Off to a very financially savvy start to their 2023 offseason, the Chicago Bulls have successfully navigated rather expensive waters to re-sign Nikola Vucevic and Coby White to very affordable deals while also bringing in accomplished veteran talents such as Torrey Craig and Jevon Carter. Somehow, someway, Arturas Karnisovas found a way to construct a better team for next year all while keeping ownership pleased by avoiding any unwanted luxury tax bills (thus far).
But why stop there? Although the Bulls have made a few moves to improve at the margins, they’ve yet to make a real splash that can convince fans a better future is in store for this team. If Chicago retains Ayo Dosunmu on his $5.2 million qualifying offer and guarantees the contracts of Carlik Jones and Marko Simonovic, they’ll come in just shy of the $165 million luxury tax threshold with no remaining roster spots and very little remaining flexibility to sign free agents.
A trade, however, could be a clever way to bring in talent without hurting the books. As it just so happens, the Bulls could potentially dangle Lonzo Ball‘s $20 million contract as a way to bring in a true difference-maker. Considering the nature of his injury, I doubt many teams will be willing to exchange anyone on their payroll for someone who isn’t expected to play this season. But if Chicago scours the free agent market, they just might be able to pull off a sign-and-trade, perhaps even for a player like Charlotte’s P.J. Washington.
Could the Bulls top off an impressive 2023 offseason by offloading Lonzo Ball’s contract while landing a player like P.J. Washington?
Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports suggests that this isn’t an unlikely outcome at this point, even likening Washington’s situation with former Bulls lottery pick, Lauri Markkanen.
"“There’s recent history, such as Lauri Markkanen in 2021, of a restricted free agent lingering on the market deep into the summer and ultimately landing a strong opportunity through sign-and-trade. Maybe that will be the end result for P.J. Washington’s own restricted free agency with the Hornets, as he also appears far apart with Charlotte in his contract talks.”"
As the best remaining free agent on my big board, it would be a respectable swing for the fences from the Bulls here if they were able to land a player like P.J. Washington. With the power forward rotation being undoubtedly the most shallow and talent-deprived position on Chicago’s depth chart, a move like this could help address this team’s greatest weakness and help them bounce back to contention. But if we’re being honest with ourselves here, what would a trade where the Bulls land P.J. Washington even begin look like?
What would a Bulls trade for P.J. Washington realistically look like?
Last week, my colleague here at Pippen Ain’t Easy penned an article about ways the Bulls could get off Lonzo Ball’s contract. Most of these scenarios involved dishing out some combination of a first-round pick(s), Patrick Williams, and a plethora of second-round picks. The response was, uh… understandably hostile, to say the least.
I get it. We’re all Bulls fans here, and none of us want to see the front office get their pockets picked in a horrible trade. I certainly agree that the Bulls should strive to find a more equitable trade if they’re to move Lonzo, particularly one that doesn’t involve sacrificing several of the franchise’s most important future assets just to get off a contract that expires in two seasons anyways.
Here’s a deal I believe could develop for both parties involved.
Following the news of the trade that sent Boston’s Grant Williams to the Mavericks, the Bulls have a perfect window to capitalize on the market value of this deal. Since Boston had no cap space nor room in the depth chart for the forward, Williams was traded for three second-round picks and essentially salary filler in the form of Reggie Bullock.
This came as quite a shock, as Williams was one of the best remaining free agents on the board and his 3-and-D talent was expected to fetch a premium return. With little to no leverage in negotiations, however, the Celtics were forced to take what they could get. If Chicago is lucky, they could potentially take advantage of the Hornets’ unwillingness to re-sign Washington for his asking rate by offering this package.
Since Washington has become the last premiere free agent remaining on the market, the Hornets may opt to trade him now before he signs a deal too hefty to match (looking at you San Antonio), thus losing him for nothing in return. Now that we have an idea of what a Washington to the Bulls trade may actually look like, would both parties be interested in pulling the trigger on this deal?
Would the Bulls make this trade for P.J. Washington?
After bringing Nikola Vucevic and Andre Drummond back for next season and adding Torrey Craig to the mix, the Bulls’ frontcourt may seem a bit more crowded than it has for a while now. While this might make Washington seem like an unconventional fit, I believe it would grant the Bulls enough flexibility to become a much more dangerous team.
As it currently stands, the Bulls will be forced to employ an inexperienced Dalen Terry or undersized Alex Caruso alongside Craig at the forward positions. Meanwhile, Drummond will be the only playable center on the bench, which isn’t ideal considering the clear holes in his game. By acquiring Washington, Craig can slide up to small forward while P.J. plays power forward, giving the Bulls enough size to create mismatches. If Chicago wishes to play small, Washington has proven to be an effective small-ball center in spurts, allowing Craig and Caruso to hold down the wing.
This versatility would be incredibly valuable for the Bulls moving forward, and I believe it’s well worth taking the gamble on. Even if that means sacrificing draft picks and paying P.J. a bit more than anyone else seems willing to offer at the moment.
Would the Hornets make this trade for Lonzo Ball and draft picks?
For the Bulls, it’s easy to see why they’d be incentivized to make this trade. Chicago is actively trying to win, and swapping dead money for P.J. Washington is a clear win, even if they have to overpay ever so slightly to sign him. From the Hornets’ perspective, we have to think outside the box a little bit here.
If we compare P.J. to Lonzo in a vacuum, it’s obvious that the former holds more value. We don’t know if Lonzo will ever even play again. But now that Miles Bridges has returned to the fold, the Hornets don’t have a starting gig to offer P.J. anymore, and don’t have the financial flexibility to offer him starter money. This is why we have yet to see the two sides agree to a deal, as Charlotte stares down the very real possibility of losing him for nothing.
If the Hornets don’t intend to bring P.J. back, it makes sense to get whatever they can in return, even if it means taking pennies on the dollar. We saw this happen in 2019, when the 76ers traded former Jimmy Butler to the Heat in return for Josh Richardson, as they decided getting something in return was far better than losing Butler for nothing. The Hornets will very likely have to make that same decision this summer.
And truth be told, they could do far worse than netting a first-round pick, a distant second-round pick, and essentially a $20 million trade exception with Ball’s contract. There’s also the added benefit of making your superstar cornerstone happy by reuniting him with his brother. Even if Lonzo never plays again, this trade could be a sneakily beneficial move for both parties; the possibility of him returning to his former self, however, may just be enticing enough of a gamble for the Hornets to risk taking.
Grade: B+
I’d be a big fan of this move, but the fact P.J. is likely due a big payday — with Patrick Williams due his extension next summer — and that the Hornets may push for more draft capital in this exchange prevents it from being a surefire home run.