On June 21, The Chicago Bulls traded Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Josh Giddey. Caruso, one of the elite perimeter defenders in the NBA, joins a Thunder team that finished as the 1 seed in the regular season last year and already has one of the best perimeter defences in the league, ranking #1 in creating turnovers in the 2023-2024 season. The Bulls are acquiring a 21-year old ball dominant playmaker who, according to Thunder GM Sam Presti, was not on board with coming off the bench and asked to be traded.



 

What this Means for the Bulls

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This trade may perhaps finally signal a rebuild for the Bulls. Whether the rebuild is intentional or not, the Bulls seem to be headed towards a transitionary period and are not expected to be a playoff team at this time. The future of Demar DeRozan with the Chicago Bulls is increasingly more in question. Giddey, who is in the final year of his contract, was acquired to be a main facilitator on offence and the Bulls, one would imagine, have every intention of signing him to an extended contract beginning in 2025-2026. The fit with Giddey and DeRozan in the starting lineup is not ideal. The skillset of Josh Giddey is best complimented by surrounding him with off-ball shooters, specifically from the 3-point line to space the floor. It is also reasonable to question the futures of Zach Lavine and Lonzo Ball in Chicago. The fit with Giddey and Lavine is not ideal as both at this stage are non-defenders and operate best with the ball in their hands. The backcourt of Josh Giddey and Coby White will be mainly responsible for making plays on the offensive end. Ball, who is recovering from a long-term injury, may return to the Bulls in a bench role. But if he can return to the level he was at before or close to it, he may inquire about potential options where can start. He is a UFA in 2025-2026. 



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What this Means for the Thunder

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One of the best teams in the Western Conference just got better. The Thunder replace Giddey, who was at times benched, notably in the series with the Mavericks, with Caruso, one of the NBA’s most coveted role players. Caruso shot 40.8% from 3-pt range last season which will help to space the floor. Caruso can slot right in to the Thunder’s starting lineup and add to their defensive identity built effort, tenacity and quickness, especially on the perimeter, and they have an elite shot blocker in Chet Holmgren at the rim. The Thunder may still look to add more size to their roster as they were a bottom 5 rebounding team in the league in both the regular season and playoffs. The Thunder have just over $103 million on the books right now so they’ve got some got some room financially ($141 million is the cap maximum) and a lot of assets to go and perhaps acquire a bigger wing, which may push caruso or someone else to the bench.

 

Bottom Line

 

The Thunder were able to improve the dynamic of their team and did not have to trade any draft picks to do so. Thunder fans will generally be feeling good about this one. This trade may be good for the Bulls as well. Time will tell. They are betting on a 21 Josh Giddey to take some leaps in his development and develop into a key player for this Bulls team. He has shown upside particularly with his excellent court vision/passing ability as well as his size at the guard position. This was the first of many transactions to come as we head towards draft night and the offseason. 

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Published June 24, 2024.