.jpg)
1 hour ago
3
For three consecutive years, Arturas Karnisovas built up a reputation as an executive who didn't particularly care for trades. Despite badly needing to shake up their roster, the Bulls made zero moves at the trade deadline from 2022 to 2024, holding onto their guys until they lost most of their value.
Karnisovas started to change that reputation last season, trading away DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine for whatever he could get. He's kicked it into high gear this week, making three small trades that were all shockingly sharp.
The Bulls are starting to make the types of trades that they should have been doing all along. Here's why they are making savvy moves, and what to think of their new players.
LIVE: NBA trade deadline tracker with latest deals, rumors
Grading Bulls trade deadline moves
Trade 1: Bulls buy two second-round picks in Dario Saric salary dump
- Bulls get: Dario Saric, 2027 second-round pick (via Nuggets), 2029 second-round pick (via Sacramento)
- Bulls give up: Emmanuel Miller
This is about as unsexy of a trade as it gets, but it was the type of smart financial move that the Bulls have rarely made before. The Kings needed a third team with the ability to take on money in order to facilitate a bigger De'Andre Hunter move with the Cavs. The Bulls had that ability, and essentially bought two bad second-rounders for $5 million.
The Bulls have always been on the other side of these trades, selling second-round picks for cash or using them to dump their own bad contracts. For once, they were the winners in this type of deal.
Grade: B
Trade 2: Bulls take a swing on Jaden Ivey
- Bulls get: Mike Conley Jr., Jaden Ivey
- Bulls give up: Kevin Huerter, Saric
The Ivey trade was another savvy move by Karnisovas and the type of trade that a mediocre team in Chicago's situation should do. It is very reminiscent of the trade for Josh Giddey, who was also a promising young player who had seen his stock take a sharp dive in the past season.
These "second draft" trades don't always hit — look back to trade acquisitions like Jerian Grant, Cam Payne, Troy Brown Jr., or Chris Duarte as examples from the past. But the best way to win the lottery is to buy a lot of tickets. Most of the time, you'll lose. Once in a while, you'll end up with a jackpot like Giddey, or a smaller prize like Jalen Smith.
Now onto the more important question: How good is Ivey? The No. 5 pick in the 2022 draft drew comparisons to Ja Morant in college due to his explosive speed and athleticism. There were certainly flashes of that early in his career, but he hasn't looked like that type of player since a nasty injury in 2025 where he fractured his left fibula and had to be stretchered off the floor.
That was a real shame, because he was in the midst of a breakout and the best stretch of his career. In the five games prior to that injury, he was averaging 19.2 points on 60 percent from the field and a torrid 62 percent from 3. Zooming back a little further, he averaged 17.6 points on good efficiency in the 30 games that he played in that season, all of which he started.
The Ivey that the Pistons got after that injury wasn't the same player. He's still been a good 3-point shooter, which is a testament to his work ethic because that was not a particular strength of his at Purdue. That first step isn't there any more though. He was a good driving guard last season, averaging 9.8 per game. This season, that number has plummeted down to 2.8 per game.
Whether those physical abilities come back is anyone's guess. It's not a bad bet to make though, particularly at the cost that the Bulls paid. They shipped off Huerter and Saric, who both had no future on this team, to take a shot on a young player with starting upside who they can sign to a value contract this summer.
MORE: Trade grades for James Harden-Darius Garland blockbuster
Ivey is a restricted free agent, and those guys have gotten squeezed in years past. My salary model has him at four years and $71 million, which sounds about right. That is a nice discount from the $87 million that ESPN's Bobby Marks suggested for him this summer, before those struggles became more obvious.
Given other market conditions, the Bulls should be able to chop down that $71 million figure even more. Cam Thomas also showed that the Ivey archetype (good scoring guards who are weak defenders) aren't getting paid in free agency these days. Ivey might end up with a similar scenario, signing either his qualifying offer or a shorter-term deal this summer in order to get back on the market sooner.
Regarding that defense, Ivey has never been locked in on that end of the floor dating back to college. He is a very poor screen navigator, which is tough for the Bulls because Giddey is as well. Ivey does have good physical tools with a plus-five wingspan. It's a matter of effort and refining technique.
Conley was added in this trade too but will probably be bought out (Chris Haynes reported that he "isn't expected to stick" with the Bulls).
MORE: Players most likely to be moved before the deadline
Grade: B
Trade 3: The Vooch era is over, Bulls add another Jaden Ivey
- Bulls get: Anfernee Simons, 2026 second-round pick (currently slotted at No. 32)
- Bulls give up: Nikola Vucevic, Nuggets 2027 second-round pick
The Bulls hung onto Vucevic for way too long. That shouldn't take too much away from the fact that they made the right decision by trading him now rather than using him for another pointless Play-In Tournament run.
Vooch didn't have first-round value any more. The Bulls got about as close as you can get by trading what should be a bad second-rounder in 2027 for a very good second-rounder in this draft. They had leverage on their side, saving the Celtics a ton of money by taking in an additional $6 million in salary, and they used it similar to how they used their room under the tax in the Saric deal.
MORE: Nikola Vucevic-Anfernee Simons trade grades
Pivoting off the boring cap stuff onto the interesting "can this guy play" stuff, Simons is very similar to Ivey. He's a great 3-point shooter, particularly off the catch where he's draining 44 percent of those looks. He should fit very well into the Bulls' offensive system.
He's also a bad defender who struggles with technique and effort. The Celtics got him to play a little better on that end of the floor after tough coaching from Joe Mazzulla and a new role coming off the bench. That's probably where he projects on a good team, as a microwave scoring Sixth Man.
Simons is a good intangibles guy. He was beloved in Boston, where he thrived in transitioning from a starter to bench role and won several games with his shooting outbursts. He should develop into a fan favorite if the Bulls decide to keep him.
Simons' contract situation is similar to Ivey's. He's a free agent that is 32 months older than Ivey and unrestricted. That older age and unrestricted status makes the Bulls less likely to keep him. His value is roughly the same as Ivey's in my contract model.
The Bulls have three of those types of scoring guards now. They can't keep all of Ivey, Simons, and soon-to-be free agent Coby White on the roster. If White isn't traded in the next few days, then at least one of those three will be gone this summer.
Roster balance shouldn't matter for this team. The Bulls now have a great guard rotation and one of the worst wing and big rotations. They lost by 16 to a bad Bucks team on Tuesday night. That losing should continue.
The very-attainable goal should be able to slip into the bottom nine teams and see what they have in their new guys. That would give Chicago a 25 percent chance at getting a top four pick in a draft with five clear stars at the top.
These are the types of difficult, boring, and painful moves that got the Thunder and Pistons to the top of their respective conferences. It's no fun watching a bad team give minutes to guys trying to rehabilitate their careers, but it's not fun watching the Bulls get blasted in the Play-In Tournament every year either. The Bulls are finally taking some steps towards building something worth watching. And they may still not be done.
Grade: B
English (US)