The Chicago Bulls have already added one significant piece to their roster this year, and according to a new report, they could seek to address another area of concern in restricted free agency.
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the New Orleans Pelicans are “unlikely to match a significant offer sheet” for point guard Lonzo Ball, and the Bulls are one of two teams that could potentially be interested in acquiring him.
Ball just finished up his second season with the Pelicans after being sent to New Orleans in the Anthony Davis trade prior to the 2019-20 season. He averaged 14.6 points per game, a new career high, and 5.7 assists per contest in 55 games.
The Bulls haven’t gotten a ton of production out of the point guard spot in recent years, and they’ll likely be looking to make a change there this offseason. Coby White did average 15.1 points and 4.8 assists per game for the Bulls last season, but he came off the bench in 15 of the 69 games he played in.
The Bulls do have a team option on the contract of Ryan Arcidiacono for next season, and have Tomas Satoransky under contract as well, but Ball would represent a large upgrade over both players, and could give the Bulls another dynamic scorer to pair with Nikola Vucevic and Zach LaVine.
If the Bulls were to add Ball, Satoransky would likely have to be trimmed from the roster for salary cap reasons, and the Bulls would also likely have to part ways with Thaddeus Young as well.
NBA free agency will get underway at 11:01 a.m. Central time on Aug. 6.
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