Bulls Agree to Three-Year, $85 Million Deal with DeMar DeRozan in Sign-And-Trade with the San Antonio Spurs

Entering NBA free agency, DeMar DeRozan not only took into consideration the big payday he could receive but also his chances at winning an NBA championship.

“I mean it’s all about winning at this point. I’m going into my 13^th season and seeing all these guys just competing for a championship,” said DeRozan on Shannon Sharpe’s ‘Club Shay Shay’ podcast. “You try to balance it as best you can, but at this point, you got to weigh the opportunity of winning a championship more.”

DeMar DeRozan now has another opportunity at a championship as he joins Zach Lavine, Nikola Vucevic, and newly acquired guard Lonzo Ball on the Chicago Bulls. 

He agreed to terms to join the Bulls on a three-year, $85 million contract that’ll net him an annual salary of $28.3 million from Chicago. The Bulls will acquire him through a sign-and-trade deal with the San Antonio Spurs, first reported by Chris B. Haynes of Yahoo Sports. 

The 31-year-old averaged 21.6 points, 6.9 assists, and 4.2 rebounds per game on 49.7% shooting from the field for the Spurs last season. For his second-straight season, he shot just 25.7% from three-point range. 

Chicago will send Thaddeus Young, Al-Farouq Aminu, and a future first-round pick to the Spurs. The future first-round pick will carry over in 2025, while the Bulls will also send a 2022 second-round pick via the Lakers as well as their own 2025 second-round pick, according to ESPN. 

After finishing as the 11^th seed in the Eastern Conference standings, the Bulls missed out on the playoffs for their fourth-straight season. They also forfeited the No. 8 overall pick–Franz Wagner–of the 2021 NBA Draft to the Orlando Magic as a result of the Vucevic deal that occurred at the NBA trade deadline. 

With this move, the Bulls have now shown that they’re committed to going all-in on trying to bring home a seventh NBA championship to Chicago with Lavine as their No. 1 option.

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