The Chicago Bulls may be sitting on one of the cleanest routes to Bennedict Mathurin if the Los Angeles Clippers decide to play ball on a sign-and-trade.
That’s the crux of the latest reporting from Siegel, who pointed to Chicago as one of the easiest trade partners for Los Angeles to work with if Mathurin becomes available. Multiple teams have already shown interest, but the Bulls’ structure stands out because it gives the Clippers a relatively simple path to value.
“Multiple teams have registered a level of interest in Mathurin to this point,” Siegel wrote. “The New Orleans Pelicans, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks, and Dallas Mavericks are among those who have registered interest in the 24-year-old, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Sources say the Detroit Pistons had also inquired about Mathurin around the time of NBA Summer League but are not pursuing him.”
The Clippers, according to Siegel, wouldn’t be looking to do anyone favors here. If they move Mathurin in a sign-and-trade, they’d want real return, not just a courtesy deal to help another team out.
New Orleans was one of the other teams mentioned, but that path sounds far messier. Siegel wrote that the Pelicans would likely have to put Yves Missi, Saddiq Bey or Herb Jones into the deal for it to have any real appeal, and he called that outcome highly unlikely.
If those names stay out of the conversation, the return to Los Angeles would probably have to come through draft picks. On top of that, the Pelicans are only $8.2 million below the luxury tax line, so they’d probably need to clear salary somewhere else just to make the mechanics work.
Chicago’s setup is cleaner.
The Bulls still have their $9.3 million room mid-level exception, but Mathurin is expected to land closer to the full mid-level exception, around $15 million per year. That’s why Siegel sees a sign-and-trade as the most workable path. In his view, Chicago has the kind of package that could get the Clippers to actually bite.
“Giving up Isaac Okoro and some second-round picks would likely be enough to get the Clippers to sign off on a Mathurin sign-and-trade,” Siegel wrote. “This is definitely one of the smoothest and easiest paths to a deal for Los Angeles.”
The idea isn’t coming out of nowhere, either. Chicago was already linked to Mathurin before last season’s deadline, and that interest has carried into the team’s new basketball operations era.
There’s also a bigger Clippers wrinkle hanging over all of this. Mathurin’s status is tied to the unresolved Kawhi Leonard investigation and the expected trade that would send the franchise star back to the Toronto Raptors. Until the NBA clears up that situation, Los Angeles can’t fully chart its next move.
For now, though, if the Clippers decide Mathurin won’t be part of their future, Chicago appears to have the most practical sign-and-trade setup on the table.
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