Jalen Smith isn’t going to send Bulls fans stampeding to the season ticket window, but he fits a youth movement that continued to take on momentum on Monday.
It was confirmed that the 6-9 backup center/power forward agreed to a three-year, $27-million deal, and as for now Smith, 24, will serve as the backup to Nikola Vucevic for the 2024-25 season.
It also means that in just over a week, executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has acquired Josh Giddey, 21, drafted Matas Buzelis, 19, re-signed Patrick Williams, 22, to a five-year deal, and swapped out the role that the 30-year-old Andre Drummond held for the past few years for Smith.
Last season with the Pacers, Smith 9.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, but also shot 42.4% from three-point range.