Chicago Bulls: Grading each move made this offseason
Bulls re-sign Cristiano Felicio: Four years, $32 million
Chicago Bulls grade: D+
At the time this move was made, I did not hate the Bulls bringing back Cristiano Felicio. Sure, it seemed like a lot of money, but he showed some nice offensive upside last season. It was undoubtedly more money per year than ideal, but I liked the idea of locking him up for four years.
However, as the offseason went along, this deal began to look worse and worse. Money dried up quickly in free agency this offseason, and if Felicio would have actually hit the open market, there is no possible way that he would have received this same contract.
For example, former San Antonio Spurs big man Dewayne Dedmon only got two years, $14.1 million from the Atlanta Hawks. Dedmon was much better than Felicio last season and fits the modern NBA extremely well. Felicio has some upside, but he has not really proved anything on the court. He got two more years and more money per season.
More from Da Windy City
- Juan Soto appears headed to the Yankees which is not a big blow Chicago Cubs offseason
- 3 takeaways from Chicago Blackhawks shootout loss to Nashville
- Chicago Cubs in the middle of chaos that is Shohei Ohtani’s free agency
- The Chicago Cubs are on a roller coaster of emotions chasing Shohei Ohtani
- Chicago Bears quietly compiling list of head coaching candidates
An even better comparison is the contract that Patrick Patterson received from the Oklahoma City Thunder. Patterson’s market dried up and he settled for a three-year deal worth $16.3 million. That is only $5.4 million per year compared to the $8 million per season the Bulls are paying Felicio.
Patterson is not a perfect player by any means, but he is a solid defensive power forward who shoots well from the outside. He is a much better and more proven player than Felicio and the Thunder got him on a significantly less expensive deal that the Bulls signed Felicio to.
I am not saying that the Bulls should have let Felicio walk or signed one of these other players instead. Bringing him back wasn’t a bad idea. However, they clearly paid way too much for him.
If the Chicago Bulls simply would have let Felicio’s market play out, they would have seen that they easily could have gotten him for less money. Based on the other contracts given to big men this offseason, I bet the Bulls could have gotten Felicio back on a three-year deal worth something like $12-$13 million. No matter how you look at it, they overpaid here and it could hurt them a bit down the line.