The Chicago Bulls finally have a front office that talks to people. That alone feels like a win after six years of Arturas Karnisovas operating like a ghost in the machine. Bryson Graham, the new senior vice president of basketball operations, and head coach Tiago Splitter have already made their first real moves: they traded for center Nic Claxton and used the No. 4 pick on forward Caleb Wilson. But the roster still has holes, and the free agent market could be where this team actually starts to look like something.
Nobody is pretending the Bulls are title contenders. They went 31-51 last season and missed the playoffs entirely. But with new leadership comes a new leash. Graham and Splitter get a mulligan this year. The bar is low enough that any improvement counts as a win, and if they lose a bunch of games, nobody is going to blame the guys who just walked in the door. That’s the kind of freedom that lets a front office take chances.
Splitter’s strange path to Chicago
Splitter didn’t get this job the normal way. He was coaching the Portland Trail Blazers after Chauncey Billups was put on indefinite leave by the NBA — an FBI arrest for an illegal gambling scheme will do that. Splitter took a team that had been wandering in the dark for years and got them to the No. 7 seed in the West. They lost to the Spurs in five games, but that run was real. Graham noticed. The Blazers were a mess off the court, and Splitter got them to lock in. That’s hard to do.
The Robert Williams III fit
One name that keeps coming up as a realistic target is Robert Williams III. He’s not a star and he’s never going to be one. But the guy is 6-foot-9, 250 pounds, and he plays like his sole purpose in life is to make other people uncomfortable. When healthy — and that’s always a question with him — he’s a monster on the boards and a legit rim protector off the bench. For the Celtics in 2021-22, he averaged 10.0 points and 9.6 rebounds. Last season with the Blazers, he put up 6.7 and 7.0 in about 17 minutes a night. He’s not a scorer. He’s a problem. The Bulls have lacked that kind of edge for years.
Williams just finished a four-year, $48 million deal. He’s the kind of role player who makes a second unit dangerous, and the Bulls have the cap space to make it happen without wrecking anything. It’s a low-risk, high-physicality move. That is exactly the kind of signing a first-year front office should make when it doesn’t have to win right now but wants to change the culture.
What about Kristaps Porzingis?
There’s also a case for swinging bigger. Kristaps Porzingis is a 7-foot-2 wild card who, when his legs hold up, can score from anywhere and throw passes that make you forget he’s that tall. He averaged 23.2 points and 8.4 boards for Washington two years ago, then 20.1 and 7.2 for Boston when the Celtics won the title in 2024. He was a real piece of that championship puzzle.
But here’s the thing: Porzingis has played 10 seasons and his body has always been the limiting factor. He’s missed major time with lower-body injuries more than once. Signing him would be a gamble. But if you’re the Bulls and you’re not expected to contend anyway, why not roll the dice? If he gives you 45 to 50 games, you’re better than you were. If he breaks down, you’re right back where you started. That’s not the worst place to be when nobody is demanding a playoff run.
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