The Bulls missed out on two names that had been hanging around their rumor mill, but that doesn’t mean the door is shut on using those situations to their advantage.
Bennedict Mathurin, who had been tied to Chicago for weeks, reportedly landed a two-year deal with the New Orleans Pelicans. Jonathan Kuminga, a late arrival to the Bulls chatter, also came off the board, agreeing to a two-year contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves. For a rebuilding Bulls team with an open roster spot, that looked like a lost chance on the surface.
But there’s a bigger layer here. If Chicago truly wanted to beat the offers Mathurin and Kuminga got, it had the room to do it.
The Bulls also could have pushed harder with a player option, since both players accepted that kind of setup on their new deals. Instead, everything points to a front office that is being deliberate about preserving flexibility.
That’s been the early theme under Bryson Graham. He’s working from scratch and keeping as many tools available as possible, especially after adding team options for Norman Powell and Zach Collins. The message so far is clear: he’s not going to spend or commit just to spend or commit.
And that restraint could still pay off.
New Orleans is in a tight spot after signing Mathurin. The Pelicans are only a couple of million below the luxury tax line and are already over the 15-player limit.
Reports have been pointing for months to a possible move away from Jordan Hawkins, who is owed a little over $7.0 million this season and has not developed into the high-volume knockdown shooter the Pelicans expected. Chicago could make sense as a landing spot because Hawkins’ salary fits cleanly into the Bulls’ remaining room exception, which is $9.4 million.
The contract is also expiring, so Graham wouldn’t be taking on any long-term baggage. There’s another wrinkle, too: Graham was in the Pelicans’ front office when Hawkins went No. 14 overall in 2023. He was a primary voice there at the time and was praised for his evaluation skills, so there’s at least a built-in connection.
Hawkins also wouldn’t be a pure dead-end addition. He hasn’t become the scoring threat many projected out of UConn, but he still has a smooth outside shot, and that kind of floor spacing could help a forward-heavy Bulls roster.
That said, Chicago shouldn’t take him just to do New Orleans a favor. The entire point would be to extract value from the Pelicans if they need to clear the money. A protected first-rounder feels like a stretch, but the Bulls could at least push for second-round value in return.
Minnesota brings a different kind of pressure. Keith Smith of Spotrac reported that Kuminga’s contract will trigger a second apron hard cap, which means the Timberwolves have to trim salary. They also need to get to 14 guaranteed contracts, and right now they would sit at 13 after signing him, so they’d need room for a veteran minimum player as well.
Josh Green has been the most frequently mentioned salary-dump candidate. Still, the Timberwolves also have the option of moving Terrence Shannon Jr. or Joan Beringer, both of whom could make sense for a Bulls team trying to build a tougher, more athletic identity.
Shannon Jr. may be the most realistic target and fits that hard-nosed profile. Beringer would be the dream swing - a 19-year-old seven-footer taken No. 17 in the 2025 NBA Draft who could become a real piece at center.
But that feels unlikely in this setup. Green is probably the preferred trade chip for Minnesota, though his $14.7 million salary makes the math harder for Chicago unless the Bulls move money of their own and get a serious incentive to do it.
That’s the kind of opening Graham has been waiting for. There haven’t been many chances this summer for teams to dump salary and attach draft capital, but that can change fast once front offices start thinking ahead to the 2026-27 season. When that happens, Chicago may finally get the kind of leverage it’s been waiting for.
In Other News...
Josh Giddey Just Became The Bulls' Most Complicated Fit
Josh Giddey gave the Bulls exactly the kind of production that can make a front office believe it has found a centerpiece. In his first season in Chicago, he put up 17.0 points and 9.1 assists per game while also improving his three-point shooting after the move, showing a more complete version of the playmaker the team bet on. For a club that has been searching for order and structure in its offense, that kind of growth matters.
The trick now is that Chicagos roster is changing around him. With a starting group that features young pieces like Matas Buzelis and Caleb Wilson, plus Norman Powell and Nic Claxton, the Bulls are building a setup that does not necessarily need Giddey to initiate everything, and his fit becomes more complicated as the offense evolves. His defensive and offensive numbers suggest there are still real questions to answer, which is why the next stretch will say a lot about how flexible Giddey can be in a role that may ask for less of the ball and more of everything else. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Interest In Jonathan Kuminga Reveals Chicago's Real Price Limit
Jonathan Kumingas decision to sign with Minnesota landed with a familiar subtext for the Bulls: interest is one thing, but Chicago still has a line it will not cross. The Bulls were among the teams linked to Kuminga, along with the Lakers and Trail Blazers, and they had also shown interest in Bennedict Mathurin as part of a broader search for young talent that could fit into the roster. But when it came time to make a serious push, Chicago apparently stopped short of the kind of bid that would have changed the conversation.
That matters because the Bulls have had room to maneuver and still have not treated every target as an all-in pursuit. Even with an open roster spot and competition from other teams, they did not get to the price level those players were seeking, which says a lot about how Chicago is weighing its next move. The front office clearly sees the value in adding upside, but it also seems unwilling to chase it at any cost. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls May Have Avoided A Move Fans Would Already Regret
With an open roster spot and the mid-level exception still available, the Bulls had a real chance to get involved when Bennedict Mathurin hit the market. Chicago passed, weighing whether his game would mesh with what the roster needs right now, and the hesitation was rooted in more than just price. The front office was looking at how his offensive profile would fit alongside the pieces already in place.
Mathurins new deal with the New Orleans Pelicans closes the door on that possibility, and it also gives some context to why the Bulls stayed away. His shooting has been a concern, and his score-first style did not line up neatly with Chicagos current priorities. For a team that still has flexibility to make a move, the decision to hold back says plenty about how carefully it is trying to use that flexibility. [Read more 🡒]