- The Bulls need to hit a home run on their lottery pick this June in order to advance the rebuilding process, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times argues. Chicago is currently slotted at No. 6 unless it gets lucky in the draft lottery. “We’re going to find out [Tuesday] where we pick in the top 10,” VP of basketball operations John Paxson said. “That will obviously be a significant pick.” The Bulls also have the No. 22 pick, courtesy of the Nikola Mirotic trade with the Pelicans.
- As the Lakers enter the summer with major cap space and an eye on the NBA’s premier free agents, Mark Schanowski of NBC Sports Chicago examines the possibility of the Bulls pursuing Brandon Ingram in a trade.
The Bulls have granted permission to the Hornets to interview associate head coach Jim Boylen, reports K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.
Boylen joins a growing list of candidates in Charlotte that includes Jerry Stackhouse, Ettore Messina, David Fizdale, Ime Udoka, David Vanterpool and James Borrego.
A long-time assistant, the 53-year-old Boylen has served as Fred Hoiberg’s top assistant in Chicago since 2015. His coaching career began on Rudy Tomjanovich’s staff in Houston in 1992. Boylen left for the college ranks in 2005 and spent four years as head coach at the University of Utah before returning to the NBA in 2011.
Keep all with all the latest news on the coaching front with our 2018 NBA Head Coaching Search Tracker.
- As one part of a 10-part series focusing on the upcoming 2018 NBA Draft, Marc Strotman of NBC Sports Chicago argues that the Bulls should select Luka Doncic if he is available when Chicago makes its selection in June, as his elite-level passing ability is a perfect fit for today’s fast-paced NBA game.
- Landing Michael Porter Jr. in the draft would be a best-case scenario for the Bulls, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times opines. Chicago wants to improve at the wing and Porter would fill that need as long as the medical reports on the Missouri freshman are positive, Cowley continues. The Bulls are not far enough along in their current rebuild to attract a top-level NBA wing player, so the draft is probably the best place to upgrade that area, according to Cowley.
No NBA team had a lower projected win total than the Bulls entering the 2017/18 season, but Chicago didn’t look too bad in the first half, picking up victories behind the solid play of guys like Kris Dunn, Bobby Portis, Lauri Markkanen, and Nikola Mirotic. Trading Mirotic and benching some veterans helped keep the Bulls’ win total in check as they continued their rebuild, but that early-season hot streak means they’ll need some draft-lottery luck to nab a top-five pick.
Here’s where things currently stand for the Bulls financially, as we continue our Offseason Salary Cap Digest series for 2018:
Guaranteed Salary
- Robin Lopez ($14,357,750)
- Omer Asik ($11,286,516)
- Cristiano Felicio ($8,470,980)
- Lauri Markkanen ($4,536,120)
- Justin Holiday ($4,384,616)
- Kris Dunn ($4,221,000)
- Cameron Payne ($3,263,294)
- Jerian Grant ($2,639,314)
- Bobby Portis ($2,494,346)
- Denzel Valentine ($2,280,600)
- Total: $57,934,536
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Sean Kilpatrick ($2,054,856)1
- Paul Zipser ($1,544,951)2
- Total: $3,599,807
Restricted Free Agents
- Noah Vonleh ($4,333,931 qualifying offer / $10,515,698 cap hold): Bird rights
- Zach LaVine ($4,333,931 qualifying offer / $9,606,654 cap hold): Bird rights
- David Nwaba ($1,699,698 qualifying offer / $1,699,698 cap hold): Early Bird rights
- Total: $21,822,050
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- No. 6 overall pick ($4,823,489)3
- No. 22 overall pick ($1,974,488)
- Total: $6,797,977
Projected Salary Cap: $101,000,000
Projected Cap Room: $26,660,833
- Our cap projection for the Bulls includes the amount of their 10 guaranteed contracts, cap holds for their two first-round picks, and LaVine’s cap hold, since the Bulls are viewed as a near-lock to bring him back. That result in a total team salary of $74,339,167.
- Even if they bring back a couple other players, the Bulls should have plenty of cap room to work with. However, retaining Kilpatrick, Nwaba, and LaVine and keeping both their first-round picks would add up to 15 players, assuming the team doesn’t trade or release any of its 10 players with guaranteed contracts. Given their roster constraints and the fact that they’re still in the midst of a rebuild, the Bulls seem unlikely to be very aggressive in free agency.
Footnotes:
- Kilpatrick’s exact contract details, including guarantee info, aren’t yet known.
- Zipser’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after July 18.
- The Bulls are sixth in the draft lottery standings. They could end up picking as high as No. 1 ($8,095,595) and as low as No. 9 ($3,708,089).
Note: Rookie scale cap holds are estimates based on salary cap projections and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- It’s conceivable that Jimmy Butler could wind up back in Chicago after next season, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Timberwolves traded for Butler last summer to bring a veteran presence to the organization, but he can opt out of a $19.8MM salary next summer and may be tempted to leave if Minnesota can’t make an impact in the playoffs. Bulls president Michael Reinsdorf remains a huge fan of Butler and would be interested in a reunion. “I loved the city of Chicago, and I love the Reinsdorfs,’’ Butler said. “I’m forever grateful for them in taking a chance on me, allowing me to become the player that I am today. It’s still incredible to me that I got to hoop in a Bulls jersey. I got to play in the house that [Michael] Jordan built, that [Scottie] Pippen played, all that stuff. That’s because of the Reinsdorfs. If the time comes where I say, ‘You know what, I do want to end this thing in a Bulls jersey,’ I think that would be amazing. But it’s all about being wanted and winning.’’
Mark Schanowski of NBC Sports wonders if the Bulls should make a run at the small forward. Executive John Paxson previous indicated that the team wouldn’t be major players in free agency, though Paxton also expressed frustration with the lousy season the Bulls just endured, saying that he never wanted to go through a season like it again. If George is willing to come to the Windy City, it may be difficult for the franchise to turn him away.
The Bulls only have slightly under $58MM in guaranteed salary on the books for next season, making them one of the only teams expected to have significant cap space. The scribe acknowledges that George signing in Chicago is a long shot, but he doesn’t believe it’s an impossible feat.
- Many within the league believe the Bulls will wait until 2019 to make a major move on the free agent market, Schanowski adds in the same piece. Klay Thompson, Kawhi Leonard, and Kyrie Irving are among the players expected to be available next summer.
DeAndre Ayton should be the Bulls’ selection if they win the lottery, Mark Strotman of NBC Sports argues. The Arizona big man is unquestionably the best prospect in the draft and the top center available since Karl-Anthony Towns, Strotman continues. His offensive game is more developed than any big man over the last decade outside of Anthony Davis, Strotman adds.
- In his latest mailbag, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune answered several questioning pertaining to Zach LaVine‘s impending contract talks, Kris Dunn, and the Bulls‘ plans entering the draft.
- Mark Schanowski of NBC Sports Chicago writes that overpaying to acquire Kawhi Leonard, whose injury status and relationship with the Spurs make him a possible trade candidate, is not the way to rebuild the Bulls.