Who the Chicago Bulls could’ve signed instead of Malcolm Hill: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
The one free agent that I personally feel would be a perfect fit with what the Bulls need right now is the former Toronto Raptors, Portland Trail Blazers, and Nets forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. It became clear in the Bulls’ embarrassing second-half collapse against the Nets earlier this week that this team needs help defending some bigger offensive threats.
It’s worth noting that the Bulls just aren’t always going to shut down someone like the Nets’ superstar forward Kevin Durant. But it was just embarrassing at times to watch the Bulls give up offense the way they did to the star trio of Durant, guard James Harden, and point guard Kyrie Irving.
Signing a more proven and experienced forward such as Hollis-Jefferson instantly gives the Bulls a more potent matchup advantage in the second or third unit on the defensive end of the floor. Hollis-Jefferson has never registered a defensive box plus/minus below zero. And he was one of the best defenders for a number of seasons for the Nets in the mid-to-late 2010s.
There’s no doubt in my mind that there would be situations where Hollis-Jefferson would be a more advantageous situational defender even compared to the likes of forward Alfonzo McKinnie and shooting guard/small forward Troy Brown Jr.
While Hill might be a decent defender for the Bulls, Hollis-Jefferson definitely is much more proven in this regard.