Bleacher Report, who recently put out a list describing every NBA team’s offseason with one word, used ‘half-measures’ to sum up the Chicago Bulls ho-hum offseason. For a team that has made just one playoff appearance and two Play-In Tournament appearances over the past five seasons, ‘half-measures’ is far from the most gleaming complement. Chicago is long overdue for a rebuild—and not a soft one, as it feels they are trying to ease into now. While Arturas Karnisovas, the Bulls VP of Basketball Operations, may be content with competing for a play-in spot every year, ask anyone outside the organization and they’ll tell you, the time for full-measures is now.
With a loaded 2025 draft class approaching, there is no better time than now for the Bulls to embrace the inevitable. Steady and measured improvement isn’t enough—not if your ultimate goal is a championship. The Bulls offseason decisions would indicate an intention to be competitive this year, but a pivot towards a more future-focused course of action would greatly benefit the organization’s overall outlook. With a bit of draft luck and strategy, the Bulls could be right back in the championship mix with a few timely years of laying low and stockpiling young talent.
An Offseason Full of ‘Half-Measures’ for the Chicago Bulls
Current Roster Makeup
During the Bulls 2024 offseason they did get younger, but only slightly, which in large part is why Bleacher Report concluded that their offseason was full of ‘half-measures’. The Bulls flipped veterans Alex Caruso and DeMar DeRozan for Josh Giddey and Chris Duarte. They let Javonte Green and Andre Drummond walk, while signing and re-signing younger players like Jalen Smith and Patrick Williams. These are all generally positive and forward thinking moves, but they shouldn’t have stopped just there. To quote one of the more meme’d lines from Christopher Nolan’s film Inception, the Bulls, “…mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger”.
The Bulls are undoubtedly shifting toward a more future-focused outlook, but their currant roster is still home to far too many veterans who don’t fit their current timeline. The most obvious veterans in need of a new home are Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, who are at this point both just reminders of a bygone era. But there are also players like Jevon Carter and Torrey Craig, who are fine players in their own right, but would be much better served on teams who actually have an iota of a chance of making a deep playoff run. The only way out of NBA purgatory is through a little bit of hard times. If the Bulls are wise, they’ll unload any and all remaining veterans, and embrace a bit of short term pain for some major long term gains.
Future Draft Capital Outlook
It is strange—to put it politely—that the Bulls somehow managed to take their two most valuable players and turn them into a grand total of zero future first-round picks. That the Bulls turned DeRozan and Caruso into younger players is nice, but draft capital—especially with loaded draft classes on the horizon—should have been paramount in any transaction. Even when the Bulls current regime makes moves to benefit their future, they still appear hesitant to go ‘all-in’. The Bulls main focus should be on securing as many high-end lottery picks as they can. The return for both DeRozan and Caruso was largely a missed opportunity.
While the Bulls do have some young intriguing players, they don’t have enough. That could all change with the incoming 2025 draft class, headlined by Duke’s Cooper Flagg. Flagg has long been touted as a generational type prospect. He has the potential to impact the game on both ends of the court like few other modern-day players. With the Bulls own 2025 draft pick conveying to the San Antonio Spurs only if it lands outside the top 10, the time has never been better for the Bulls to choose option ‘nose-dive’. Additionally, with the 2025 draft class being viewed as vastly superior to that of the 2024 class, whoever the Bulls selected within the top 10 would more than likely immediately project as their most valuable prospect.
