Between recent reports about Coby White and Alex Caruso, the Chicago Bulls have fi🐲nally started to find themselves in the thick of the NBA trade deadline rumors. And now we can add Andre Drummond to the list.
According to , people around the league have their eye on the Bulls’ backup big man ():
Do not be surprised, league sources say, if the Bulls move former All-Star center Andre Drummond before the Feb. 9 trade,” “Drummond has been allotted fewer than 15 minutes in each of Chicago’s past 12 games.”
Indeed, it’s no secret that Drummond has fallen out of favor with head coach Billy Donovan in recent weeks. After starting the season as a mainstay in the rotation, Drummond is now on the outside looking in and averaging just 13.0 minutes on the season.
He’s registered five DNPs in the last 11 games as Donovan favors a small-ball second unit with springy forward Derrick Jones Jr. and a more-determined Patrick Williams manning the frontcourt. And, in all fairness, Jones Jr. hasn’t given Donovan a reason to doubt the decision since seeing his minutes increase with Javonte Green out due to injury.
So while there is no denying that it is helpful to have a more traditional backup big man on the roster, that doesn’t mean the front office should keep him off the table. Again, the Bulls have a decent small-ball lineup to work with. And, more importantly, they may not be going anywhere anyway. If the team isn’t a genuine playoff threat, then Drummond is 100 percent the kind of veteran asset on a short-term deal that should be dangled in the trade market.
Indeed, I suggested a rumor like this could pop up earlier this week ♚when discussing the current centers available fo🌸r trade. There seems to be a deceಌnt demand among contenders for size, and the Bulls may have on🦋e of the most inexpensive options to target.
Drummond is on just a two-year, $6.6 million deal that includes a $3.3 million player option for next season. While he may have had his up-and-down moments, Drummond did average 6.4 points with 7.1 rebounds over his first 22 games of the season. He’s still one of the NBA’s premier rebounders, and I’m sure it wouldn’t be hard for a contending team to talk themselves into him helping them during the stretch run.
What does that make him worth exactly? That’s a good question. On his own, it is hard for me to imagine he nets much of a return. Maybe another expiring deal for a player the Bulls can evaluate for the rest of the season? Maybe a youngster who is out of a rotation somewhere? Maybe a couple of second-rounders?
The fact his value is so hard to read is what makes it feel more likely that he stays in Chicago past the deadline. However, if the Bulls do start to get frisky and move guys around, Drummond is a pretty easy fill-in to bolster another trade package. Could he be thrown in with a guard to sweeten the post? That’s the kind of thing I’d look out for.
