The Chicago Bulls have already made one of the stranger early moves of their offseason, and it came at a time when every roster spot matters.
Instead of holding onto the two second-round selections they entered the NBA Draft with, the Bulls shipped both away. No. 56 went to the Los Angeles Lakers for cash, and No. 38 was dealt to the Indiana Pacers. For a team in a rebuilding phase, and for a front office led by Bryson Graham, that decision turned plenty of heads.
There was at least one piece of player value attached to the No. 38 deal. In addition to the second-round pick swap and cash, Chicago received Kam Jones.
Jones, a former Marquette standout, was the No. 38 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and played in 37 games for the Pacers. At the time, it looked like Graham may have preferred Jones over the remaining players available in that range.
That assumption didn’t hold for long. A week later, Graham still wasn’t willing to say Jones was part of the Bulls’ long-term picture.
A few days after that, Chicago moved on entirely. Because Jones was on a non-guaranteed contract, the Bulls were able to waive him before free agency for a little more than $1.0 million.
It’s not a move that helps the team’s image. The Bulls have spent years taking heat for selling off second-round picks, and this latest decision has the same familiar feel, even with a new group running the front office.
But there’s still plenty of offseason left, and the Bulls do get something practical out of the move: another roster spot. That matters with free agency underway, especially for a team that has both cap room and flexibility to work with.
Chicago now has 12 guaranteed contracts on the books for 2026-27, leaving three openings to fill. The next question is obvious: who do they target, and can they use one of those spots to help pull off a salary dump and bring back future assets?
The Bulls are in a full rebuild, so the work isn’t close to finished. Graham still has to prove the open roster spot was worth preserving.
While Jones is out, Leonard Miller is staying put.
Miller entered the offseason with a similar non-guaranteed arrangement, but the Bulls appear to have picked up his team option. That fits with the way he closed 2025-26. The 22-year-old forward found a bigger role and made the most of it, putting together the best stretch of his career.
Over 27 games with Chicago after arriving from the Timberwolves, Miller averaged 11.7 points and 5.8 rebounds. He also showed real promise as a three-point shooter and gave the Bulls stronger defense than many expected.
Minutes may not come easy with the team’s forward depth, but Miller showed enough to earn his place. Chicago now has another young developmental piece to work with.
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