When the Chicago Bulls acquired Nikola Vucevic in 2021, he was an elite post scorer and rebounder who didn't offer much on defense. Four years on, and that's still exactly what he is. It turns out, in this day and age of basketball, a guy that is essentially a pylon defensively but has a deep bag of post moves is not conducive to winning.
In the four years before he was traded from the Orlando Magic, he averaged 17.9 points and 10.7 rebounds. In his four full years with Chicago, he has gone for, you guessed it, exactly 17.9 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. He's done what he was expected to do, and that hasn't been enough.
The Bulls have already moved the rest of the veteran superteam Vucevic was supposed to be apart of, so it would seem his time might be coming. The two-time All-Star seems to see the writing on the wall as well, though he did acknowledge that Chicago has built a promising young roster.
"Obviously I'm at a stage in my career where I'm trying to win now. And play in the playoffs, and deep playoff runs and things like that. So, we'll see. But I believe there are pieces here that we can build upon. With this young team it does take time, but it all depends on what their timeline is and how they see this team."
Nikola Vucevic says he's at the stage of his career where he wants to "win now" and make deep playoff runs. pic.twitter.com/TEXc8P7Q9O
— Bulls on CHSN (@CHSN_Bulls) April 17, 2025
Vucevic signed a three-year, $60 million deal with the Bulls in 2023 which ends in 2026. That means they have a bit of leverage if they do decide to trade him, as he's on contract for at least two more seasons.
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However, with his limited athleticism, it remains to be seen if any contending teams would look on him favorably as a possible starting center. He can still score the ball like nobody's business, but his inability to defend will be an issue in finding a trade partner.
Meanwhile, the Bulls actually have bigger fish to fry. Josh Giddey will be a restricted free agent soon, and he's looking for an new deal that's probably worth around $40 million a year. A Coby White extension also needs to be worked out by Chicago's front office.
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