Bulls could steal Thunder’s budding star in crafty trade

The Chicago Bulls are expected to be very active this offseason, as they are teeming with cap space and own a pair of first-round draft picks.

Considering the Bulls have posted just one winning season over the last decade, they absolutely should be desperate to make some moves, and new top executive Bryson Graham might be just the man for the job.

Chicago could make some big plays in free agency, but it also could swing a significant trade with the assets it has at its disposal. The question is, who should the Bulls pursue? They have so many needs up and down their roster, so it’s difficult to pinpoint one area they should target specifically.

Well, perhaps Chicago should just simply go after good players, and Andrew Hanlon of Pippen Ain’t Easy has identified a very intriguing potential trade target for the club: Oklahoma City Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell.

Chicago Bulls linked to trade for Ajay Mitchell

The Bulls could absolutely use a young, talented player in their backcourt, and given the Thunder’s financial crunch, Mitchell could represent a realistic possibility.

“[Sam] Presti may choose to keep Mitchell and instead sell high on [Cason] Wallace, [Lu] Dort or even Jalen Williams. But Chicago’s new head of basketball operations Bryson Graham could — and arguably should — make Presti an offer he can’t refuse,” Hanlon wrote.

There is a whole lot to like about Mitchell.

The 23-year-old averaged 13.6 points, 3.6 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals over 25.8 minutes per game this season, shooting 48.5 percent from the floor, 34.7 percent from three-point range and 87 percent from the free-throw line. It should be noted that he achieved most of that in a bench role.

Mitchell is also a terrific, versatile defender, which is something Chicago badly needs.

The former second-round pick is under team control through 2027-28, with that final year featuring an infinitely affordable $2.85 million club option. For a player of Mitchell’s ability, that is an absolutely massive bargain.

Of course, taking all of that into consideration, the price to acquire Mitchell may be a bit high, so the Bulls would have to be careful. But if the Thunder do make him available, Chicago should at least check in to see what the cost would be.

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