Chicago Bulls: 5 moves to make following Arturas Karnisovas hire

2. Trade Otto Porter Jr.

A few days after the Bulls originally traded for wing Otto Porter Jr., I was reminded why they did so. He came in and immediately provided an offensive spark to the Bulls’ weary offense. The team had endured plenty of injuries last season, and Porter helped ignite the flame a little bit.

Unfortunately, Porter hasn’t exactly been fully healthy himself, either. He missed a lengthy portion of this season and finally returned around the All Star Break, but at his contract price, hasn’t done enough to warrant keeping on this roster.

The Bulls, unfortunately, do not have the immediate power to decide whether or not Porter stays. Porter’s deal could end this year, but he has a player option which he could exercise, and trust me, he will do it.

His option pays him over $28 million for the 2020-2021 season — ouch.

So, here is my proposition for the Bulls and Karnisovas. I mean, this is the guy who turned Timofey Mosgov into a pair of first-round picks. What I would like to see happen is for the Bulls to try and package Porter with this year’s first-round pick and attempt to deal him.

This year’s draft class is pretty bad by recent comparison, so losing out on that pick wouldn’t be the end of the world. Plus, opening up that kind of cap space would be a huge win — and that’s only the beginning.