The Chicago Bulls are trying to rebuild their culture, but they haven’t yet taken the steps necessary to put that plan into action.
Chicago needs to part ways with Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucević ASAP. Neither player is doing anything for their youth movement or planning on going broke in the next 12-24 months.
Vucević has no suitors, but pair him with Coby White in a deal, and suddenly half the league will be looking.
Moving White is a necessary evil for Chicago if they want to rebuild. Given the need to pair Vucević or LaVine with valuable assets to bring them in, the Bulls can’t afford to make many of their players untouchable.
Josh Giddey is a good piece to build on and Matas Buzelis is showing early signs of potential, but pretty much everyone else – White included – should be on the table.
By trading a Vucević-White package, Chicago should be looking to get expiring contracts and/or players who can help change their culture. A deal with the Memphis Grizzlies in which the Bulls would receive Marcus Smart, Santi Aldama, Derrick Rose and a first-round pick would help both teams.
All of the Grizzlies players on this deal are on expiring contracts except for Smart (2 years left), but he’s the ultimate culture builder that Chicago has lacked in recent years. Smart wouldn’t demand a change on offense, but he would immediately make the Bulls tougher and have a huge defensive influence on their young talent.
Shedding another first-round pick in a loaded draft would also be huge for Chicago.
From the Grizzlies’ perspective, they would be acquiring two ready-made scorers who would help them address their biggest weakness: scoring the ball when Ja Morant is off the court.
Derrick Rose returning to Chicago as he nears retirement would also be a fairytale end to his career that he and his fans deserve.
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