Chicago Bulls Rumors: Lonzo Ball to Chicago is all but confirmedRyan Tayloron August 2, 2021 at 7:46 pm

The question of the matter is no longer “Is Lonzo Ball a Chicago Bull?” the question has become “How is Lonzo Ball a Chicago Bull?”

There has been much speculation that the Bulls front office could get away with a sign-and-trade between Ball and Tomas Satoransky, who currently has a partial guarantee on his contract.

This would save the Bulls from having to renounce Satoransky and give them the ability to retain assets in return for him.

On top of that, this move would save the Bulls $5 million in cap space for trading him instead of letting him go in free agency.

However, if the Bulls were unable to do this, they would have to eat at their cap space to take on Ball. Understanding that Ball may take close to $20 million per year, it’s already known that the Bulls have just over $24 million in cap space to play with. That’s also saying they renounce their free agents to conclude on that number.

If it’s not a sign-and-trade for Satoransky and not an offer sheet signing, what else could it be?

Truly the only other option would be a sign-and-trade with Lauri Markkanen. However, Arturas Karnisovas tried this move just before the trade deadline, but no cigar. That being said, it seems unlikely he will try his hand with this move again since it already flopped.

To rank the ideal ways of obtaining Ball, here’s how it would go.