The Chicago Bulls missed out on their pursuit of Carmelo Anthony in free agency, but they did add Pau Gasol and are inching closer to a deal with former draft pick and international man of mystery Nikola Mirotic.
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Mirotic is the oft-talked about prospect among Bulls fans who many have never seen play a competitive game of basketball and the top trade chip in a potential trade for Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star power forward Kevin Love, but Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau is optimistic Mirotic will be a difference-maker for the Bulls when he does come to Chicago.
"“[Executive VP of basketball operations] John [Paxson] and [general manager] Gar [Forman] have been in contact with him for a long time because we have his draft rights,” Thibodeau said before the Bulls’ first summer league game on Saturday night via ESPNChicago.com. “Hopefully, something will be worked out. At some point, he will hopefully come, then we’ll see where he is.”"
After finalizing the deal with Gasol the Bulls have to get creative in finding the necessary cap space to fit in Mirotic under the salary cap, but that should be a formality as they juggle the bottom of the roster and consider some trades to make room for the 6-10 “stretch 4.”
If you’ve never seen Mirotic on the court, this video from DraftExpress breaks down the strengths and weaknesses in his game in their scouting profile. The video will lend some credence to the notion that Mirotic would have been a top-five pick if he were in the 2014 NBA Draft and why the Bulls rejected a reported trade offer for a top-10 pick in exchange for the talented Mirotic.