Getty Images Billy Donovan
The Chicago Bulls have had a busy offseason so far. First, the team drafted Dalen Terry out of Arizona with the 18th overall pick in the NBA Draft then the team had a busy first week of free agency.
The Bulls were able to re-sign two-time all-star Zach LaVine to a max contract of five years at $212 million. Chicago was also able to add veterans Andre Drummond and Goran Dragic on inexpensive contracts to help bolster the roster.
Derrick Jones Jr. also re-signed with the Bulls on a two-year deal. The only player the team lost in free agency was Troy Brown Jr.
Grading the Offseason
On Friday Grant Hughes of Bleacher Report wrote an article that graded every NBA team’s offseason so far. When it came to the Bulls Hughes gave the team a B mostly because they were able to keep LaVine.
LaVine has had knee troubles in the past, but he’s a high-volume, high-efficiency scorer who can play on or off the ball. Scaleability and top-option capability don’t usually exist in the same player, but the 27-year-old guard is a rare sort. The Bulls were right to bring him back without much fuss, even if the leaguewide dearth of cap-space teams could have allowed them to drive a harder bargain.
Jones’ return should bolster Chicago’s defense, and Dragic (who surprisingly didn’t wind up with Slovenian teammate Luka Doncic and the Mavericks) is Lonzo Ball insurance in the backcourt. Ball’s recovery from knee surgery has been protracted enough to cause concern, and the Bulls’ 2021-22 season hit the skids when injuries depleted their guard depth.
According to Hughes’s grades, the Bulls’ offseason is in the middle of the pack in the NBA as 14 teams received grades higher than Chicago. The one Bulls free-agent addition that the article didn’t mention was Andre Drummond who will add some much-needed depth in the frontcourt. The one concern about Drummond is he isn’t much of a rim protector, which is an area of weakness for the Bulls.
Looking Ahead
Hughes noted that the Bulls’ offseason moves weren’t “head-turning”, but the team’s front office has been saying since the trade deadline that their main goal was continuity of the core. By keeping the teams core together the Bulls are taking a chance on running it back and hoping to replicate their early-season success from this past season before injuries piled up.
When Lonzo Ball went down with a knee injury in January the Bulls were 27-13 and in first place in the Eastern Conference. There were also injuries to Zach LaVine, Alex Caruso, and Patrick Williams.
With that many injuries, it would be hard for any team to sustain success. The Bulls stumbled down the stretch finishing 46-36 and finishing sixth in the conference.
The big key for the Bulls this offseason will be the rehab of Ball’s injured knee. He never returned last season and has had issues with his rehab.
If Ball can return healthy then the Bulls could have a chance to duplicate their early-season success from last season. Continuity could be the best thing for the Bulls but only time will tell.