In a recent conversation with veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein at Goran Dragic’s farewell game in Slovenia, Bulls center Nikola Vucevic clarified his earlier remarks about aiming to play for four more seasons.
“I think that kind of came out wrong. It wasn’t that I want to play four more years. It was just more so that … they were asking me, like, am I thinking about retirement? I was just like, ‘Retiring?’ In my mind I have at least four more years and then I want to see from there what I can do. But it came out as, like, I want to play four more years,” said the Bulls center.
Nikola Vucevic clarifying the number of seasons he has left in him
Vucevic clarified that he wasn’t specifying how many more seasons he plans to play. With two years remaining on his three-year, $60M contract, he will review his future after that deal ends.
“I have two more years in this contract (with the Bulls). And hopefully I’m able to get two more after that, which will take me to 37. And at that time, I’ll have to see what I would like to do. This is more so four years of me being at a high level. Maybe in two years I’ll say four more. I said it in the moment; I didn’t think it’d turn into such a big thing,” he continued.
In recent months, Vucevic has observed significant changes within the Chicago Bulls’ front office. The team parted ways with key players DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso, focusing on investing in younger talent. Vucevic also noted that he had been mentioned in trade rumors, indicating that the transformation in Chicago is ongoing.
Vucevic talking about trades and current roster moves by the Bulls
“Sometimes it might be for the better, sometimes it might be for the worse. But we’ll see. Obviously losing DeMar and [Alex] Caruso, it’ll be an adjustment. It’s an opportunity for some other guys to step up and play — and we got [Josh] Giddey.”
“I’m used to it at this point. Since I’ve been with the Bulls, I’ve been in a lot of trade stories, especially last summer as well throughout last season. So it’s just part of it. If things were going well and we’re winning and everything was great, that wouldn’t be the case. But because things weren’t going that well, we weren’t winning and we weren’t achieving our goals, then obviously change is bound to happen,” Vucevic said while speaking with long-time NBA insider Marc Stein.
Vucevic, known for his straightforwardness, spoke candidly about the situation. Although he expressed confidence in several current players, he stressed that the future remains uncertain.
“Honestly, I know it’s a pretty basic answer, but you don’t have much control over it, so you kind of just wait and see. If they decide to change and trade me, it’s on them to do. Just like a year and a half ago I was a free agent and I could have chosen to go elsewhere. … I chose to stay and I felt like we had something to prove and unfortunately we didn’t do it. But now it’s a new team and I’m excited to play with these younger guys and I think we can play better than people think.”
It’s understandable that Vucevic might not sound fully committed. At 33, he has spent much of his career in underwhelming situations. Despite the plan in Chicago being to win games, he has only enjoyed one season above .500. Given the current outlook, it seems unlikely he’ll experience another winning season soon, and he’s likely aware of that.
Vucevic doesn’t seem like the type to create conflicts, but he also doesn’t hide his frustration. If the Chicago Bulls perform poorly as expected, he’s likely to appear less motivated compared to the younger players who have more to prove.
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