The Chicago Bulls are at a crossroads, and the front office knows it. According to league sources, the team has internally discussed the possibility of trading for Mavericks big man Anthony Davis-a move that would signal a dramatic shift in direction for a franchise still trying to find its identity.
Davis, despite his injury history, is seen as a potential fix for the Bulls’ glaring issues on the defensive end, particularly inside. But here’s the catch: Chicago isn’t ready to mortgage its young core unless the team proves it’s on the brink of real contention.
“I don’t think going out and chasing X megastar is the way to proceed - at least today,” one source close to the situation said.
It’s a cautious approach, but the Bulls do have the assets to make something big happen. They control their own first-round picks for the next seven years, plus they hold a top-14 protected 2026 first-rounder from Portland. Add to that the potential for nearly $70 million in cap space next summer, and you’ve got a team with flexibility and options-two things that are hard to come by in today’s NBA.
The Davis speculation comes amid a rough start for Dallas, who’ve stumbled to a 6-15 record. Rookie forward Cooper Flagg has emerged as a potential cornerstone, and there’s growing chatter that the Mavericks might lean into a youth movement.
That could make Davis available-though any deal involving him comes with serious risk. He’s only played six games this season, recently returning from a left calf strain, and his contract is as hefty as his injury history.
For the Bulls, these trade talks are just one layer of a bigger story: what happened after their hot 6-1 start? Now sitting at 9-10, the momentum from October has cooled, and questions are starting to mount.
Coach Billy Donovan had the team playing with pace early on, drawing inspiration from the Indiana Pacers’ Finals run last season. But as the league adjusted, so did the results.
“That’s who we have to be,” Donovan said. “We have to be better than the sum of our parts.
… Everybody sees Indiana play, and the thing that everybody goes to right away is oh, their pace, their pace, their pace. The one thing that Indiana probably doesn’t get enough credit for is yes, they play really, really fast and (Tyrese) Haliburton’s a unique playmaker back there, but the physicality of those guys defensively is where our evolution has to continue.”
That evolution is still a work in progress. The Bulls are trying to replicate Indiana’s blueprint, but they don’t have a Haliburton-Siakam duo to lean on-at least not yet.
Josh Giddey, acquired from Oklahoma City before last season, has been handed the keys to the offense in a similar role to Haliburton. But even internally, there are questions about whether the supporting cast is strong enough to take the next step.
“They have Haliburton, who is an All-Star, and they have Siakam,” a Bulls source said. “If Giddey can develop into an All-Star and be what Hali was, when do we pull the trigger to get our Siakam?”
That’s the million-dollar question in Chicago right now. The Bulls have a young core they believe in-Giddey, Coby White, Matas Buzelis, and 2025 first-round pick Noa Essengue.
Essengue, who just made his season debut on November 22, is still just 18 and being brought along slowly. But the vision is clear: build around this group, and be ready to strike when the time is right.
So while the Anthony Davis rumors are swirling, don’t expect the Bulls to rush into anything. They’re playing the long game, and unless the right opportunity comes along-one that doesn’t compromise their future-they’re content to keep building brick by brick.
The foundation is there. Now it’s about finding the right moment to go all-in.