Rather than put all their eggs at the free-agency basket, the Chicago Bulls broke open their piggy banks early.
Firstthey matched the four-year, $78 million offer sheet from the Sacramento Kings last offseason of Zach LaVine. Next, they exchanged for Otto Porter Jr. in the 2019 deadline, taking around the $27.3 million owed next year and his $28.5 million player option for 2020-21.
Some may argue about if Porter and LaVine should be a roughly $46 million combination. However, it might do the job. Since other franchise pillars Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr. have numerous years left on their newcomer deals, the cash mostly balances out. The Bulls should still have approximately $20 million to spend this summer.
They already appear to have a base around which they can build. Even though Carter suffered a thumb injury before Porter arrived, the latter has had the chance to build some chemistry together with LaVine and Markkanen. That trio has generated an eye-opening 6.6 internet rating across 288 shared minutes.
Particularly if Chicago adds yet another top-five pick this summer, it might be building a solid 25-and-under collection.
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