The Chicago Bulls have significantly revamped their roster this summer. Even though they have largely gotten younger and more dynamic, one of the best moves they made all offseason was bringing in the oldest player on their roster.
Norman Powell signed a two-year, $44 million contract with the Bulls in free agency. While this has mostly gone under the radar, this was a savvy move by the front office and should be considered the most underrated move of their offseason.
Bulls will not regret signing Norman Powell this summer
A big part of Powell's appeal is his fit in Chicago. The Bulls didn't have a traditional shooting guard on the roster, and Powell was arguably the best two-guard they could have realistically acquired.
The 33-year-old's skillset is also a seamless fit with this iteration of the Bulls. Even though he is an older veteran, Powell plays the game with a ton of pace. He likes to run the floor and get out in transition. Miami played with the fastest pace in the league last year, and Powell played a big role in making sure the Heat got quick buckets.
Between Josh Giddey, who likes to push the pace, and the uberathletic Matas Buzelis-Caleb Wilson duo, the Bulls will have an exciting team on the open floor.
In the halfcourt, Powell also provides the Bulls with a key skill they lack elsewhere. Over the last five seasons, Powell has hit 41% of his threes on 5.9 attempts per game. He is a versatile shooter who can get threes up in a variety of ways. This provides Chicago much-needed spacing since they don't have another elite, high-volume shooter on the roster.
In fact, Powell may be the best scorer on the team. In tight games and clutch situations, the Bulls will likely turn to the only All-Star on their roster to create shots in the halfcourt. This alone is worth the contract the Bulls signed Powell to.
Which brings us to perhaps the best part of the Powell signing. The veteran shooting guard signed a two-year, $44 million deal with a team option for the second season. This makes it an extremely team-friendly and tradable contract for the Bulls.
If Powell plays well until the trade deadline but the Bulls are out of the playoff race, they can get assets for him in a deal. If the Bulls are competitive and want to keep him around, they can hold onto him and pick up his team option for next season. If the signing doesn't work out, then the Bulls can easily decline the team option and make Powell a free agent next summer.
Powell played above the level of a $21.5 million (his salary for next season) player last year. He has a chance to outplay that annual salary once again next year. This will either give the Bulls an excellent trade chip or a valuable veteran on a team-friendly deal. Either way, it has the chance to be a big win for the franchise.
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