The Chicago Bulls were one of the most aggressive teams this NBA offseason when it came to adding new players to the roster. One of the first moves that were made in free agency was Chicago landing point guard Lonzo Ball.
Ball was a restricted free agent of the New Orleans Pelicans. There were reports that they would not match his significant offer sheets, but once they cleared cap space in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies, people’s tunes changed.
The Pelicans wanted to add veteran point guard Kyle Lowry to the team. But, it became clear early on that Lowry would be heading to the Miami Heat. At least New Orleans now had the space to match any offer sheet Ball would receive.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Pelicans decided not to match the offer sheet. Instead, they agreed to a sign-and-trade deal with the Chicago Bulls, who sent Tomas Satoransky, Garrett Temple, and a future second-round pick to New Orleans in exchange for Ball.
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The former UCLA product signed a four-year, $85 million deal to become the new starting point guard in the Windy City. The point guard position was the one that Chicago’s front office pinpointed as needing to be upgraded and they aggressively pursued the player they thought would accomplish that in Ball.
A lot of people are excited to see what Ball can do with the supporting cast that the Bulls have. Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic are two All-Star teammates. DeMar DeRozan was another big free-agent acquisition by the Chicago Bulls via sign-and-trade and Patrick Williams has a ton of upside as the No. 4 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
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One scout who talked to NBA Analysis Network’s own Evan Massey is also bullish on Ball heading into his first season with the Bulls.
“The improvement that Lonzo (Ball) made last season with the Pelicans was impressive. His fit as a rising shooter alongside LaVine, Vucevic, and DeRozan will be perfect. I’m expecting another massive jump from him this season.”
Ball had the best shooting season of his career with a split of .414/.378/.781, resulting in an effective field goal percentage of 53.7 percent and a true shooting percentage of 55.1 percent.
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The Chicago Bulls are going to certainly need more of that this upcoming season to help stretch the floor for their go-to scorers to operate. A lot of the skepticism surrounding their potential starting five would dissipate with Ball taking another leap forward with his shooting percentages.
