Bulls mailbag: Josh Giddey's worth, potential starting lineups and more

The waiting in Chicago continues.

Not for the Bulls’ top executives, who received extensions earlier this summer. Not for coach Billy Donovan, who also agreed to an extension weeks later.

The elevator music is playing for Josh Giddey, Chicago’s 22-year-old point guard who has yet to agree on a new deal in a restricted free-agency stand-off that’s lasted much of the summer.

Beyond Giddey, the Bulls’ summer moves have been relatively marginal. As we await any forthcoming Giddey news, here are some mailbag responses to readers on a variety of Bulls questions. Consider this Part 1 of a two-part mailbag.

(Editor’s note: Some questions have been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.)

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What’s the single-best action from Bulls management that’ll lead you to believe there’s hope for the future? — Nil B.

A commitment to stripping any remnants of the last iteration of the Bulls is a start. I know that’s easier said than done with the apparent difficulty of trading Nikola Vučević, but a commitment to … (whispers) a rebuild … is the most convincing plea for the future. Not a retool, not a reevaluation. A complete teardown at the pinstripes down to the core of the franchise.

This next draft seems good. Really, really good. Kansas freshman Darryn Peterson looks like an easy franchise player. For all the shortcomings in asset management, asset acquisition and beyond, the draft feels like the safest way to rebuild the glory that’s long been missing. It tends to be, anyway.

That plan is a slower burn than it seems most Bulls fans are willing to wait for; they’ve already waited long enough. If you get a group of talented young players, it can be a beautiful, organic thing — so young that the egos aren’t towering over each other, that their innocence is funneled into winning and the brand, which in theory shouldn’t be difficult in Chicago.

But it has been. And finishing middle of the pack has left the Bulls’ staff to develop late lottery picks and, until February, coast behind the remnants of that 2021-22 team.

It’s difficult to tell the Bulls to go recoup assets when the ones they should be able to shop — Patrick Williams, Vučević — aren’t easily tradable right now. But a commitment to being younger through the draft and not through refurbishment of other teams’ recent lottery picks is a start, and it lessens the blow. Right Wrongs Avenue isn’t so distant from Madison.

Starting spots seem locked in for Giddey (let’s get this deal done please!), Coby, Matas and a center at this point. Which factors do you think will determine who starts in the remaining forward spot? Will it be influenced by whether the Bulls are fully sold on Matas as a four or open to him playing small forward (to the extent that positions still matter)? What odds would you assign to your top three candidates of getting the opening night start? — Autumn B.

If the Bulls are hoping to shape a defensive identity, it probably has to be Isaac Okoro at the wing with Matas Buzelis at the four. This is while acknowledging that the Bulls have a center issue, which is going to put a lot of its lineups on one leg anyway.

Even if there was a notable rim protector in Vučević’s place, relying on an anchor alone in this climate isn’t as feasible as it once was. There’s certainly no template for winning, but the Oklahoma City Thunder just grazed by the Indiana Pacers in June while deploying the best driver on Earth in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and more than a handful of freakish defenders — including a supreme rim protector in Chet Holmgren.

So, there’s work to do with the Bulls: Which brings us back to Okoro. His perimeter defense remains one of his most redeemable traits, even if his acquisition in Chicago is based on rejuvenating his youthful career. It gives him ample opportunity to turn into a real asset. And if it works out, it should benefit a budding Buzelis in theory: Okoro taking significant guard assignments, Buzelis taking forwards.

It would certainly allow Buzelis to play plenty at “power forward,” which feels like it should be the move in the interim. Okoro alongside him wouldn’t strip Buzelis of any opportunities to improve his ball skills. It allows him to tap into his defensive potential, with some ability to roam late in plays, and feels like the most feasible defensive lifestyle for the team at the moment.

Okoro can play in transition, which is important for this next iteration of the Bulls. He was solid enough as an open shooter last year, but he’ll be gapped given that he’s never been a high volume 3-point shooter.

Beyond Okoro, a push to rehab Williams’ value makes sense. The likelihood — of the push and of the success — is another story. But that’s a contract that needs TLC and, at the very least, cannot be left to rot with four seasons left on the deal. That plan would come at the expense of other players’ development. Okoro himself came to Chicago aiming to flip his reputation.

Kevin Huerter is another option who would allow the Bulls to lean into some fun offensive stuff and really embrace this new direction, but he wouldn’t be the defensive leap forward that executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas seems to be aiming for.

Then again, I imagine the hope is that Noa Essengue is worth starting at power forward for the sake of development later in the season, which would presumably slot Buzelis at the three and scribble over all this.

Decisions aren’t easy until Chicago finds a foundational big man. The roster seems composed of complementary or break-the-glass big men. Jalen Smith has promising tools, but he feels best next to another talented big, either as a stretch or as someone whose minutes he can supplement.

Coming from OKC, you have a unique perspective on Josh Giddey. You covered him as a starter prior to the trade; you also get to cover him as an integral part of a franchise where the roles are significantly different. Based on your experience, do you think Giddy has the skill set to, at minimum, be as good as Franz Wagner or the potential to be Cade Cunningham? — Leland M.

They’re all floating in different boats in such different directions that I don’t think a player comparison is the barometer I’d use. The healthiest way to view Giddey’s projection and development, to me, is to ask: What can he be for the Bulls now and can he lead a contender?

The Bulls are some zip codes away from contention. They’ve at least seemingly decided on a play style, leaning into transition and the kind of fast-paced play that launched the Pacers’ success. For that, Giddey is key. For his vitality in transition. For the playmaking, passing and floor mapping. For the positional size he offers (an important trait for the NBA’s reigning champion), even if people scoff at the idea that he’s yet to be a defensive asset.

For Chicago, Giddey is the engine that likely helps maximize the potential of Buzelis, Essengue and others. He’s the guard who’ll help enable a new direction. For this next window, he makes sense.

But as a contender? Giddey was once part of a team that, after dealing him for Alex Caruso and adding a complementary center and fiery defender in Isaiah Hartenstein, became champion. It’s probably true that Giddey’s path to success will always need to come with the ball in his hands, and for a contender, it seems he’s best suited as the first creator off the bench at this point in time. Thunder general manager Sam Presti was prepared to make such a change anyway, which is the only plausible direction when Gilgeous-Alexander is on the payroll.

If he develops a consistent jumper on a larger sample, including some off-the-dribble variety, Giddey feels like he’ll pretty comfortably live up to the value of a contract that adds up to $25 million annually.

If we’re going to use player comparisons, Cunningham is an All-NBA player, a three-level scorer and a playoff-leading engine. Those are lofty heights. Chicago should hope that Giddey develops into a fringe All-Star, or at least a player worth building a fast, gritty team around. One who accelerates the growth of young players like Buzelis.

Even if Giddey maxes out as a fine defender, if he can be a 6-foot-8 playmaker with some scoring gravity, it’s worth putting some shooting and defense around him and seeing what comes of it. It’s been hard for the Bulls to accrue similarly encouraging assets anyway.

Why are so many Bulls fans excited about paying Giddey? What do you think his actual worth is, and what winds up being the final offer? — William M.

I certainly haven’t seen anyone pleading for Chicago to give him $30 million annually. I think the fans in Giddey’s corner are hoping to keep a player they sense is improving, especially if the Bulls can secure him for $25 million or less. People just don’t want to lose an asset.

For what he is and what he’ll mean for this next iteration of the Bulls, the $20-25 million range feels fair, especially as the cap is expected to increase. On one hand, he’s yet to prove to be a ceiling raiser as a guy with the keys to an offense. But he also hasn’t had all the keys to this Chicago offense for more than half a season.

Getting $23 million annually for three years would be a pretty team-friendly deal. If it ends up closer to $25 million, Chicago can swallow that. If it’s closer to $20 million, Karnišovas should be grinning ear to ear.

Maybe you’re that one person who points out that Caruso, who Giddey was traded for, is making roughly $20 million annually, a good bargain as the most impactful perimeter defender for the NBA champions. But Oklahoma City and Chicago are facing two different realities.

The Bulls aren’t brimming with positive assets. You can’t be so firm in the negotiations that you risk losing one like Giddey, but you also can’t give into a supremely player-friendly deal when the asset wins haven’t exactly piled up and Giddey hasn’t totally proved yet to be worth placing a franchise in his hands.

A three-year deal allows both sides to safely explore their relationship.

(Top photo of Josh Giddey: Matt Marton / Imagn Images)