The Chicago Bulls are a step closer to learning what it will cost to acquire Yves Missi from the Pelicans. Rumors suggest New Orleans is eyeing Indiana's Bennedict Mathurin, hinting at the price Chicago might have to pay to trade for the 21-year-old center.
Mathurin is a 23-year-old wing who's set to be a restricted free agent at the end of this season. The No. 6 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft could potentially become one of the league's premier 3-and-D perimeter players, though he has yet to make good on that promise.
Still, it gives Chicago an idea of what asset(s) New Orleans might want should the front office make a genuine play for Missi.
Bulls now have a ballpark estimate of what it will take to land Yves Missi
Missi is an ideal trade candidate for Chicago. (And to be frank, considering the way past trade deadlines have gone, the fact that their team is interested in someone of his caliber should absolutely thrill Bulls fans.)
The former Baylor Bears standout has the size (6-foot-11, 235 pounds), length (7-foot-2 wingspan) and explosive leaping ability (38.5-inch vertical at the 2024 draft combine) to become a top-notch rim runner and rim protector in the NBA.
Given Chicago's complete lack of either of those things, a player with Missi's profile should be at the top of the wishlist.
League insider Jake Fischer recently reported on The Stein Line Substack (subscription required) that the Pelicans and Pacers have been exploring a deal that would send Mathurin to NOLA and Missi to Indiana.
Fischer also points out, though, that the Pacers are looking to land more than just Missi if they do end up trading the former Arizona Wildcats star.
It will still be an uphill battle for the Bulls to acquire Missi
The question then becomes, does Chicago have anyone on its roster with value similar to Mathurin's? Not exactly. The only player who really fits that young, two-way-wing model is Matas Buzelis, who isn't going anywhere.
Noa Essengue was the No. 12 pick in last year's draft, but the Bulls likely don't want to move him after he's played in two NBA games.
Chicago would have to send some combination of draft assets to the Pelicans, which could work. The Bulls have control of all of their own first-round picks, plus an additional one from the Portland Trail Blazers. Adding some expiring contracts to a deal -- and/or taking back a certain bad contract New Orleans wants to get rid of -- would sweeten the pot.
Whether executive VP of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas is willing to pull the trigger on such a logical trade, however, remains a legitimate question.