Chicago Bulls: 3 free agents AK missed out on last offseason

Free agents Arturas Karnisovas and the Chicago Bulls missed out on: P.J. Tucker

Another free agent from last offseason that I don’t remember the Bulls ever targeting, at least in terms of public knowledge, is the veteran former Rockets and Milwaukee Bucks forward P.J. Tucker. The reigning NBA Champion with the Bucks wound up signing with Pat Riley and the Heat during the offseason on a value deal.

The Heat signed Tucker down to a two-year contract worth a total of around $14 million. That is a salary that the Bulls definitely could’ve afforded to put on the books, despite all of the other high-profile signings the front office made during the offseason.

Tucker could’ve added a valuable veteran voice to the locker room after the Bulls shipped off the likes of veterans in forward Thaddeus Young, shooting guard Garrett Temple, and Al-Farouq Aminu in the summer.

He also could’ve fit well in this Donovan system theoretically if he was willing to be active off-ball on offense. Off-ball movement and working in the dribble-hand off and the screen-and-roll system would be the biggest question for Tucker. Otherwise, he’s a very solid and switchable on-ball defender that is also an excellent rebounder and floor spacer.

Tucker is giving the Heat excellent production out of the gates this season. He’s averaging around seven points per game, six rebounds, two assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.5 blocks. And he’s shot around 52 percent from the field and 46 percent from beyond the arc.

Especially in the wake of the absence of second-year forward Patrick Williams who suffered a potential regular season-ending wrist injury last month, the Bulls could really use a veteran in the frontcourt unit like Tucker at this point of the season.