There’s a fine line between ambitious and crazy.
Bulls executive vice president Arturas Karnisovas is about to toe it.
According to one NBA insider, with the start of free agency Sunday, Karnisovas’ attempt to flip the roster and launch a competitive youth movement is “ambitious but an uphill battle.”
Regardless, he’s still going to try to pull it off.
The issue is the dominoes that have to fall before the Bulls can become serious players at the table. So free agents Paul George and Klay Thompson have to find homes first, then the teams left out in the cold have to come a-calling.
But there already have been some roster alterations. As expected, veteran backup big man Andre Drummond announced on social media that he planned to return to the 76ers on a reported two-year, $10 million-plus deal.
And if Karnisovas can accomplish his goals, Zach LaVine and free agent DeMar DeRozan also will be elsewhere next season. Nikola Vucevic will be shopped, but he’s a difficult sell.
Losing DeRozan, however, would sting.
There’s no questioning what he has meant to the Bulls, especially in the leadership department.
As clutch a player as DeRozan has been, he also has done his best to spread the wealth late in games and help LaVine and guard Coby White learn to excel in closing time.
That didn’t go unnoticed, especially by coach Billy Donovan.
“When you have a guy like DeMar, who has been an incredible closer his entire career, he’s a unique and special guy,” Donovan said during the second half last season.
“DeMar is all about winning. It’s not like, ‘Hey, this is my time, just stand over there.’ He’s really, really good about encouraging [other] guys to make plays. ‘Hey, when I’m trapped, it’s coming to you. Be ready. Shoot it. Drive it.’ Having a veteran guy [who has] closed as many games as DeMar has, he’s been a great example.”
But there also was a realization.
Because DeRozan is “all about winning,” the Bulls were stuck in mediocrity with an incomplete, and often injured, roster. The six-time All-Star was just too talented to bring back for an organization that is pushing a youth movement.
Part of that push is making sure to finish in the bottom 10 to keep the Spurs from taking the protected first-round pick from the 2025 draft, which the league feels can be a special one, and not just because of expected top pick Cooper Flagg.
That’s why this offseason has been so deliberate.
Drummond was never in the plans, Karnisovas had been eyeing Josh Giddey since last season, making Alex Caruso expendable, and having local product Matas Buzelis fall to them in the first round of the draft Wednesday was Christmas in June in their opinion.
The Bulls and forward Patrick Williams agreeing on a five-year extension, which happened late Saturday night, was always in the plans. It just came down to the cost, which was revealed to be $90 million.
On the surface, it’s a bit of a head-scratcher, considering Williams’ lack of availability through the first four years of his career, but when there’s a quick glance around the league at what three-and-D players are making, let alone 22-year-old three-and-D players, well, it’s not a stretch. And in two seasons, if the Bulls want to move on from Williams, his contract could be easy to move.
The immediate concern is if Williams will even be available when the 2024-25 season starts after undergoing foot surgery.
“I think so,” Karnisovas said. “We have to look at his schedule, but he was planning to be ready for training camp.”