Chicago Bulls Should Trade Taj Gibson

The Chicago Bulls have done what was needed in free agency so far, re-signing Aaron Brooks, Mike Dunleavy to a 3-year deal and—more importantly—getting Jimmy Butler back on a 5-year max contract. With very little wiggle room—the Bulls only have the mini-midlevel exception left for free agency—is it reasonable to expect power forward Taj Gibson to be traded? Gibson will be coming off surgery for next season, but his value is steady across the league. With Gibson you get a high-energy, long-armed, defensive-focused power forward who can be the first option off the bench or start on almost any NBA team.

Here’s why it makes sense: the Bulls have a frontcourt that is more crowded than I-90 during rush hour. Nikola Mirotic has emerged as a legitimate threat on the offensive side of the ball, Bobby Portis got drafted to be a high-energy guy, Pau Gasol played All-Star basketball last year, and while Joakim Noah struggled mightily in 2015, his veteran leadership and passion will be too hard for the Bulls to give up. Gibson’s contract is reasonable—he will make $8.5 million next year, and $8.95 million the year after that—and he has a lot to offer a team that has an inexperienced front court like, say, the Los Angeles Lakers.

Here are two possible trades:

Trade One: Chicago Bulls trade Taj Gibson to the Los Angeles Lakers for Nick Young.

The Bulls send Taj Gibson over to the Lakers for Nick Young. This trade makes sense for a couple of reasons. The first reason is the Bulls need wing depth outside of the unproven Doug McDermott and Tony Snell. Nick Young can be a bit erratic, but he knows how to shoot from deep (38% career 3-point shooter), and he gives the second unit a backcourt scorer. The second reason it makes sense for management is that it unloads a bit of salary. Nick Young will make a bit over $5 million over the next few years, but that still takes roughly $3 million off the Bulls’ plate, which means they won’t have to pay as much in the luxury tax. The Bulls need to upgrade the wing and this gives them one way to do it. The Bulls may not be fond of the idea of parting with Gibson, but for a team trying to win a championship they need better scoring on the second unit.

Trade Two: Chicago Bulls trade Gibson and Kirk Hinrich to the Los Angeles Clippers for Jamal Crawford and Jordan Hamilton.

This helps the Bulls shed even more salary and still upgrade their team overall. Kirk Hinrich is not good at basketball anymore, but he is still a point guard that could spell Chris Paul for 10 minutes a game and play smart basketball. That’s a better option than anyone else the Clippers have. Taj Gibson gives the Clippers a big man they desperately need, as he is capable of guarding centers and was even a more stout defender than DeAndre Jordan last year. Hinrich’s $2.85 million salary combined with Gibson’s $8.5 million unloads $11.35 million in cap space for the Bulls while bringing in Crawford ($5.675 million) and Hamilton (~$1.15 million) adds only ~$6.82 million. This brings the Bulls cap down to ~$83.4 million causing them to pay less in the luxury tax. Unloading E’Twaun Moore and Cameron Bairstow’s non-guaranteed contracts gets them below the luxury tax line in this scenario. Jamal Crawford steps in as a combo guard with the size the Bulls desperately need, as well as a 3-point threat. Hamilton also serves as a 3-point threat capable of stepping up if Tony Snell does not improve.

Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Am I just a h8r who sits behind a computer screen? Let me know in the comments below.

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Author: Rob Wegley

Co-Owner of The Runner Sports, Senior Editor for The Runner Sports, Writer for The Runner Sports focused on the NFL and the NBA. Located in the Chicago area. Professional journalist since 2012.

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