The Bulls are headed into next season with a rebuilding plan that actually points somewhere. Chicago wants to build around Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis, while also taking swings on decent assets. Nicolas Claxton fits that mold, and Josh Giddey could be the piece that helps him rebuild his value.
Claxton was once viewed as one of the league’s promising defenders. Back when he was with the Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden-led Brooklyn Nets, he looked like a player with real upside.
That hasn’t held steady. His game has slipped since then, and when Chicago traded for him this summer, it was essentially a low-cost bet.
Right now, he is not exactly carrying strong trade value.
That’s where Giddey comes in.
Defense is still Claxton’s calling card. If he’s going to stay on the floor, he has to keep doing the work on that end.
But he also needs to be efficient enough offensively to matter. Last season, he was fine on offense, especially as a playmaker, but the fit around him wasn’t ideal.
Brooklyn didn’t have the kind of ball-handlers who could consistently stress defenses. It also lacked the sort of creators who could pull attention away and open space for Claxton to operate.
That matters for a player like him, because he’s not the one generating the gravity. He works off it.
With Giddey, that changes. He’s one of the better playmakers in the game, and his passing gives Chicago a real chance to put Claxton in better positions. Bigs need a point guard, or at least a high-level offensive creator, and Claxton hasn’t really had that in Brooklyn over the last couple of years while the Nets rebuilt.
Now he gets a different setup. The Bulls’ new look should give him more room to settle into the offense, and Giddey is the biggest reason why. His elite passing should help Claxton do more on that end, and if that happens, his value around the league should rise with it.
It’s a much better spot for Claxton.
In Other News...
Bulls May Have A New Opening To Revisit Bennedict Mathurin
Bennedict Mathurins market still has room to move, and that matters for the Bulls as the calendar turns toward training camp. The Indiana guard remains a restricted free agent, which keeps the door open for a handful of teams to test whether the price and the fit line up. For Chicago, the appeal is straightforward: Mathurin is young, productive, and the kind of scorer who could make sense if the front office decides to keep looking for another perimeter jolt.
The wrinkle is that this is not the kind of pursuit the Bulls can just monitor from afar. Any real path would likely require more maneuvering than a simple offer sheet, and the cost would have to stay within reason for Chicago to stay involved. With the market still unsettled and outside factors continuing to shape Mathurins leverage, the Bulls may have a fresh opening to revisit the idea, but the situation is far from settled. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Add Another Key Piece To Tiago Splitters New Staff
The Bulls kept building out Tiago Splitters first staff this week by bringing in Jordan Brink, a former Knicks assistant, to serve as both an assistant coach and director of player development. It is another move aimed at giving Splitter a blended group of new and familiar voices as Chicago puts its next coaching setup in place.
Brinks arrival also adds a little extra intrigue to the calendar, especially with the Bulls newly released 2026-27 schedule set to include games against New York. For Chicago, the hire fits the broader effort to stabilize the sideline and sharpen player growth at the same time, with Splitter continuing to assemble the kind of support system that can influence both day-to-day work and the long view. [Read more 🡒]