Tag: Nikola Vucevic

Former USC big man Nikola Vucevic could soon leave Bulls

Nikola Vucevic could join DeMar DeRozan in leaving Chicago.

Former USC Trojan power forward/center Nikola Vucevic is still looking to be trade by the Chicago Bulls this off-season per Alex Kirschenbaum of Sports Illustrated 

According to Jamal Collier of ESPN, Bulls general manager Marc Eversley is aware Chicago is pivoting toward a youth movement — and Vucevic and LaVine may not be major parts of that.

“The difference is we’re much younger,” team general manager Marc Eversley told Collier. “Not that it’s not about Zach or [Vucevic] anymore, but we’re giving these young guys an opportunity to see how much they can grow.”

Vucevic was named a participant in Goran Dragic’s farewell game this summer in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The longtime NBA guard has called it a career. Dragic, a former NBA All-Star, was joined on the court by Dirk Nowitzki, Luka Doncic, Luis Scola, Robin Lopez, Leandro Barbosa, Nikola Jokic, Steve Nash and Chris Bosh.

“The Night of the Dragon” took place at Stozice Arena in Ljubljana, Slovenia on August 24.

Vucevic is still signed to the Chicago Bulls for three more years. The veteran center averaged 18 points and 10.5 rebounds through 76 games last season.

The former 16th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft was a three time All-Pac 10 selection for the USC Trojans and has had a stellar NBA career. No trade has happened as of yet but major discussion has taken place. If “Vuce” isn’t traded, he will provided much-needed post scoring and rebounding for the Bulls, who have one of the youngest rosters in the NBA after losing Alex Caruso and DeMar Derozan this offseason.

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Nikola Vucevic’s days might be numbered as a Chicago Bull

One former USC Trojan could join another in leaving Chicago.

Nikola Vucevic and his national team Montenegro did not advance past the group stage in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Riga, Latvia, for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Now he can focus on his summer with the Chicago Bulls — or more than likely, without them — as he is projected to get traded before the season. The Bulls look to rebuild their roster, which might mean that “Vooch” will join former USC basketballer DeMar DeRozan in leaving Chicago.

The Chicago Bulls picked Matas Buzelis in round one of the 2024 NBA draft. They acquired former Oklahoma City Thunder guard Josh Giddey in late June, parting ways with Alex Caruso and also trading DeMar DeRozan. The 6-10 Vučević has two years left on his Bulls contract and had this to say about the Bulls last season:

“I think we do have enough on this team to have a better result. For whatever reason, we are not able to do it. We have the talent, we have the players who can do it. The problem is we just haven’t been able to put it together consistency to be able to do it like we need to to be a good team. We show flashes here and there, we do it for a couple of games and then it kind of goes away. That’s been our issue, something to be fixed.”

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NBA draft rewind: Sixers select Nikola Vucevic No. 16 overall in 2011

The Philadelphia 76ers selected USC big man Nikola Vucevic with the No. 16 pick in the 2011 NBA draft.

With the 2024 NBA draft approaching quickly–Round 1 of the draft is set for June 26–now is the time to look back at some of the previous draft picks the Philadelphia 76ers have made in recent years.

The Sixers entered the 2011 NBA draft looking to continue to add to their crop of talent. Philadelphia made a run to the playoffs in the 2010-11 season before coming up short to the Miami Heat in Round 1 in five games.

With the 16th pick in the draft, the Sixers went big. They selected Nikola Vucevic out of USC who was a skilled big man who could do it all. In his only season in Philadelphia, Vucevic averaged 5.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks while shooting 45% from the floor. He played in 51 games, starting 15 of them.

In the 2012 offseason, Vucevic was traded to the Orlando Magic in the big Andrew Bynum 4-team blockbuster deal. He blossomed into an All-Star in his nine seasons with the Magic and is now with the Chicago Bulls who acquired him in 2021.

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Check out Nikola Vucevic’s best highlights of the 2023-24 Bulls season

Here are some of Nikola Vucevic’s best highlights from the 2023-24 Chicago Bulls season.

The Chicago Bulls had a very mediocre 2023-24 season. After missing the playoffs the season prior, they wanted to continue to push forward. And while they began the year on a rough note, they turned things around a bit, finishing the regular season in the Play-In Tournament, where they eventually lost to the Miami Heat (for the second year in a row).

One guy who had a fairly subpar season based on his standards was big man Nikola Vucevic. The Chicago center averaged a double-double again, and he had some bright spots, but compared to his past seasons, he just wasn’t the same player.

That said, he still had his fair share of highlights. The Bulls’ official YouTube channel recently posted a video of Vucevic’s best highlights from the 2023-24 season.

This year, Vucevic averaged 18.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 48.4% from the floor and a disappointing 29.4% from behind the three-point line.

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Would a Nikola Vucevic-Warriors trade make sense for the Bulls?

Would a Nikola Vucevic-Golden State Warriors trade make sense for the Chicago Bulls?

The Chicago Bulls need to figure out how they want to approach the 2024 offseason. For the past few years, they’ve tried to push forward toward the playoffs, but it makes more sense for them to tear things down and plan for the future. Whether or not they will do it is another question.

That said, if they decide to begin a new rebuild, they would have to consider trading all of their stars. One of those guys is big man Nikola Vucevic, who the Bulls just re-signed last offseason. A team that could potentially be interested is the Golden State Warriors.

Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report suggested a mock deal that would send Vucevic to Golden State, and the Chicago Bulls Central YouTube channel discussed the idea.

Vucevic’s presence in the Warriors’ frontcourt would be solid, but what would Golden State send back that the Bulls would want in return?

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Could we see Nikola Vucevic traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, or Brandom Ingram to the Chicago Bulls?

A pair of especially intriguing trade ideas have been making the rounds of late.

Could we see Chicago Bulls big man Nikola Vucevic traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, or Brandon Ingram to the Chicago Bulls? With the NBA’s 2024 offseason officially here in full force, the near-constant flow of trade ideas for teams now out of (and sometimes in) the playoffs are ubiquitous.

And for good reason, as your favorite league analysts do their best to prognosticate what moves their favorite teams could be making based on the intel making the rounds behind the scenes. In the case of the Bulls, a pair of especially intriguing trade ideas have been making the rounds of late.

And while there may not yet be fire to this smoke, in some corners there is the belief that there ought to be.

The hosts of the “Locked On Bulls” podcast, Haize and Pat the Designer, took a look at each proposal on a recent show. Check their response out for yourself in the clip embedded above.

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Mock trade sees Bulls send Nikola Vucevic, Alex Caruso to Warriors

This mock trade would see the Chicago Bulls send Nikola Vucevic and Alex Caruso to the Golden State Warriors.

The Chicago Bulls are heading into a very important offseason. They could choose to tear down the roster and plan for the future, or they could look to reshape things a bit and remain competitive. Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report proposed a mock deal that would send Nikola Vucevic and Alex Caruso to the Golden State Warriors for Andrew Wiggins, the 52nd pick, and a 2026 first-round pick (top-four protected).

“At his end-of-season press conference, Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas acknowledged the need for roster changes,” Buckley wrote. “But before fans could even entertain the possibility of the franchise finally resetting, Karnišovas made clear, “I’m thinking about winning.” Chicago doesn’t sound remotely interested in rebuilding this offseason, but why not? DeMar DeRozan is entering unrestricted free agency. Zach LaVine is already on the trade block. Conditions are perfect for a clean break.

“The Bulls maybe wouldn’t tear things down to the ground—they’ll want to have some talent around breakout star Coby White—but they could turn over the veteran core. Here, turning Vučević and Caruso into Wiggins, a second-round pick and a future first-rounder hurts a little for now but carries the promise of a much better future.”

It feels like the Bulls should be able to get better value for Vucevic and Caruso than this.

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New trade proposal would send Chicago Bulls’ Nikola Vucevic to Memphis Grizzlies for wing depth

Would both parties pull the trigger on this hypothetical swap?

A Bleacher Report new trade proposal would send veteran Chicago Bulls big man Nikola Vucevic to Memphis Grizzlies for wing depth. The deal, cooked up by B/R league analyst Andy Bailey, would send Vooch to Memphis for sharpshooting 2 guard Luke Kennard and backup forward Ziaire Williams.

Pointing to the fact that while it might have been helpful for the Griz’ Jaren Jackson Jr. to have tried playing the 4 with center Stephen Adams out, it became clear he is more of a power forward in Bailey’s estimation. “He’s also more effective defensively when a burlier big takes the post presence while he’s allowed to roam,” writes the author.

Vooch “doesn’t check the defensive boxes the way Adams does, but he is more functionally a 5 than JJJ,” he adds.

“Having a starting five with two shooting bigs—Vooch made a respectable 35.9% of his triples over the three seasons prior to this one—could give Morant wider driving lanes than he’s ever seen,” writes Bailey.

“This price may seem steep, but losing Kennard stings less when you consider the ascension of Vince Williams Jr. and GG Jackson. And Ziaire Williams is effectively the functional equivalent of including a second-round pick in the deal.”

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Should the Chicago Bulls rip off the band-aid and trade away everyone?

How hard should the front office go in reimagining this roster?

The Chicago Bulls‘ front office has finally woken up to the fact that major changes are needed if this ball club is going to compete in future seasons. But there are plenty worried that the execs might not go far enough in retooling the roster. Should the Bulls rip off the band-aid and trade away everyone?

It goes without saying that the Bulls need to move on from injured guard Lonzo Ball, often-injured combo guard Zach LaVine, and aging big man Nikola Vucevic. But what about players like found gold reserve guard Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu? Are they off the table in terms of tradeable players?

How hard should the front office go in reimagining this roster? The hosts of the “CHGO Bulls” podcast took a closer look at the range of possibility on a recent episode.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear their thoughts on how Chicago should be approaching this rebuild.

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Why the Chicago Bulls will not be able to trade Nikola Vucevic

And odd as it might sound, Chicago might have the hardest time getting off of Vooch’s deal.

The Chicago Bulls are now (finally, thank goodness) in the middle of a rebuild that will see them have to trade away some of their older veterans. This likely means that the Bulls’ front office will need to get off of the contracts of star combo guard Zach LaVine, injured floor general Lonzo Ball, and aging big man Nikola Vucevic.

And odd as it might sound, Chicago might have the hardest time getting off of Vooch’s deal given the years and his current, not ideal level of play. With Ball an expiring contract and LaVine still a solid player even at his high price point, Vucevic may be the toughest deal to move to another ball club’s cap sheet this offseason.

The folks behind the “Bulls Central” YouTube channel took a closer look at how hard it might be to trade away the Chicago big man on a recent episode.

Check it out above!

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