Bulls 2026 Offseason Thread

[17 Seconds]

1 minute ago, Wilson A2000 said:

That’s the criticism I’ve seen on both picks. Wilson was the best player at #4, but both him and Matas play PF which seems like a problem.

if you're saying that the swain pick was bad because they already had drafted a guy who isn't a shooter at #4, then that makes sense, but there are no questions at all about taking wilson, even with matas in the fold. 

i'd be more excited if they took philon or someone like that, but swain wasn't enough of a reach for me to be too upset about it

[bjam12]

37 minutes ago, The_Achiever said:

I kind of wanted Carr but have really liked the tape of Swain.  He plays with an edge and physicality, have seen some Jimmy Butler comps.  PWill just doesn't have that dog in him like I think Swain does.  

Jimmy Butler is a good comp. The shooting will improve. It did last year. His FT% tells you that too. Again, like the pick a lot. You can surround those guys with shooters. 

[Tryptamine]

It's not even that his shooting is all that bad, it's just incredibly slow. He hits his open shots, but he's going to have to drastically speed up his release in the NBA.

[Old Style]

Swain is 20. He’s far from a finished product and his shooting improved last season. It’s not a direct comparison, but as an Aggie I watched pretty much every game Alex Caruso played in college. Very few people, even delusional Aggies, thought he could play in the NBA and it was because of his shooting. He played all 4 years and still developed into a pretty good shooter despite this season being a down year for him.  

[We Got The Whole 9]

Is Matas even a building block? His carrying cards are stocks and free throws. He feels like an 8th man on a deep team. 

 

The shooting on this team is going to be abysmal. 

[champaignchris]

45 minutes ago, We Got The Whole 9 said:

The shooting on this team is going to be abysmal. 

If only they had a youngish hometown kid shooting 45% from 3 that they could extend instead of trading for a couple 2nd round picks. 

[17 Seconds]

24 minutes ago, champaignchris said:

If only they had a youngish hometown kid shooting 45% from 3 that they could extend instead of trading for a couple 2nd round picks. 

i'm sure the bulls fanbase would have reacted well to them giving ayo 112 million

[The_Achiever]

18 minutes ago, 17 Seconds said:

i'm sure the bulls fanbase would have reacted well to them giving ayo 112 million

I would have, but am biased as an Illini fan.  Last year Christian Braun got 5/$125 and I think Ayo is better.  Make the call, Bob.  

[NorthsideAvenger]

3 hours ago, Wilson A2000 said:

That’s the criticism I’ve seen on both picks. Wilson was the best player at #4, but both him and Matas play PF which seems like a problem.

In the age of Position less Basketball does it really matter what position both will play? 

[Wilson A2000]

9 minutes ago, NorthsideAvenger said:

In the age of Position less Basketball does it really matter what position both will play? 

If one of them can play SF, no

[Tryptamine]

1 hour ago, 17 Seconds said:

i'm sure the bulls fanbase would have reacted well to them giving ayo 112 million

Austin Reeves just got 4/185, I see no issues at all with Ayo on a 5/112 deal.

[UMFan83]

At the end of the day, I'm not sure the Bulls are heavily tanking but they likely don't care if they win this year.  If they do, great, but they aren't going to try to fill all the holes on the roster in one offseason.  I like they are going BPA and adding assets.  We'll see what they do in FA or with those 2nd round picks but as skeptical as I am about anything Bulls related, I'm willing to wait to see how it all plays out with a new FO.

One thing that bothered me but probably shouldn't was seeing Pax in the war room last night.  No idea how much influence he has on roster decisions, if any, but just a reminder that you can make sweeping changes but some guys will seemingly never leave the Bulls entirely.

[bjam12]

1 hour ago, champaignchris said:

If only they had a youngish hometown kid shooting 45% from 3 that they could extend instead of trading for a couple 2nd round picks. 

... and there's a great example of someone who wasn't known as a 3-pointer shooter in college but improved it by his last year and was able to continue to improve in the NBA. Also a physical guard who can get to the rim and finish through contact. Sound familiar? 

[17 Seconds]

34 minutes ago, Tryptamine said:

Austin Reeves just got 4/185, I see no issues at all with Ayo on a 5/112 deal.

both can be bad. ayo's isn't terrible but it's a lot for what he provides. if he shoots 44% from 3 again i'll probably feel differently

[NorthsideAvenger]

Bulls continue to be allergic to 2nd round picks. Traded 56 for cash. (Welcome back, cash considerations.) Traded 38 for stuff. 

[jb10194]

40 minutes ago, NorthsideAvenger said:

Bulls continue to be allergic to 2nd round picks. Traded 56 for cash. (Welcome back, cash considerations.) Traded 38 for stuff. 

Jerry had to find a way to free up some money for a potential White Sox deadline acquisition

Edited 15 hours ago by jb10194

[We Got The Whole 9]

What a dumb horsefeathers team

[NorthsideAvenger]

23 minutes ago, We Got The Whole 9 said:

What a dumb horsefeathers team

Probably but I still like what they did in the first round. 

[Outshined_One]

I get that the 2nd round is generally backups, G-Leaguers, and stash-and-prays, but come the horsefeathers on with this garbage. They traded for eighty bazillion of these picks and they shouldn't just trade them for cash and laughs.

[Tryptamine]

Meanwhile one of their own 2nd round picks just signed a 110+million dollar deal. Good thing they didn't roll the dice on that again.  Poor billionaire barely getting by needed some cash. 

[Irrelevant Dude]

Yeah, punting on the second round picks, ESPECIALLY after this past trade deadline where the Bulls settled for second round picks as their trade returns, just doesn't sit right with me.

I haven't followed the Bulls seriously for years, but have still always considered myself a fan. 

This year, I think I'm going to try something different.  I'm going to follow Keaton Wagler and the Clippers.  We'll see if that experiment lasts more than a few games, but I'll give it a shot!

[NorthsideAvenger]

2 hours ago, Tryptamine said:

Meanwhile one of their own 2nd round picks just signed a 110+million dollar deal. Good thing they didn't roll the dice on that again.  Poor billionaire barely getting by needed some cash. 

They also found Daniel Gafford in the second round. 

[gflore34]

10 hours ago, Outshined_One said:

I get that the 2nd round is generally backups, G-Leaguers, and stash-and-prays, but come the horsefeathers on with this garbage. They traded for eighty bazillion of these picks and they shouldn't just trade them for cash and laughs.

They did get Kam Jones in the trade for 38 so, I guess, a little more than a nothing burger.

Edited 4 hours ago by gflore34

[Tryptamine]

Just listened to Bryson Graham interview and he justified yesterday by saying that basically they weren't interested in any of the players who were available to them. So with the #38th pick they tried to turn it into other assets/future picks and with #56 they valued the roster flexibility regarding undrafted players and free agents more than they valued any player that was available. 

[gflore34]

56 minutes ago, Tryptamine said:

Just listened to Bryson Graham interview and he justified yesterday by saying that basically they weren't interested in any of the players who were available to them. So with the #38th pick they tried to turn it into other assets/future picks and with #56 they valued the roster flexibility regarding undrafted players and free agents more than they valued any player that was available. 

Before learning of the trade I was warming to the idea of Braden Smith being a Bull.  I've no doubt Smith will make it to the NBA.  Oh well, Kam Jones isn't bad compensation, he's got a chance to stick.