No, this isn’t about Jerami Grant or Harrison Barnes. Though I could probably talk myself into either of those acquisitions, I’m going to focus on a few less-heralded players who’d be great fits on a team that now has the best record in the East.
More than anything else, I’d say that the Bulls need (i) a starting-caliber 4 who can match up against some of the bigger and stronger front lines, and (ii) another two-way player off the bench, preferably a high-usage type who can defend multiple positions.
That need for a starting 4 is no secret. Javonte Green admirably has taken on that responsibility most of the year, even though he’s 6’4” and much more comfortable defending point guards than conventional power forwards. The Bulls have struggled and often failed to contain big and skilled 4s like Domantas Sabonis, Evan Mobley, and Julius Randle. Giannis is another matter entirely and needs to be guarded at the team level more than the individual level, but at a minimum you want someone who can bother him a bit until help arrives.
The Bulls’ bench is fun albeit full of one-way players. Derrick Jones Jr., Javonte Green [included with the bench presuming the Bulls trade for a new starter], Tony Bradley, Troy Brown, and Ayo Dosunmu are all solid defenders but very low-usage and also don’t really create for others. They get their points primarily either in transition or when the defense ignores or loses track of them.
On the flip side, while I’ve been encouraged by Coby White’s recent production, the defensive concerns shouldn’t be ignored. He’ll put in effort on that end, and he’s been more engaged and effective lately than ever before, but with his 6’5” wingspan, 8’1.5” standing reach, and lack of strength or high-level awareness, he’ll likely always struggle to navigate screens and avoid getting picked on against better competition. His hot streak has come against lesser teams missing key players, especially on the perimeter.
The Bulls’ bench can get the job done in the regular season, but I’m not convinced that any of those guys should get extended minutes in the postseason barring a particularly favorable matchup. In the playoffs, weaknesses tend to be exposed and it’s increasingly important for role players to bring value on both ends.
With that said, here are my favorite trade targets, from least to most desirable:
Alec Burks
Embed from Getty ImagesBurks is on the older side (30) though the past couple years have been the most productive of his career. He’s traded in some drives and mid-range pullups for 3s, while also becoming steadier as a distributor.
What stands out most about Burks is his versatility. He can serve as the primary ball-handler, bringing the ball up the floor and initiating sets like he did Tuesday night with Kemba Walker and Derrick Rose both unavailable. He can be a defensive stopper, like the previous game when he came off the bench to slow down Scottie Barnes and Pascal Siakam, getting five steals off of the two of them combined. Or he can even be a primary scorer, like last week when he scored 34 points in 27 minutes, mostly via catch-and-shoot 3s, attacking closeouts, and finding openings while running pick and roll.
While Burks doesn’t generate much separation off the dribble and lacks the explosiveness to finish in traffic, he overcomes those issues through craftiness as a ball-handler and outside shooting proficiency. He scores in a variety of ways, rating in the 90th percentile or higher on handoffs each of the past 3 years (typically 10% of offense), and also roughly the 90th percentile on isolations (7% of offense), 75th percentile on spot ups and 70th percentile as a pick and roll ball-handler since joining the Knicks (each 1/3 of his offense).
He does an excellent job of manipulating defenders while running pick and roll, keeping them at arms’ length and using misdirection and hesitation dribbles to set up 3s and lobs, get to the free throw line, and maintain an unusually low turnover rate. Despite acting much more as a wing than a point guard throughout his career, he’s very patient in letting plays develop, setting up entry passes and finding the right angles to do so.
Though he’s just one inch taller than Coby White, Burks plays much bigger. His wingspan is 5 inches longer, his standing reach is 6 inches higher, and he’s 20 pounds heavier. Burks has found success in recent years acting effectively as the small forward in three-guard lineups, and if paired with Zach LaVine or DeMar DeRozan, he could reliably defend the more threatening opposing wing.
The Bulls could trade for Burks and his $9.5M salary in a number of ways. It could be as simple as a Derrick Jones Jr. swap provided that the Bulls have otherwise picked up a starting 4. The Knicks are undoubtedly looking to shake up their rotation and could use a defensive-minded combo forward like DJJ. The Bulls could also match salary through a 2-for-1 deal, like Troy Brown and Tony Bradley for Burks, to name one possibility.
If the trade were expanded, it’s worth noting that the Knicks have a couple extra 1st rounders and some intriguing young players that could be routed to a rebuilding team, with the Knicks adding a bigger piece (CJ McCollum, Caris LeVert, Derrick White, etc.) to consolidate their guard rotation and the Bulls acquiring Burks as a result.
Brandon Clarke
Embed from Getty ImagesSpeaking of teams who could benefit from some consolidation, the Memphis Grizzlies have arguably the deepest roster in the league. They’re so deep that they lost their best player and then didn’t trail a single second in their next 5 games, even with a couple other rotation players, including Brandon Clarke, missing some of those games as well. When at reasonably full health, the Grizzlies have given Clarke just 15 minutes a night. Lately, with Kyle Anderson and Xavier Tillman unable to play, he’s still only getting 20-25 mpg. I’d like to see him in an expanded role elsewhere. Why not Chicago?
Clarke’s offensive strengths and weaknesses are fairly easy to see. On the plus side, he’s a brilliant finisher around the rim. He’s bouncy and strong with tremendous body control, allowing him to adjust in mid-air and finish through, over, or around opposing rim protectors. His 34” standing vertical and 40.5” max vertical were each the best among non-guards in his draft class. Clarke is shooting 80% from 0-3 feet this year, and 76% for his career, with those shots around the rim making up nearly half of his total attempts.
Clarke can extend a bit further out, displaying soft touch on floaters, hooks, and leaners in the paint, and as a result he’s shooting 70% on 2s as a whole, while rather remarkably attempting about 12 per 36 minutes. That’s more than Nikola Vucevic!
Another clear strength is Clarke’s ball-handling and passing ability. He’s quick and decisive with the ball in his hands, finding open shooters off the catch or even off the bounce after 1-3 dribbles. Clarke isn’t the most creative or exciting passer but he’ll make smart reads and put the ball in the right spot. He has a grand total of two bad pass turnovers and three lost ball turnovers against 33 assists this year. With the way the Bulls like to operate using Vucevic as a hub, Clarke would give them another option when they share the court or allow them to play the same way when Vucevic is on the bench.
Now for the obvious offensive weakness: Clarke’s jumper is broken. He tried to rework it after his rookie year and the results have been awful. It lacks fluidity and balance, as he now brings the ball across his body as part of his standard shooting motion. Clarke is 2-for-14 from beyond the arc this year and has attempted just 3 other shots outside 15 feet.
On the plus side, despite not being a threat to score outside the paint, Clarke does a good job of making opponents pay for leaving him open on the perimeter. He’s one of the league’s most willing and active screeners, both on and off the ball. He’ll set a screen, and if it doesn’t lead to anything he’ll immediately go back and set another one. Sag off of him and your teammate might end up stuck on a screen giving up an open 3.
Clarke’s elite finishing ability means that he requires constant attention. When he dives to the rim as the roll man, you need to tag him or it’s an easy lob for a dunk or layup. If you lose sight of him in the corner, he’ll run the baseline, slip behind you and it’s the same outcome. Or he’ll crash the offensive glass for a putback.
His defensive role and value are a bit harder to peg. I think Clarke’s somewhat less versatile on that end than you might expect. He has short arms relative to his 6’8” height—his wingspan and standing reach are actually each less than Alec Burks—and he also has fairly stiff hips which hinder his lateral movement and recovery when he ventures out to the perimeter. He’s best suited defending 4s, and beyond that it depends on matchups. He can handle big wings, but not quick ones, plus undersized centers or those that struggle to capitalize on size mismatches.
Clarke’s leaping ability and high energy level make him a solid rim protector despite those size limitations, though his need to jump in order to contest shots leaves him vulnerable to pump fakes. By most measures he’s roughly a neutral defender overall.
I don’t see a two-team trade between the Grizzlies and Bulls being likely. Rather, I envision the Grizzlies making a move to add to their core, dealing a collection of players and picks for someone like Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Ben Simmons, or Fred VanVleet, with the Bulls swooping in as the third team.
I’ll use Fred VanVleet as an example, because a lineup of Ja, VanVleet, Bane, JJJ, and Adams would fit together pretty seamlessly in my view.
In trading Patrick Williams and Troy Brown for Brandon Clarke and Dillon Brooks in this example, the Bulls would be leaning into their strengths stylistically. Clarke is a bigger and more skilled version of Derrick Jones Jr., while Brooks could be described as a much less efficient DeMar DeRozan with better defense. Brooks has been a regular starter on a good team for the past few years, and he’d join Caruso in playing big minutes off the bench. Also note that any trade involving Patrick Williams will likely show the Bulls faring best from a team wins-added/lost perspective, but I wouldn’t put much stock in those numbers.
PJ Washington
Embed from Getty ImagesPJ Washington is my #1 target, as I absolutely love his fit with the Bulls. Here’s why, and I’ll get into each of these a bit further below:
- He’s a high-volume, high-efficiency outside shooter joining a team that’s 29th in 3-point attempt rate, which should open up the court for DeRozan, LaVine, and Vucevic more than someone who only shoots a decent percentage from the corners like the team’s current options at the 4.
- Like Clarke, he’s another guy who excels as a ball-handler relative to his position, enabling the Bulls to run all the sets they use with Vucevic and perhaps more.
- He’s an extremely versatile defender in terms of switching and executing different schemes and coverages, which is especially useful in the playoffs.
- He’s only 23 and has room to improve.
The first thing that jumps out about PJ is the development of his outside shot. While he’s always been a threat beyond the arc, his volume has steadily increased and his shot profile become increasingly difficult to defend. He’s improved from a standard “corner 3” specialist stretch big to one of the league’s best above-the-break shooters off the catch. He’s hitting 43.3% on 7 attempts per 36, with only 15% of those attempts coming from the corners.
In fact, the greater the distance, the better he’s been. He’s shooting 45.5% above the break, and 18/32 (56.3%) from 26+ feet, at least a full step back behind the 3-point line. Shooting from that distance makes closeouts all the more challenging, giving PJ more open looks and creating better opportunities for everyone to attack in space against an out-of-position defense.
One player who can take advantage of that attacking space is PJ himself. He’s nimble and creative with the ball in his hands, more so than other smart-passing bigs like Vucevic and Clarke. While Vucevic excels at passing from a stand-still position with his vision and decision-making, he’s less suited for passing on the move as the Bulls sometimes ask him to do. That requires a mix of high-end coordination and processing speed that few players possess, but I think PJ has it. He shows real playmaking flashes, like faking a dribble handoff at the 3-point line, spinning, and putting the ball on the floor in one fluid motion, then driving into the paint and kicking it out to the corner.
Whereas Vucevic often looks uncomfortable catching the ball on the move in short-roll passing situations, leading to some clunky possessions, PJ moves and handles the ball more like a guard and can execute those sets more effectively. From the time LaMelo was sidelined under COVID protocols to the time PJ entered COVID protocols himself, PJ had 26 assists to just 4 turnovers. Depending on lineups, PJ sometimes even takes responsibility for bringing the ball up the court.
At 6’7” PJ is just one inch shorter than Clarke, though otherwise they couldn’t be much more different physically and athletically. PJ is relatively ground-bound but has exceptionally long arms, with over a 7’2” wingspan and 8’11” standing reach. That length allows him to contest shots without leaving his feet and defend much taller players. His lateral movement is also a definite plus, making him one of the most switchable bigs in the league. He can defend the perimeter for long stretches without help, and with his length and quickness to recover, he’s well suited to execute a variety of pick-and-roll coverages like blitzing and hedging.
That could give the Bulls another dimension defensively with PJ at the 5. While those lineups in Charlotte have piled up points but hemorrhaged them on defense, I think the Bulls have the personnel to make it work on both ends. Given that he’s somewhat undersized and doesn’t have a ton of lift, PJ tends to get more of his blocks on-the-ball by surprising opponents with his length, rather than as a help defender in the paint. If you give ball-handlers a free run into the lane with only PJ between them and the hoop, it can look like a layup line at times.
But with standout point-of-attack defenders like Caruso and Lonzo pressuring the ball and the ability to switch up and down the spectrum with not only those two but also Javonte, Derrick Jones Jr., and of course PJ, the Bulls can compensate for PJ’s weakness as a true rim protector and take better advantage of his strengths. A lineup of PJ, Lonzo, Caruso, DJJ/Javonte, and either DeRozan or LaVine would present a tough matchup for anyone.
An important point here is that PJ is NOT a very good fit in Charlotte. His style of play doesn’t mesh well with LaMelo Ball, who plays a more ball-dominant style and pairs best with rim-runners he can set up for easy buckets. PJ has consistently been better both individually and in terms of team success when on the floor without LaMelo, when he can be more involved in the offense.
Based on the lineup data at Basketball-Reference, the Hornets have been approximately -5 per 100 possessions with LaMelo and PJ sharing the court the past 2 years and +5 when PJ’s on the floor minus LaMelo. The Hornets seem to recognize this, bringing PJ off the bench and instead starting Nick Richards when Plumlee was out, thereby staggering PJ and LaMelo regardless of who’s available.
There are two other reasons why PJ doesn’t fit particularly well with the Hornets roster. First, they’ve decided that Miles Bridges is best as a power forward pretty much exclusively, meaning that PJ only plays center when Bridges is on the floor. I’d say that in most contexts PJ is more of a 4 than a 5.
Second and relatedly, in the particular context of the Hornets, PJ is not what they need at the 5. Their perimeter defense is poor. LaMelo, Rozier, and Oubre gamble for steals and are frequently out of position, consistently falling short when it comes to cutting off dribble penetration, rotating, and frustrating entry passes. The Hornets currently rank 29th in opponent 2-point field goal percentage and overall effective field goal percentage. They could really use a center that can wall off the paint and put a lid on the rim, and PJ Washington isn’t that guy.
There’s a straightforward framework for a deal here, with a rim protector going from a rebuilding team to Charlotte, PJ Washington to the Bulls, and Patrick Williams to that rebuilding team. The most obvious candidate is Myles Turner, as I think the Pacers, Hornets, and Bulls each should approve of that deal in principle. Salary-matching is the tricky part, given the disparity between Turner ($18M) and PJ ($4.2M).
Here’s one version of the deal that I like, bringing in the Knicks to make it a 4-way trade:
The Hornets would send out Mason Plumlee and James Bouknight for salary-matching, while getting Miles McBride as a point-of-attack defender and one of their second round picks back to make up for that extra value lost. Myles Turner becomes part of their long-term core and hopefully gives the defense the boost it needs to at least be decent.
The Pacers should be happy with the high-end potential of Patrick Williams and James Bouknight, even more so coupled with a first rounder and a couple solid veterans under contract beyond this year. That’s a strong return for Myles Turner and Caris LeVert, each of whom could leave after next season, plus Jeremy Lamb and his expiring contract. The Pacers would also save a bunch of money this year.
For the Knicks, they get that upgrade they’re looking for in LeVert, while also unloading Fournier’s contract that they almost certainly regret (except when he’s playing the Celtics at least) and sending out a couple excess picks to make it happen. The rest of the deal for them is mostly just rearranging the pieces of a roster that hasn’t seemed to click except for all-bench units.
To be honest, I like the present and long-term fit of PJ and Burks so much for the Bulls that I wouldn’t mind also shipping out the Portland pick to make this happen. I know a lot of Bulls fans would view Patrick Williams alone as an overpay and sending the pick on top of it as an extreme one, but a chance to contend doesn’t come along that often and I don’t see Williams as the sort of can’t-miss prospect for whom you’d give up a year or two of your potential window. And there’s not much the Bulls can or would trade that has substantial value beyond Patrick Williams, especially with that protected Blazers pick losing value as Portland continues to struggle and Dame’s future becomes more and more uncertain.
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