Chicago Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson has a massive agenda ahead of him in his inaugural Bulls offseason, the 2026 NBA offseason.
Presumably selecting the fourth overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, making free agent decisions with an active roster salary well below the NBA salary cap. However, a quick win roster decision for Graham isn’t going to happen in the 2026 NBA offseason; instead, this decision is waiting for him in the 2027 NBA offseason when Bulls guard Tre Jones becomes extension eligible.
The curious case for extending Tre Jones
The 2025-26 Chicago Bulls season was unremarkable and ripe with many moments Bulls fans would like to forget. Fortunately for Tre Jones, he proved to be a silver lining to a down Bulls season on many nights. Jones was a Bulls fixture in clutch time during the 2025-26 season with a knack for stepping up to big shots.
Tre Jones in the clutch! @Tre3Jones | @CHSN__ pic.twitter.com/LvCuxQyX33
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 3, 2026
Even more impactful, Jones proved himself as a capable defender who can make winning defensive plays despite his size, in spite of his propensity to get blown by as an on-ball defender.
Jones finished the 2025-26 Bulls season, averaging 2.0 steals per 100 possessions per Basketball Reference. Surprisingly, Jones outplayed his modest Bulls contract he signed in the 2025 NBA offseason to the tune of $24M for three years, with a team option for the 2027-28 season.
Tre Jones is a valuable NBA guard, not just to the Bulls, but to the vast majority of NBA teams today, given the direction of game play in the league. Jones is not a credible three-point shooter, but he is a fearless guard who is capable of generating ever-popular paint touches with the ball in his hand on drives to the rim.
The Bulls should seriously consider extending Jones when he hits his extension eligibility date on Jul 6, 2027. The motive should be less about perceiving Jones as a long-term roster piece for the Bulls and more about setting an attractive trade price on Jones’ contract that ideally could net the Bulls a serviceable draft capital return.
For context, the NBA non-taxpayer mid-level exception salary is projected to be approximately $15M according to Spotrac.
The Bulls likely won’t have a mid-level exception to offer a player next season if they continue to operate as a cap space team; however, a $15M AAV salary for Jones for another three-year term would be a team-friendly deal that also would represent a nice pay raise for Jones. This is an under-the-radar decision for Bryson Graham and also a decision that would be a great use of his cap space.
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