The Chicago Bulls have myriad options this summer ranging from a full rebuild to basically running it back with the same team.
They could choose a middle ground by trading off one of their players and Alex Caruso has been in plenty of speculation of late.
Caruso is a tough call, as he is great defensively, versatile and is a fit with the Bulls regardless of which route they take.
Should the Bulls really trade one of their best players?
Chicago Bulls: Trading Alex Caruso
The sticking point with Caruso is his contract, as he only has one year left on his deal. If he’s open to an extension, the Bulls should consider it, as he has a reasonable extension number, is only 30 and still playing at a high level.
Locking him into an extension will not hurt his trade value, and if the Bulls wanted to move him down the road, the offers will be there, as teams will know they are getting more than a one-year rental.
If Caruso and the Bulls can work out an extension by July, the Bulls should do it, but until they do, we are going to see plenty of proposed trades.
Here are two recent suggestions, one that is mildly intriguing and one that would be bad for the Bulls.
Chicago Bulls trade Alex Caruso to the Indiana Pacers for Jarace Walker and Isaiah Jackson: Intriguing
Bleacher Report recently had two proposed trades involving Alex Caruso, one which made me stop and think and one which immediately seemed bad for the Bulls.
This trade is interesting, as it sends Caruso to the Pacers in exchange for two young players who have yet to do much in the NBA. Walker (who was the 8th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft), was limited due to injuries and competition at the position, where the Pacers were loaded.
Walker is an athletic 6-foot-8 forward with a big wingspan who can defend all over the place and should be able to shoot the 3-ball. He did hit 40 percent of his long-range shots this season in limited action in 33 games.
He’s only 20, so he’d be a project player for the Bulls who is still on a rookie deal and has upside, which could allow them to get a cheaper (and possibly better) version of Patrick Williams without having to get in a bidding war in free agency.
Isaiah Jackson is another project big who has shown some promise. He mostly dunks, fouls and blocks shots, as he averaged over a block per game in just 13 minutes this season. He’s a cheap backup big man who could potentially replace Andre Drummond.
The Bulls at least get to take a flier on young, cheap players with upside at positions of need, so I would label this idea as intriguing, especially if Indiana added a pick of some kind.
Chicago Bulls trade Nikola Vučević and Alex Caruso to the Golden State Warriors for Andrew Wiggins, No. 52 pick and a 2026 first-round pick (top-4 protected): Bad
I like this proposed trade far less, as it has the Bulls sending out two possible trade assets for one player, a fairly useless pick and a future 1st that will likely be middling at best depending on where Golden State is by then.
It seems like the Bulls could get more for Caruso by not attaching Vucevic to him and I have my doubts about Andrew Wiggins, who had a down year for the Warriors.
Wiggins has three years left on his deal and there is an argument that Caruso (who will likely make less annually on his extension) is the better long-term investment.
Vucevic’s contract isn’t so bad that the Bulls have to attach Caruso to get rid of it just for a late second-round pick in a weak draft and a future first.
Chicago could do better than that with Alex Caruso, including keeping him and signing him to an extension.