5 Bulls most likely to be placed on trade block if Chicago blows it up

2. Alex Caruso

Across the league, perhaps no player on the Chicago Bulls is as universally respected and acknowledged as a true winning player as Alex Caruso. Fresh off being selected to his first All-Defensive First Team in 2022, Caruso is finally receiving his flowers for the enormous impact he makes on both ends of the court.

Caruso ranked 2nd in DBPM last year with a mark of 3.3 and is back at the top of the list this year, as his 2.8 BPM has him ranked 5th among all players to register at least 200 minutes thus far. Most impressive of all, he’s finally become a net positive on the offensive end, as his blistering hot 44% clip from beyond the arc makes him the ideal sell-high candidate. The only thing holding him back from the top spot on this list is the fact that he’s signed under cheap team control through 2025, meaning the Bulls don’t have to bite at a low-ball offer if they don’t want to.

Alex Caruso and DeMar DeRozan would be the two Bulls most likely to be traded in a rebuild.

1. DeMar DeRozan

While the Bulls can be patient in negotiations with Caruso, the same does not apply when it comes to trade talks for DeMar DeRozan. Arguably the best player currently on this roster, DeRozan would undoubtedly attract suitors if made openly available on the trade block. With his current deal set to expire at the end of the season, Chicago doesn’t have the luxury of time on their side here either.

DeMar has been the Bulls’ only consistently reliable offensive star over the last two seasons, racking up a pair of All-Star selections and even All-NBA honors in 2021. He seems to have cooled off since then, but not many players on the trade block can reliably get you 24 points and 4 assists per night on high efficiency. It’s only been 10 games, but DeRozan’s improved three-point percentage this season and relatively easy-to-move $28.6 million contract make him perhaps the most interesting player to watch ahead of this year’s trade deadline across the entire league, not just on the Bulls.