The Chicago Bulls have shown no desire to trade any of their core beyond Zach LaVine, to whom they attached a high asking price that only recently came down.
There might be no player who embodies that more than Alex Caruso, who has received trade interest from prospective suitors only for those teams to be turned away. But their resolve could be tested this offseason after another year of falling short of their goals.
Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley suggested a proposed trade sending Caruso West.
“Chicago keeps signaling that it doesn’t want to bottom out, and while it would miss Caruso’s presence, it would also gain Huerter’s shotmaking and Mitchell’s point-of-attack defense,” Buckley wrote on June 19. “The biggest draw, though, would be the incoming picks, which the Bulls could keep for themselves (the preferable option) or flip for additional plug-and-play contributors.”
Buckley suggests a package bringing back a pair of former first-round picks plus additional draft capital for Caruso.
Bulls get:
– Davion Mitchell
– Kevin Huerter
– 2024 first-round pick (No. 13 overall)
– 2027 first-round pick (top-three protected)
Kings get:
– Alex Caruso
– Jevon Carter
– Torrey Craig
Mitchell was the Kings’ first-round pick in 2021 (No. 9 overall). He averaged 5.3 points, 1.9 assists, and 1.3 rebounds as his minutes fell for the second consecutive season. He shot 36.4% from beyond the arc, albeit on a modest 2.2 attempts per game.
The 6-foot-2 guard is entering the last year of a four-year, $20.9 million contract.
He will count for $6.4 million against the salary cap in 2024-25 and will be a restricted free agent after the campaign.
The Kings acquired Huerter via trade from the Atlanta Hawks in 2022. He averaged 10.2 points with 3.5 rebounds, and 2.6 assists last season. But Huerter – a career 38.2% shooter – shot a career-low 36.1% from beyond the arc in 2023-24 and wound up in trade rumors with the Bulls.
He will count $16.8 million against the cap in Year 3 of a four-year, $65 million pact he signed with the Hawks.
Kings Linked to Alex Caruso in Trade Rumors
Sacramento has also been linked to Caruso, who is entering the final year of a four-year, $36.9 million contract. They have been in contact with the Bulls about a potential trade for the NBA champion.
“The Sacramento Kings are going back to the well with the same trade package they offered Toronto twice for OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam,” Action Network’s Matt Moore wrote on June 18. “The offer includes Harrison Barnes, Kevin Huerter and draft pick compensation. They’re known to have had calls with Chicago involving Zach LaVine and Alex Caruso.”
Buckley’s framework offers a cleaner variation. The Bulls would need him to opt into the second year of his two-year, $5.4 million contract to complete it.
Carter is heading into Year 2 of a three-year, $19.5 million contract.
Huerter and Mitchell will count for roughly $23 million against the cam next season. The Bulls would add $4 million to the Bulls’ bottom line in Buckley’s scenario plus the cost of the No. 13 pick. That could be a non-starter in a transaction that would hurt them in the interim.
But the Bulls would also have the ammunition to swing a trade up for UConn center Donovan Clingan in the draft.
Bulls Linked to Donovan Clingan in Trade Up
Rumors continue to link the Bulls to a potential move up for the 7-foot-3, 282-pound two-time national champion.
“Donovan Clingan is going to be one of the more interesting players to watch in this draft,” 247 Sports Adam Finkelstein reported on June 18. “There are couple of teams that are being very active trying to trade up to draft the UConn big man. Memphis and Chicago, in particular, I am hearing are making significant attempts to move up to a position where they could draft Clingan.”
Finkelstein named the Houston Rockets at No. 3 overall as a potential trade partner for the Bulls if they pursued such a deal. He also noted that Memphis could be willing to trade back for other prospects as well.
That could give the Bulls an edge in any potential trade talks to move up for Clingan.
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