The Chicago Bulls need to ride the wave of Peyton Watson’s trade aftermath

On Wednesday, ESPN’s Shams Charania initially reported a seismic sign-and-trade deal between the Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Los Angeles Clippers that principally sends forward Peyton Watson to the Cavaliers, forward Max Strus to the Clippers, and draft capital to the Nuggets.

The trade later grew to a four-team trade as the Cavaliers agreed to send guard Tre Mann, a second-round draft pick, and cash considerations to the Washington Wizards in exchange for forward Cam Whitmore, with the Wizards also sending forward Julian Reese to the Nuggets.

According to additional reporting by Charania, since the Cavaliers acquired Tre Mann Friday via their trade that sent guard Dennis Schröder and cash considerations to the Charlotte Hornets, the Hornets represent the fifth team in the Watson multi-team trade.

The ability of this multi-team sign-and-trade to be executed with Peyton Watson’s offseason status as a restricted free agent is remarkable.  

Restricted free agents in general are a dwindling market for needle-moving talent, yet Watson’s move to Cleveland is a logical fit as the Cavaliers already have a well-established core between forward Evan Mobley, guard Donovan Mitchell, and presumably soon-to-be-extended guard James Harden.

The Chicago Bulls, while not directly involved in this deal, stand to be in a position to pounce on roster-building opportunities with any one of the Cavaliers, Nuggets, Wizards, or Clippers, as all four franchises are in different states of roster build that could benefit from the Bulls' malleable collection of players.  

Ideally, Bulls lead front office executive Bryson Graham should be inserting the Bulls into dealmaking conversations within short order of the ripple effects of Wednesday’s multi-team NBA roster moves.

A trade gold rush in Denver

Perhaps the more glaring outcome of the Nuggets’ decision to trade away Watson is that the franchise has breached the NBA’s second apron by $1.3 million, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

It is more likely than not that the Nuggets will seek additional trade opportunities to shed salary to escape the punitive second apron.  Forward Cameron Johnson is a logical trade candidate for the Nuggets to use as an escape hatch out of the second apron as he enters the 2026-27 NBA season on an expiring $23.1 million expiring contract.  

The Bulls acquiring Johnson would create an intriguing wing core in addition to wings Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis that could alternate positions two through four in the Bulls' starting lineup.

Perhaps an even more intriguing long-term consideration for Bulls fans to consider is the long-term home of the Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic.  

The Joker holds a $62.8 million player option for the 2027-28 NBA season, and if the Nuggets are entering a protracted austerity phase of roster building, such as the rumored pursuit of former Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan, then perhaps Jokic may become motivated to explore 2027 NBA free agency.

Nikola Jokic, still in his prime, is a top free-agent target the Bulls absolutely should engage to create an NBA power-shifting Bulls core with Buzelis and Wilson if the opportunity presents itself.

This is an emerging story - check back for more details.

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