The Chicago Bulls appear ready to commit to a full youth movement. If the Alex Caruso-Josh Giddey swap isn't enough proof, then the team's latest commitment to forward Patrick Williams should help.
According to the latest reports, Williams is expected to sign a five-year deal worth $90 million to return to the Bulls. That puts his annual average salary at $18 million, which is definitely quite the significant commitment to a player that averaged just a little over 10 points over the last two seasons.
“Patrick Williams intends to sign a five-year, $90 million deal to return to the Chicago Bulls, league sources tell The Athletic [and] Stadium,” Shams Charania reported.
While some Bulls fans have already expressed dissatisfaction with the Bulls' decision, especially since Williams has largely been a disappointing Top 5 pick for the franchise, the fact of the matter is Chicago is betting on his potential. It should be remembered that Williams is only 22 years old, and with plenty of room to grow, his contract could end up being a bargain if he makes a significant leap from his current level.
Williams has career averages of 9.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. However, he has shown at times what kind of player he could be when given a more prominent role on offense. In a December game against the Miami Heat during the 2023-24 season, Williams shot 4-of-5 from deep and scored 25 points to go along with seven rebounds and four assists, albeit in a 118-116 losing effort.
Just a couple of weeks after that Bulls game, Williams had a starring role for Chicago once again after he top-scored for the team against the Indiana Pacers. He tallied 22 points on top of five rebounds, three assists and two steals, even though the team lost again 120-104.
Considering that Williams has never been one of the top options for the Bulls on offense, it's difficult for him to really make huge strides with the team. But if the franchise continues on its current path and rebuild, Williams will have a chance to become one of the team's go-to options. For now, though, he will have to focus on his recovery after his 2023-24 campaign ended prematurely due to a foot injury that needed surgery.
It remains to be seen what the Bulls will still do, but they will certainly have decisions to make when it comes to the current make-up of their roster.
What will the Bulls do next?
The trade for Josh Giddey and the extension of Patrick Williams indicate that the Bulls are, at the least, getting ready to rebuild. With rising star Coby White and promising guard Ayo Dosunmu already in toe, as well as 2024 NBA Draft pick Matas Buzelis, Chicago actually has quite the interesting core that could be lethal when developed properly.
Now, as free agency begins, that means the Bulls will also have to decide on what they will do with their two star players in Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan.
Recent reports suggest that DeRozan could be on his way out of Windy City, per KC Johnson of NBC Sports. DeRozan is an unrestricted free agent, so he could simply walk away from the team. There's also the option of a sign-and-trade for him, but at the end of the day, he's expected to leave.
“… The Bulls are open for business. And with growing buzz that DeMar DeRozan will be elsewhere next season, either via a sign-or-trade or simply walking in unrestricted free agency, the buzzword is no longer competitiveness,” Johnson explained.
LaVine's situation is a bit trickier since he's under contract until 2026-27. Not to mention that there's a lot of money tied to him, with his deal paying him an average of $45 million over the next three years. Having said that, the Bulls might find it hard to move him at all.
“Chicago has been trying to move Zach LaVine forever. They can't find any takers just to get off his contract. I don't even think if they attached a first round pick teams would take him. So that impacts DeMar DeRozan, because you can't sign DeRozan. Because you can't sign DeRozan and keep LaVine, now you go into the luxury tax,” ESPN's Bobby Marks said on SiriusXM NBA Radio.
It will certainly be quite the challenging offseason for the Bulls considering the situation they are in with DeRozan and LaVine. They would probably want to get something in return for DeRozan instead of letting him just walk away. That is now even more important since it looks like they will have to sacrifice some more assets to move LaVine's albatross of a contract.
Having said all that, expect the Bulls to be quite busy in the next couple of weeks.
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