It feels like every time I talk about any Bulls rumors concerning the potential of third-year point guard Coby White hitting the trade block this season, I have to mention a personal opinion first. My personal belief is that Coby can play a key role for the Bulls as an offensive spark plug off the bench.
There is a tremendous reliance that second-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Bulls have on the star duo of shooting guard Zach LaVine and shooting guard/forward DeMar DeRozan right now. On any night where one or both of them is off, or if at least one of them is out, having White to turn to off the bench can be very helpful.
White really had his first solid game since making his season debut with the Bulls earlier this month. After making his way back from shoulder surgery during the offseason, it was going to take White a while to get his rhythm and scoring touch back. But it appears that he found it in the Bulls’ big win at home at the United Center over the New York Knicks on the night of Nov. 21.
Which Bulls rumors could hypothetically play out to get a Coby White trade done?
We’ll see how White is able to settle into a role in the second or third unit in the coming days and weeks as he continues to ramp up his workload moving further into the regular season.
If the Bulls are bound to trade White at some point later this season, to get rid of the final piece of the previous young core under the former front office regime of John Paxson and Gar Forman, they need to find a worthy return for the former North Carolina Tar Heel.
Here’s a look at three teams that do have a lot of trade assets that could be worth looking at if the Bulls are going to trade Coby.
Bulls Rumors: Grizzlies have an intriguing player offering for Coby White
One of the most interesting teams in terms of deciphering who could be buyers and sellers at the 2022 trade deadline is the Memphis Grizzlies. With one of the most promising young cores in the NBA, the Grizzlies becoming buyers at the trade deadline would certainly come with some level of caution from their front office in terms of who’d they be willing to part ways with.
That doesn’t mean, though, that there aren’t any other players outside of their true young core that the Bulls could get value out of. Two of the players that I really think could bring a ton of value to the table for the Bulls that the Grizzlies could be willing to part ways with ahead of the trade deadline are the three-and-D wing/shooting guard De’Anthony Melton and floor-spacing forward Kyle Anderson.
The Bulls will be missing second-year forward Patrick Williams likely for the entire regular season. Anderson is a good enough floor spacer and defender to make up for a lot of what the Bulls can usually get out of having Williams in the lineup.
Melton can also give the Bulls more proven depth on both ends on the floor on the wing. Given how much the Bulls are willing to switch on defense, and how they could use some help with floor spacing on offense, Melton would theoretically be a good fit.
Since White likely still carries a good amount of trade value at this point, the Bulls might be able to get some future draft capital here along with a key reserve such as Melton or Anderson.
Bulls Rumors: Spurs a willing trade partner again for Chicago?
Last offseason, the Bulls made one of the biggest splash deals of the entire summer by nabbing DeRozan from the San Antonio Spurs in a sign-and-trade deal that immediately upgraded this roster. That deal saw the Bulls send veteran forwards Thaddeus Young and Al-Farouq Aminu to San Antonio, along with some future draft capital, for the return of the four-time All-Star DeRozan.
I look at the Spurs as a potential trade partner for the Bulls if they deal out White later on this season a lot like I would the Grizzlies. There are a few proven reserves that could provide a lot of two-way value for the Bulls down the stretch this season. The Bulls could also likely extract more two-way value out of someone like the former Portland Trail Blazers floor-spacing big man Zach Collins or two-way guard Lonnie Walker IV than they could Coby.
Granted, that would mean that Collins would have to actually get healthy and return to the court at some point this season. The last time that Collins even touched the court in game action for any NBA team came during the 2019-20 season with the Trail Blazers. Collins missed all of last season for the Blazers and has yet to play out of the gates this season for the Spurs.
If possible, it sounds better for the Bulls to trade for someone like Walker than Collins in terms of the immediate impact. And if Donovan and the Bulls could find a good fit in the second unit for Walker, this would be a low-risk move that could pay dividends come playoff time.
A trade that could take place theoretically between the Bulls and Spurs to move Coby would likely mean Chicago trying to get some type of future draft pick along with someone like Collins or Walker.
Bulls Rumors: Raptors could become surprise sellers ahead of the deadline
What could make for one of the most intriguing trade partners for the Bulls if the front office intended to shop Coby later this season is the Toronto Raptors. There really aren’t many teams in the Eastern Conference at the moment that have a larger quantity of young and potent talent than the Raptors.
Yet, if things start to come off the rails for the Raptors soon this season, it could lead to the front office starting to sell out some of the more expensive contracts. Two of the names to watch in that regard could be star forward Pascal Siakam and standout point guard/former undrafted free agent Fred VanFleet.
Of course, it would be interesting for the Bulls to try to go out and get someone like VanFleet or Siakam. But there really isn’t much room to bring in VanFleet, and Siakam would present the Bulls with major cap issues in the years ahead.
That’s why I would personally be a fan of the idea of the Bulls going out to trade for someone like defensive standout big man Chris Boucher or 22-year-old shooting guard Gary Trent Jr. Boucher would be the more realistic of these two trade targets, as Trent Jr. is still owed around $16 million in average annual value throughout the remaining two full years of his contract.
Boucher could add some valuable rim protection and rebounding ability for the Bulls if they were to trade for him. And if the Bulls could find the cap room to make it happen, Trent could surely be an explosive scoring option to go after. If the Bulls were to go out and get someone like Trent, it would require parting ways probably with Troy Brown Jr. and one other smaller contract.
It seems like the deal that makes the most sense here, though, would be a duo of player swaps that could match contracts and spots in each rotation.