Lonzo Ball to the Chicago Bulls?
The New Orleans Pelicans have been trying to build a young, sustainable team that can contend for a playoff spot over the years, but they have not found much success during the regular season. Alvin Gentry was unable to get the job done, then Stan Van Gundy was unable to make anything of this Pelicans roster, so now it is former Suns assistant Willie Green’s turn to try and solve the puzzle in New Orleans.
With Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, plus the addition of Jonas Valanciunas, the Pelicans have a chance to build a special roster in free agency this offseason, but Lonzo Ball may not necessarily be a part of their plans. The young point guard came on strong last season for the Pelicans, averaging 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists while shooting 37.8% from three-point land.
Being an all-around playmaker has made Lonzo Ball a very intriguing free agent this offseason, even though the Pelicans have extended a qualifying offer to him, making the 23-year-old guard a restricted free agent. However, New Orleans may not exceed a certain price tag for Ball, as Shams Charania of The Athletic reported in early July that the Pelicans were unlikely to match a significant offer for the point guard.
Given his abilities to be a “swiss army knife” type of player, Lonzo Ball finds himself as one of the better guards available this offseason and he is likely going to have plenty of suitors. The Knicks have been a team linked to him for a while, as have the Indiana Pacers, but the Chicago Bulls seem to be narrowing in on him to be their next point guard as it’s been reported in rumors around the NBA.
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With Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, the Bulls seem like they are one piece away from potentially getting back to the playoffs and Coby White being out does not help their cause. White suffered a shoulder injury in the offseason and underwent surgery on June 10 to his left shoulder to repair a torn labrum, keeping him out for approximately 4-6 months.
Tomas Satoransky is the only other point guard under contract for the Bulls as of right now and his contract is only partially-guaranteed for $5M right now with the rest of his $10M contract becoming fully-guaranteed on August 3. Chicago needs a point guard and bringing in Lonzo Ball seems like it is getting more and more likely by the hour.
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Signing him to a $20M/year contract definitely seems like what is going to end up happening as of right now and this fit just makes sense. He is an all-around playmaker that can get things done on both ends of the court and he is the perfect player to mesh with LaVine and Vucevic as the third key talent in the Bulls offense.
New Orleans does have the ability to match any offer Lonzo Ball gets in free agency and they could potentially look to bring him back if they fail to bring in another big name free agent in the offseason, but the Chicago Bulls are clearly the “front-runners” to sign Ball sometime this week.
