Chicago Bulls: What to do with Kris Dunn’s new qualifying offer?
By Ryan Heckman
Chicago Bulls point guard Kris Dunn will see his qualifying offer for this coming offseason jump up a bit.
It has been quite a different year for the NBA, and for the Chicago Bulls, an especially eventful one. Following the suspension of the regular season, the Bulls got to work in hiring both Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley to help revamp the front office and, ultimately, the roster.
After the lengthy season suspension, though, some contractual details have moved around a little. One of the players impacted by this movement is Bulls point guard Kris Dunn.
It seems as though Dunn has been in the league far longer than just four years (three and a half, technically). But, this counts as his fourth season in the NBA after being a first-round draft pick back in 2016 by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
When the Bulls executed the Jimmy Butler deal which netted them Dunn, Zach LaVine and rights to Lauri Markkanen, they inherited a decision to be made in the 2020 offseason. That decision, of course, will be whether or not to extend a qualifying offer to Dunn. Not only do they have that decision, but also the opportunity to match any offer sheet from another team.
Originally, Dunn’s qualifying offer was set at $4.6 million. However, due to the season being cut short, Dunn is looking at a much higher number by comparison.
The Qualifying Offer for Kris Dunn is now $7.1M (instead of $4.6M). Dunn was injured in late January and was at risk of falling short of the starter criteria in his contract (avg. of 41 starts over 2 years). The criteria was prorated from 41 to 36.75- Dunn averaged 38 games.
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) June 23, 2020
Knowing now that the offer stands at just over $7 million, what should the Bulls do?
I’ll put it this way: If the number had stood pat at $4.6 million, I think the Bulls would have at least offered that to keep him around as a reserve guard. However, that would be the highest I could see them going, especially knowing you’re going to be starting Coby White from here on out and already have an expensive backup in Tomas Satoransky under contract for two more years ($10 million annual average).
Considering Dunn would be the fourth guard in line behind the three aforementioned, along with LaVine, there is no chance the Bulls should pay him $7.1 million for the upcoming season.
This past year, Dunn had some bright moments. He was a guy soon-to-be-ex head coach Jim Boylen grew to count on in the waning minutes of games. His defense was arguably the best out of all guards on this roster — but that isn’t saying much.
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If Karnisovas and Eversley are looking ahead to the 2021 offseason — which they should be — then Dunn’s salary in the upcoming year truly doesn’t matter all that much. If they end up paying him $7.1 million for one more year, so be it. Is it the right decision? Probably not. But, as long as it doesn’t damage what should be an interesting free agency in 2021 for the Bulls, then it actually doesn’t matter all that much.