So the Bulls finally traded Jimmy Butler, to the Wolves for a guy whose ACL is recovering and a guard who underwhelmed last year. They also swapped picks. Makes the Wolves seem like a threat in the West, while the Bulls are going full rebuild now.
I've been hanging out at THE 7 a lot, and it makes me think about what trades will look like the in the future. MAYBE Lavine will be a star. MAYBE Dunn will as well. But on the surface, in the present, boy does it look like the Bulls got fleeced.
Chicago Bulls fans were really unhappy with that team for most of last season. They brought in long time franchise villains (Wade, Rondo) and maybe people would've gone for it worked, but it was obviously a bad idea really quickly. Those fans would've been content with blowing the whole thing up on draft day.
Except, if you have someone this valuable in Butler, you should be able to supercharge the rebuild. That's one of the reasons to move a guy like that, so you can stock pile 1s in future years as lottery tickets. Lottery tickets are no sure things and can lead to years of going nowhere (and the Bulls might have already used their luck up), but at least you've got a shot to get a superstar out of them. Bulls management was selling Levine and Dunn as former lottery picks, but they're more like the scratch off version of lottery tickets that someone's already scratched off a few of the panels. Dunn's got more time, but the first season didn't scream jackpot by any means. LaVine is even more scratched off, and in danger of giving you little in return if the ACL tear saps away any of his athleticism. Both can play on NBA teams, maybe even start for playoff teams someday, but neither ceiling looks that high (from a guy reading mostly and not watching them, so maybe I'm way off.) If you're going to rebuild, you want guys who could be great or guys who aren't any good so you can get in better lottery position. What the Bulls got are a couple of guys who are going to help them go from 4th in the draft to 7th in the draft and maybe no more.
Getting multiple future draft picks would've helped the Bulls take more shots at finding that superstar - trading Butler should've cut off a couple years of the rebuild because they'd have those extra picks. Instead, they picked up guys who are going to (slightly) slow down the process even longer.
The West is really tough now. The Wolves should be a playoff team now, but you've got to take one out to put in. Maybe the Clipper blow up too? Maybe Memphis continues to fade out. But still, the Nuggets were not far off better, the Pelicans should be better with a full season of Cousins. I think everyone expects the Wolves to be a big deal and it's fair to put it on them when they've added this piece, but it's not going to be easy.
This is the type of thing I was bracing myself for when I heard the Knicks and Phil Jackson were listening to offers for Porzingis.
I can't believe the trade, but the Bulls also gave up their own pick in the deal. Would Minnesota really walk away from the whole thing if they had held out for at least that?
I feel better about this trade than when I heard about it last week...I think Zach has already fully rebounded from the ACL and will still be awesome. I'll miss Kris but I had no attachment to him. I have no clue about either of the draft picks but ours seems really tall.
The rumours I'D heard were that Thibs would rather have kept Zach and dealt Ricky Rubio - and that he STILL wants to deal Rubio - but man, if that's true, amongst the many things I can thank the Bulls for about this deal, BIG thanks to not liking Rubio as much as I do. When Rubio's gone, I'm ready to cancel my season tickets* as much as I like KAT... and hope to like Jimmy Buckets.
*playoff success may make me more excited to renew, of course
As a Bulls fan, I'm trying to be as optimistic as possible, so here we go.
First, Thibs isn't a fan of playing rookies, so Dunn's rookie year shouldn't be a reflection on his ability. He didn't play Butler as a rookie either when he was the Bulls coach.
Second, if this causes us to get a high lottery pick next year, I think in the long run it benefits us.
Third, the rumored offers out there weren't great. Trade Butler to Cleveland for Love's contract? Pass. Boston wasn't going to give up their high lottery picks, and the package of Crowder & someone else wasn't anymore enticing. At least Chicago gets him out of the East.
Finally, if all the NBA is going to do next season is set up for Warriors/Cavs 4, the Bulls are choosing a prime time to be awful.
Originally posted by CRZThe rumours I'D heard were that Thibs would rather have kept Zach and dealt Ricky Rubio - and that he STILL wants to deal Rubio - but man, if that's true, amongst the many things I can thank the Bulls for about this deal, BIG thanks to not liking Rubio as much as I do. When Rubio's gone, I'm ready to cancel my season tickets* as much as I like KAT... and hope to like Jimmy Buckets.
Thread ahead: It's Christmas eve in March again. Next thread: Paul George Traded to OKC for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis Previous thread: Good Bye Phil Jackson
a) Throw a tirade? 3-1 b) Demand a trade? 5-2 c) Do something stupid, in general? 2-1 When the player who many believe single-handedly brought your team to the playoffs says something like that, you should listen.