A reunion between the Chicago Bulls and Daniel Gafford may be on the table after the Dallas Mavericks matched an offer sheet from the New York Knicks to hold onto center Moussa Cissé.
The Knicks were hoping to land the 6-foot-11 Cissé, who signed with Dallas as an undrafted free agent last summer, to help fill the void left by Mitchell Robinson, who departed for Boston.
Cissé averaged 4.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks as a rookie and appears in line for an expanded role in 2026-27. That makes Gafford, who played parts of his first two NBA seasons in Chicago, the odd man out in a Mavericks big man rotation that also features Dereck Lively II, Santi Aldama and rookie Morez Johnson Jr.
Bulls should be open to bringing Daniel Gafford back to Chicago
According to league insider Marc Stein, the Mavericks are "still fielding offers" for the 27-year-old Gafford. Even after acquiring Nic Claxton from the Brooklyn Nets earlier this offseason, the Bulls could use some depth at the center spot, and Gafford would be a snug fit.
Chicago re-signed Zach Collins in free agency, but the former top-10 pick only played 10 games last season as he dealt with a toe injury. The new agreement is also quite tradeable.
There are no other centers on the Bulls' roster. Jalen Smith can fill in as a small-ball five but is better suited as a power forward. After that, it's a ragtag group of Caleb Wilson, Noa Essengue and Leonard Miller who would back up Claxton.
Gafford would give the Bulls some much-needed frontcourt depth
Chicago made Gafford the 38th overall pick in the 2019 draft. Across seven NBA seasons, he owns career averages of 9.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks on 70.2 percent shooting.
In the 2024-25 and 25-26 seasons between Washington and Dallas, he averaged 11.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.9 blocks. Gafford would undoubtedly be an upgrade over Collins, and pairing him with Claxton would give the Bulls at least one high-level rim protector on the floor at all times.
The biggest drawback to acquiring Gafford is his contract; he's entering only the first year of a three-year, $54.4 million extension he signed with the Mavericks last July. After taking on the $44 million owed to Claxton over the next two seasons and signing Norman Powell in free agency, the Bulls aren't exactly flush with cap space anymore.
But with Collins on what is essentially an $8.5 million expiring contract and Powell's deal only guaranteed for this season, the Bulls could maneuver around enough to make Gafford's salary work.
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