-off numbers for the Bulls from last season.
Moreover, maybe the most impressive advanced metric of all last season for Young was his career-high 27.1 assist percentage. He was great for the Bulls last season in dribble hand-off and screen-and-roll situations. In fact, Young assisted roughly 1.5 of the field goal attempts that LaVine made alone per game last season.
Young also facilitated some effective shooting percentages for LaVine too. The first-time All-Star shot 49.2 percent from the field on nearly three attempts per game from passes from Young, and north of 47 percent from beyond the arc on one attempt per game on passes from Young.
The Bulls are going to have to replace a lot in terms of what Young did for them in dribble-handoff, screen-and-roll, and plays from the elbow. According to NBA advanced stats, Young ranked in the top three among eligible players in assists (0.5 per game) and in the top 10 in assist percentage (16.7) on touches from the elbow last season.
The good news for Donovan and the Bulls in regard to losing Young is that DeRozan can ideally do a lot of what Young did for them last season. Neither Young nor DeRozan is an elite shooter from the outside. And DeRozan is much better at creating his own looks off-the-dribble than Young.
Yet, the main difference in what the Bulls are losing in Young, compared to adding DeRozan, is the defensive presence. Young is definitely a career net positive on defense, while DeRozan has never been.
Last season for the Bulls, Young registered a 1.2 defensive box plus/minus. Meanwhile, DeRozan had one of his most effective defensive seasons of his career last year with the Spurs, and still didn’t even manage to post a defensive box plus/minus above zero.
Moreover, this move to trade Young to the Spurs in this deal for a return of DeRozan was a necessary one. It’s just a shame that the Bulls couldn’t find a way to keep Young heading into next season.
All we can really do now is look back on the two seasons that Young played for the Bulls, and appreciate all he was able to contribute. Young was definitely one of the most improved players in the NBA last season, and Donovan gave him a role where he was able to thrive and transform his game for the better.