As NBA free agency gets underway, the Chicago Bulls have already reportedly made a massive splash, signing restricted free agent point guard Lonzo Ball to a four-year, $85 million deal as part of a sign-and-trade agreement with the New Orleans Pelicans.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported the deal within minutes of free agency getting underway on Monday:
According to Charania, the Bulls will send Tomas Satoransky, Garrett Temple and a second round pick to the Pelicans in exchange for Ball's rights.
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Ball, who has played for the Pelicans in each of the last two seasons, averaging a career-high 14.6 points and 5.7 assists per game, along with 4.8 rebounds.
Adding Ball to the mix will cause the Bulls to have to make some big decisions in terms of their current roster construction, with forward Lauri Markkanen also due an extension and Zach LaVine now eligible for a contract extension of his own.
Even still, having a big-three of LaVine, Nikola Vucevic and Ball would be a huge step for the Bulls, who are hoping to compete for a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference next season.
