Chicago Bulls (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
There is no shortage of rumors today, as NBA free agency officially opens up. Leading up to this period, the Chicago Bulls have been connected to several players in trade rumors and free agency rumors, but nothing big has happened yet via trade.
Now, things can really start happening as free agents will be allowed to agree to deals Thursday night.
The Bulls are going to look at adding rim protection, without a doubt. General manager Marc Eversley said so himself, looking at finding someone to compliment Nikola Vucevic off the bench.
Thursday morning, there was a report which surfaced that included two key names at forward and center being linked to the Bulls. One of them, Mo Bamba, would certainly give the Bulls that rim protection. The other one? A lethal three-point specialist.
Both Danilo Gallinari and Mo Bamba have been linked to the Chicago Bulls as of late.
Hearing if it was up to Mo Bamba he would be a Bull by tonight. Wanted to be a Bull on draft night ’18, and that hasn’t changed. Problem is feeling isn’t mutual at his current asking value. As reported by @KCJHoop, Danilo Gallinari is in play.
— Joe Cowley (@JCowleyHoops) June 30, 2022
Back in the 2018 NBA Draft, there was a lot of potential hope that the Bulls could land big man Mo Bamba. Of course, he ended up going the pick just before as the Orlando Magic snagged him. Then, the Bulls wound up with Wendell Carter Jr.
Funny enough, the Magic are now committed to Carter on a long-term deal and will allow Bamba to enter free agency after selecting Paolo Banchero number one overall in the 2022 NBA Draft.
It certainly sounds like Bamba would love to play in Chicago, but the question becomes whether or not the Bulls would pay up for him. Now, the Bulls do have a $10 million mid-level exception they could use on a free agent. Bamba might be in play, there.
Now, as for Gallinari, he was just traded from the Atlanta Hawks to the San Antonio Spurs in the deal where Atlanta acquired Dejounte Murray. Already, it appears the Spurs are looking to flip Gallinari in a deal to continue building for the future.
Gallinari would be a strong addition to the Bulls’ depth, taking the place of a guy like Derrick Jones Jr. and offering a great three-point shooter off the bench. He and Patrick Williams could not be more opposite, therefore giving the Bulls two excellent options to compliment one another.
Be on the lookout for some additional announcements in the coming hours as free agency kicks off at 6PM ET. We’ll see if either Bamba or Gallinari end up in Chicago, and for just how much compensation.