2022-2023 SEASON Current team salary is $126,608,717 and we are $5,264,417 over the cap. There are eight teams with less payroll than us, but only four of them are at or under the cap. There are seventeen teams paying a luxury tax. The Atlanta Hawks have the highest payroll of $206,278,826 and are paying a whopping $58,238,780 in luxury tax.
FREE AGENCY
My goal during the free agency period was to simply fill out the depth chart. I was looking for solid players that I could trust, so I resigned Baldwin and Connaughton to two year deals. Then I signed two former Bulls, Isaac Humphries and Davis Bertans.
Chicago Bulls re-sign Wade Baldwin IV to a 2-year contract worth $4,307,835
Chicago Bulls re-sign Pat Connaughton to a 2-year contract worth $4,949,805
Chicago Bulls sign Isaac Humphries to a 2-year contract worth $3,762,163
Chicago Bulls sign Davis Bertans to a 1-year contract worth $2,234,164
Note: The Memphis Grizzlies signed Tacko Fall to a 2-year contract worth $20,461,034...WOW! Really!?! He has been on my Summer League team a couple of times, but that kind of money is insane. It is no wonder why so many teams are bleeding cash. Who pays $10+ million a year for a player who can't crack the top ten on their depth chart?!? The Memphis Grizzlies, that's who!
TRADES
Traded SF Otto Porter Jr. and our 2023 1st round pick to the Phoenix Suns for SF Cedi Osman and SF Charles Wallace. This was strictly a cost cutting measure. Porter may be a slightly better player, but he's simply too expensive and Osman can fill his role for far less money. Wallace will help fill the depth chart, but I'll probably assign him to the D-League. The Suns definitely got the better deal, but I wanted to make some cap space and I was willing to give up a 1st round pick to do it. Fans think I'm crazy, but all I have to say about this is..."Back-to-Back!" That usually quiets the naysayers.
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ROSTER
PG | 4.0 | Kyrie Irving
SG | 3.5 | Zach Lavine
SF | 3.5 | Rui Hachimura
PF | 3.5 | Jimmy Dixon
C | 3.0 | Derrick Favors
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BENCH
PG | 3.0 | Coby White
C | 2.5 | DeAndre Jordan
SF | 3.0 | Cedi Osman
C | 2.0 | Isaac Humphries
PF | 2.5 | Daniel Gafford
PF | 2.0 | Davis Bertans
SG | 2.0 | Pat Connaughton
PG | 2.0 | Wade Baldwin IV
SF | 2.0 | Charles Wallace (Assigned to D-League)
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CONTRACTS
Player | Pos| Ht | Wt |Age | Contract | Notes
Kyrie Irving | PG | 6-2 | 195 | 30 | $36,503,300/1y | (PO) Planning to test the free agent waters
Zach LaVine | SG | 6-6 | 181 | 27 | $20,828,934/3y | Star player just reaching his peak
Derrick Favors | C | 6-9 | 246 | 31 | $17,818,113/2y | (TO) A little pricey, but a great defender
DeAndre Jordan | C | 6-11| 265 | 34 | $8,821,842/1y | Excellent backup in the twilight of his career
Jimmy Dixon | PF | 6-8 | 229 | 22 | $8,443,800/3y | NBA Rookie of the Year(2021)
Coby White | PG | 6-4 | 185 | 22 | $7,572,714/1y | Heir to the Irving throne, well worth $20+ mil
Cedi Osman | SF | 6-7 | 215 | 27 | $7,350,000/2y | Solid backup at a reasonable price
Rui Hachimura | SF | 6-8 | 230 | 24 | $6,397,184/1y | Superstar! Will want Kyrie money $30 mil, but worth it
Pat Connaughton | SG | 6-5 | 209 | 30 | $2,394,656/2y | Good backup, re-signed to a two year deal for
Davis Bertans | PF | 6-10| 225 | 30 | $2,234,164/1y | Former Chicago Bull returning in a backup role
Wade Baldwin | PG | 6-4 | 200 | 26 | $2,073,671/2y | Good bench player, re-signed to a two year deal
Daniel Gafford | PF | 6-10| 234 | 22 | $1,930,681/1y | Very good backup, but will demand a lot more money
Isaac Humphries | C | 7-0 | 255 | 24 | $1,848,983 2y | Former Chicago Bull returning in a backup role
Charles Wallace | SF | 6-8 | 198 | 23 | $1,390,675/1y | Bench player with potential for improvement
FUTURE FREE AGENTS
Kyrie Irving, De'Andre Jordan, Coby White, Rui Hachimura, Davis Bertans, Daniel Gafford and Charles Wallace.
What to do about Uncle Drew?" I would love to keep him, but he has already indicated his desire to test the free agent waters at the end of the season. He is only 30 years old, but he is also making over $36M and he is certainly going to want a big pay increase. Then again he has 3 bird years, which allow me to offer him a maximum salary, despite being over the cap. However, if I were to fail to re-sign him, I would absolutely have to re-sign Coby White, but I'm not fully convinced that White can carry the load in Irving's absence and White is going to want 20+ million next year. There is also Rui Hachimura, who I would also like to keep, but he too is going to want around $30 million a year.
Also, trading Irving is almost certain to result in a huge backlash from the fans. They would most definitely want my head on a pike after I traded away the teams marque player, coming off back-to-back NBA Titles! Trading Irving for someone like a Luka Doncic, Ja Morant, Ben Simmons, Trae Young or even De'Aaron Fox, might ease the fans pain, but that is a risky proposition. If we don't win a third straight title, I will be forever known as the guy who traded away a potential dynasty.
...if...and this is a big if...If I trade Irving, it will have to be for a player that is similarly skilled, preferably younger, less expensive and with at least two to three years remaining on his contract. Ja Morant isn't an option, because he is also a free agent at the end of the season. Luka Doncic is a possibility, but he is kind of expensive, as is Ben Simmons. De'Aaron Fox is nice player, but hardly a player the fans will accept as a replacement for Irving. That leaves Trae Young. Young is very similarly skilled, maybe better. He is only 24 and he has five years left on his contract.
Having said that, I find it hard to believe that the Hawks would part with him. They just re-signed him for $174.4 million, but...they are also drowning in $206 million dollars of salary, so you never know. To pull off a deal like that, I'd certainly have to give a #1 pick, but if that were the case, I wouldn't hesitate.
I don't know what I'm going to do, but I do need to make a decision before the season starts.
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