The NBA trade deadline has come and gone, and while a bunch of teams around the league were active, the Chicago Bulls stood pat. Despite their mediocre season and lack of a real path forward, they decided to hold onto their assets instead of capitalizing on the value of the quality players they have on their roster.
A lot of Bulls drew serious trade interest at the deadline, too. Guys like DeMar DeRozan and Andre Drummond were obvious trade candidates, but Alex Caruso was by far the most desired player they could have made available. One team that showed a ton of interest in Caruso was the Golden State Warriors.
However, according to KC Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago, the Bulls wanted Jonathan Kuminga back in a deal, an idea that the Warriors “rebuffed.”
“In exploratory trade talks with the Golden State Warriors centered on Caruso, league sources said the Bulls inquired about Jonathan Kuminga’s availability,” Johnson wrote. “That was rebuffed, and the Bulls made clear in talks with all teams that they didn’t want to trade Caruso, especially for a package on perhaps other young pieces like Moses Moody, so they’d need to be floored by an offer to do so.”
It makes sense that the Bulls value Caruso highly, but this is probably the peak of his trade value. By not trading him now, the Bulls will have to consider moving him next year when hee’s on an expiring deal, and if they don’t, he could simply leave in 2025 free agency.
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