2016 NBA Free Agency: 1 move every team needs to make to be contenders

Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls missed the playoffs for the first time in eight years and just the second time in twelve years. So suffice it to say, they are not accustomed to being out of playoff contention. Lucky for them, they have one of most promising two-way players in the league in Jimmy Butler and a core of young talent between Bobby Portis, Doug McDermitt, and Denzel Valentine. They are likely to lose Pau Gasol during free agency, but managed to trade Derrick Rose’s $21 million contract to the Knicks for Robin Lopez and Jerian Grant, which fills those immediate needs at point guard and center.

The biggest thing the Bulls can do to content in 2016 is move on from the Thibideau Era. They’ve already started this by trading Rose, but still have Joakim Noah’s $20.5 million qualifying offer as a cap hold. If the Bulls relinquish Noah’s contract, they’ll have enough cap space (about $26M) to sign a veteran wing player like Marvin Williams or Luol Deng to support their younger core and prepare them to compete in the playoffs. The team was already just a few games out of the 8th seed, another year for Butler along with Lopez and a veteran wing should be enough to make it back to the playoffs.

Next: Cleveland Cavaliers