After a far from missed but still delicate season at the Bulls, Nikola Vucevic was tipped in transfer rumors at the start of the summer. According to Joe Cowley of Chicago Sun-Times, the situation has now changed, since discussions on a potential extension will be initiated between the pivot and the franchise. Niko’s future is brightening up a bit, but the pressure isn’t letting up yet.
It had been about two months since we had almost any news from the pivot, and especially from his future within the Bulls. So it was time for things to change, and it’s Joe Cowley from the Chicago Sun-Times who took care of it. According to the journalist, Nikola Vucevic should start discussions about an extension with the franchise, and this from the training camp. Good news for the former teammate of Evan Fournier, whose situation is now a little less vague. It must be said that Vooch does not come out of a sparkling season with the Bulls. In a brand new role – that of third option in attack behind DeRozan and LaVine – the Montenegrin scored 17.6 points per game at 31.4% from 3-point rangeits lowest averages since the 2017-2018 financial year.
Above all, it is on the other side of the field that the latter is most in trouble. Pushed out of the racket by the very aggressive strategy put in place by Billy Donovan – and symbolized by the work of Alex Caruso – Nikola’s defensive wanderings quickly became flagrant. Too slow to follow on pick-and-roll, not the most side of shot-blocker, the pivot quickly became the target of enemy attacks. It is for this reason that we could find the name of the man in trade rumors against Rudy Gobert for example, at the very beginning of the summer. However, nothing came of it, as Joe Cowley explains well in his article:
“A source has said both parties want him to stay with the team beyond the final year of his contract which ends this season, and there will be early talks about what that might look like soon. the start of training camps in the fall. Why ? Because if the price is right, Vucevic remains the kind of player that fits the way the Bulls were built on both sides of the court. »
– Joe Cowley
Two reasons are actually at the origin of this decision to want to continue the adventure with Vucci Mane. The first, as Joe Cowley reminds us, is above all the talent of Nikola, who remains an interior capable of deviating, shooting – 40% of the parking lot during the 2020-21 season – and creating for others. And even if they are below what we have been used to, Vucevic’s averages remain very honorable. In defense, he is certainly not an asset, but the roster is built in such a way as to try to compensate for this with a difficult back line to cross, and a Patrick Williams ready for all sacrifices as a strong winger.
The second reason? The difficulty of organizing a transfer. On the one hand because Chicago has only a few Draft rounds to offer, and on the other hand because the market is… rinsed? So yes, we can think of Myles Turner, but difficult to see the Pacers accept an offer from the Bulls given their lack of assets. It therefore seemed too risky for the front office to separate from the one who was still All-Star a year ago to recover a much less interesting player. With the recent extension of Zach LaVine and the long-term contracts of Ball, Caruso and DeRozan, the Bulls will try to make this season-old group work. If the pivot will receive $ 22 million for the last year of his contract, it is for the moment complicated to know the duration or the amount that such an extension could have.
Nikola Vucevic can breathe, he will probably not be traded this summer by the Bulls. However, if he were to extend with Chicago, the latter would have no choice but to perform in this team which will not be satisfied with a new 2021-22 season. No more excuses Niko, after having signed, it will be necessary to assume.
Source texte : Chicago Sun-Times / NBC Sports / The Score
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