The Chicago Bulls continue to make splash moves, this time by acquiring DeMar DeRozan.
After an aggressive first day of free agency by the Chicago Bulls front office, in which they signed Lonzo Ball (away from the New Orleans Pelicans) and Alex Caruso (away from the Los Angeles Lakers), the franchise continued that trend on day 2 of free agency in which they landed four-time NBA All-Star DeMar DeRozan (in a sign-and-trade from the San Antonio Spurs).
DeRozan joins an already talented Bulls roster which includes Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic (in addition to the recent signing of Ball).
As part of the sign-and-trade deal, the Bulls are sending Thad Young, Al-Farouq Aminu, a future first-round pick, and two second-round picks to the Spurs. DeRozan will sign a three-year, $85 million fully guaranteed contract with the Bulls.
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Will DeRozan bring some legitimacy to the Chicago Bulls?
DeRozan is coming off a season in which he averaged nearly 22 points per game for the Spurs. He’s an excellent scorer in the paint and mid-range. Even though his 3-point shooting leaves a lot to be desired in the modern-day NBA, shooting just 28 percent from deep for his career, the addition will immediately give Chicago a boost offensively.
DeRozan will immediately take a ton of pressure off of LaVine on the offensive end who, until the team acquired Vucevic, was the team’s primary scoring option. DeRozan is a proven scorer and star in today’s game that will also help bring some veteran leadership to the team.
He’ll bring some added playoff experience to the roster and should bring some legitimacy to a roster that needs it.
If nothing else, Chicago has compiled an interesting collection of players. On paper, or on NBA 2K, this is a really good roster. How will it all pan out and could they coexist together, we’re about to find out this season.
The recent move to acquire DeRozan continues to show that the Bulls are looking for success now, rather than later, and it will be interesting to see how they end up rounding out their roster this offseason. So far, Chicago has been one of the biggest winners of the summer.