After a disappointing set of home playoff games for the Bulls, they head back to Milwaukee for game 5 and the writing is on the wall. Lonzo Ball was ruled out for the season earlier this year, Alex Caruso hurt his face in game 3 that cut his time short in this series, and it was reported today that Zach Lavine will have knee surgery this offseason, he has been playing at about 50% on his knee, and he will sit out tonight as well. Can DeRozan pull off a miracle? If anyone can, DeMarvelous can, but the 3-1 deficit is insurmountable at this point. The Bucks just have too much fire-power even without Khris Middleton. Giannis, Jrue, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis, they simply outmatch us from a depth perspective, plain and simple. I don’t anticipate the Bulls having another game this year, and I would almost prefer it given all of the injuries that have been accumulating. Let’s get to the offseason and get healthy, but what is in store for Chicago this offseason? What changes do the Bulls need to make, if any? Should the Bulls sign Lavine to the max?
Let’s first take a look at what Chicago’s roster looks like heading into next season:
- DeMar DeRozan $27,300,000
- Nikola Vucevic $22,000,000 (Expiring)
- Lonzo Ball $19,534,884
- Alex Caruso $9,034,884
- Patrick Williams $7,775,400 (Team Option)
- Coby White $7,413,955 (Team Option)
- Tony Bradley $2,036,318 (Player Option)
- Javonte Green $1,815,677
- Marko Simonovic $1,563,518
- Ayo Dosunmu $1,563,518 (Not fully guaranteed)
A total of $100,038,154 in contracts, the projected salary cap for 2022-2023 is $122MM and a luxury tax of $149MM according to si.com. I am not going to act like I am an expert when it comes to contracts, cap space and luxury tax, but I know a little bit from perusing spotrac.com. If the Bulls were to re-sign Lavine to the standard max, he would make $36,300,000 next season (total contract 5 years $210,540,000) and doing so would put Chicago at a total of $136,338,154. After signing a 1st round pick ($3,148,560) the Bulls are sitting at $139,486,714, roughly $10MM shy of the luxury tax and not leaving a ton of room to add additional pieces. Again, thank you spotrac.com for help with these numbers.
So, is signing Zach Lavine to the max the right move? Does this handcuff us for the future or set us up for success? Personally, I think the right move is to sign Zach. The value is there if the Bulls do decide to trade him down the line and the alternative free agent options are… weak. So I can’t say I love the idea, but it’s the best option we have at this point.
I do expect the Bulls to draft a big man, probably a power forward to pair with Patrick Williams, more on him later. That being said, I wouldn’t be surprised if we make some moves this offseason to shore up our weaknesses and re-evaluate our draft prospects at that time. Vucevic shined in this playoff series for the most part, but he is on an expiring contract in 2022-2023 so I would not be surprised to see his name legitimately thrown around in trade talks, not just in the rumor mill on twitter amongst disgruntled fans. I have heard Lonzo’s name come up in conversations as well, but I honestly think Lonzo is our glue guy. He is the best pure PG that Chicago has had since D-Rose and when he was on the court the team was in sync. His perimeter defense is excellent, his three ball is deadly, and his passing ability is up there with the best in the game today. Caruso is on a valuable contract right now, and the spark that he brings this team is very hard to replace, I think the Lakers are foolish for not keeping him on, and the Bulls would be foolish to let him go as well. AC has the makings of a championship player (proven), he brings leadership and a level of competitiveness that, again, is irreplaceable. If we are in a win-now mode, that leaves Coby White and Patrick Williams as possible pieces that could move. Let’s talk more about Patrick Williams.
Patrick Williams is one of the most hyped Bulls on this roster. Can he live up to it? I struggle with the PAW because I see other young players, first year players, who seem to be excelling, playing unwavering ball, and Williams, to me, just seems so uncertain. There is so much hesitation in his game. Maybe it’s because of the star power around him, but from what I read, they are all encouraging him to unleash his potential. We have seen some flashes when he is the leader on the floor, but rarely do we see the lights come on when Lavine and DeMar are on the court with him. I fear that if he doesn’t make the big leap we have all been talking about for a year and a half now, he is going to lose his trade value, and the Bulls will be left kicking themselves for not acting sooner. I hope I am wrong, I go back and forth on PWill frequently, I just wish he would show me something to make me feel confident in his future. Ayo, the Bulls 2nd round draft pick from last year, has shown me more than Williams has.
Overall, I expect Lavine, DeRozan, Ball, Caruso, and Dosunmu to be safe for all of next year, any of the others would not surprise me if they were moved. Let’s hope our next rookie is as much of a pleasant surprise as Ayo was this year and that we get dealt a better hand when it comes to injuries next season. I hope the Bulls come out and beat the Bucks tonight, but if not, it was a fun season. Plenty of successes, plenty of lessons learned and a new found hope brought to the city of Chicago.
What moves do you think AK and company will make this off season? Should the Bulls re-sign Lavine? You can find me on twitter @GreNBA_ and as always thank for reading, this is All Net!
Jacob Grenemeier
April 27th, 2022
Photo Credit: https://s1.ticketm.net/dam/a/172/074c3535-bfcf-49e2-a0f9-03d947862172_1340171_TABLET_LANDSCAPE_LARGE_16_9.jpg
Chicago Hoop Heads 
