Obvious things worth stating from the start: Taj Jami Gibson is a charter member of the Chicago Bulls Bench Mob, an all-time great Bulls rotational player, and someone who fully personified the traditional gritty toughness of Bulls basketball.
OTD in 2011, Taj Gibson caught a body 😳 pic.twitter.com/sF2ABcpAOh
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) May 15, 2020
Gibson delivered an iconic poster on then-Miami Heat guard and former Bulls guard Dwyane Wade in the 2011 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, and that moment deserves its own special enshrinement for peak Bulls playoff vibes.
In Adam Silver’s 2026 NBA, on the doorstep of the start of training camp for the 2026-27 NBA season, a beloved former Bulls player has found himself on the waiver wire.
Pelicans waive Taj Gibson.https://t.co/RJ9RrT8y24
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) September 9, 2026
Wednesday, the New Orleans Pelicans announced the team waived Gibson as a ripple effect of acquiring the 17-year NBA veteran on Tuesday in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The New Orleans Pelicans are trading Jordan Hawkins, Micah Peavy, a future second-round pick and a future second-round pick swap to the Memphis Grizzlies for AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/JLvDjv9clc
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 8, 2026
Should the Chicago Bulls devote their final open roster spot to a Taj Gibson reunion? ABSOLUTELY NOT! The Bulls are getting a roster rebuild off the ground. There are bigger priorities for Bulls lead front-office executive Bryson Graham to tackle in his first season running Bulls basketball operations.
One-day contract for Taj and keep it moving
Taj Gibson gave the Chicago Bulls everything he had for eight seasons, getting drafted as a late first-round selection (26th overall) in the 2009 NBA Draft and eventually exiting the Bulls during the 2017 NBA Trade Deadline, foreshadowing the end of an era of Tom Thibodeau guys on the Bulls roster.
Of course, the Thibs-guy era definitively came to an end during the 2017 NBA offseason once Jimmy Butler was ironically dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves, whose lead front-office executive and head coach happened to be former Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau.
The memories are solid. We don’t need a Taj Gibson reboot. We don't need another nostalgia hero. All we want is life beyond the play-in tournament. Give Taj a ceremonial retirement contract, let Bulls PR and marketing do their thing.
Every Bulls decision in 2026 is about Caleb Wilson
What we do need, as Bulls fans, is a Bulls front office squarely focused on building a roster around Caleb Wilson in roster spots one through 15, and those three two-way contract slots as well. Taj Gibson is cool and all, but another shooter would be even cooler.
Given how much Tiago Splitter has talked about player development throughout the summer, perhaps it’s best to add another player to the roster whom Splitter can actually develop.
At this point, the Bulls braintrust has already spoken their mind on who their locker room culture vets are for the 2026-27 NBA season. Bulls fans, you’ll get Nic Claxton, Norman Powell, and Zach Collins, and you’ll like it.
We should celebrate Taj Gibson forever, and we also need the Bulls to be laser-focused on making Caleb Wilson’s rookie season as successful as possible.
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