As has become co🌄mmon practice with the Arturas Karnisovas-led front office, Chicago Bulls ꦬtrade rumors have been hard to come by.
Despite the deadline just around the corner and the Bulls underachieving with a 22-25 record, it remains unclear if the organization will look to move any pieces in the coming weeks. In fact, if anything, the few reports that have surfaced over the past month have primarily suggested that leadership will look to stay the course.
Indeed, the only semblance of traction we’ve gotten on the trade front thus far has revolved around the availability of Coby White. One main reason for this has been due to the past rumors that have surrounded the 22-year-old combo guard. Chicago was reportedly willing to package him with the No. 18 pick around the 2022 NBA Draft for more veteran assistance. The Bulls then failed to reach any kind of rookie scale extension with White in the offseason, setting him up t♈o hit restricted free agency this summer. Now, with his future role still in flux, a willingness to trade him has remained.
More specifically, we’ve most recently heard that White has “been available” and thrown into “a lot of talks.” What kind of trades have been discussed is a complete unknown, as is the number of teams that have expressed genuine interest in adding the streaky scorer. With so much still up in the air, it’s hard to know whether a deal can be reached. But it sure does sound like the Bulls are trying.
recently wrote about the possible guards who could soon be traded. He, yet again, name-dropped the former lottery pick as a trade candidate. And he also added one other player into the mix: “The Chicago Bulls aren’t expected to make significant changes but could part with one or both of Caruso and Coby White,” Pincus wrote.
The more White’s name comes up, the more likely it feels that the Bulls will move on. I should say, however, if they can’t find a package they like, they do have a bit of leverage. Since White doesn’t necessarily feel like a risk to receive a mega-deal from a cap space team, the Bulls could always re-sign him to a cheap deal and move him at a later date. In other words, they don’t have to settle for anything short of what they want.
As for the Caruso mention here … I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a tad surprised. All we’ve heard about the Bulls’ defensive anchor thus far is the exact opposite. Some have gone as far as reporting that the Bulls deem him “untouchable” in current discussions. While that’s surely a bit ridiculous, hesitancy to trade him does make sense. He’s currently one of the NBA’s best defenders and also happens to be inked to arguably one of the NBA’s best contracts.
With that being the case, however, Caruso might actually be one of the Bulls’ most valuable trade assets. He could likely net the team both a solid draft pick and a good player in return if they wanted to shake things up.
Now, would I be so quick to make that deal? Absolutely not. But I guess it also depends on what else the Bulls do. Trading Caruso with this existing core still in place wouldn’t make much sense. However, if they tweak the rest of the roster and get a more defensive-minded big man, perhaps there is a world where Caruso’s skills become a bit more of a luxury than a necessity.
Regardless, as long as the plan is to still win basketball games in the future, I wouldn’t risk moving someone with as elite of a skillset as Caruso (unless it was a truly absurd offer). My goal would be to instead continue a focus on trying to get something of value for White and *maybe* even sniff around the market for Goran Dragic.
While there haven’t been any rumors about him, Dragic has demonstrated this season that he still has winning basketball left in the tank. A contending team in need of veteran assistance could be interested in adding his services for a playoff push, and I’d at least hear out what those teams have to say.
