The Chicago Bulls may not understand the gift that they are giving to contending teams with their recent trades, but their fans and beat reporters do. By trading Lonzo Ball to the Cleveland Cavaliers for nothing but Isaac Okoro, the Bulls may be lining up their second consecutive champion.
On the Mully & Haugh show, a local Chicago area radio broadcast, the hosts discussed the trade of Lonzo Ball to the Cleveland Cavaliers with Chicago Sports Network insider K.C. Johnson. They made a key comparison: adding Ball to the Cavaliers is akin to the Oklahoma City Thunder adding Alex Caruso last summer.
They are hardly the only people to make that comparison, as the two situations bear a lot of similarities. In the days leading up to free agency this year, the Bulls agreed to a 1-for-1 trade, player-for-player: Lonzo Ball for Isaac Okoro.
Lonzo Ball could be this year's Alex Caruso
This parallels another 1-for-1 trade that they made a year ago, trading veteran guard Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Josh Giddey. That deal may have felt like it was on another level, as Giddey is a prolific on-ball playmaking maestro in line for a new contract north of $20 millino per season, and Caruso is one of the league's best defensive guards with an improved jumper.
Yet the parallels are certainly there. A veteran guard who excels in a 3-and-D role, a versatile defender who can take on multiple kinds of assignments and who never agitates for touches, who can knock down shots and be a connective passer. Caruso is a more explosive defender, while Ball is a more versatile passer, but they are extremely similar players.
What's more, while Caruso may be a better overall player than Ball, there are two reasons to think that Ball's impact on the Cavaliers could rival Caruso's on the Thunder. The first is that Lonzo has been out of basketball for years recovering from a debilitating knee injury, and he finally came back healthy last year. If he can be healthy on a somewhat consistent basis, his level of play could continue to rise back to where it was earlier in his career when he signed a lucrative contract to join the Bulls in the first place.
Secondly, the Cavaliers need Ball more than the Thunder needed Caruso. Their defense turned into a truly terrifying behemoth last season with Caruso, but they were and are flush with other defenders. Between Lu Dort, Cason Wallace, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein the team had five other contenders for All-Defense teams.
The Cavaliers have stout defenders on the back line in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, but in the backcourt their options are more slim. Isaac Okoro was pressed into duty often because the team didn't have any other on-ball guard defenders, especially after moving on from Caris LeVert. They were frequently trotting out lineups with two minus defenders in the backcourt.
Cleveland will continue to start Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell, with Ball coming in off the bench, but now they can build lineups with a strong defender next to them. Put Lonzo Ball on the court with Mitchell and suddenly the weak spots in the defense begin to fade. Or pair him with Garland and have two capable ball-handlers and shooters playing off one another, forcing defenses to bend to their breaking point to stick with both.
Ball could be the finishing piece that the Cavaliers need to win a title. He is a perfect fit with this roster and what they need, and on what is essentially an expiring $10 million contract he doesn't limit their flexibility at all. He could battle injuries and not be available when they need him, but the upside greatly outweighs the downside risk.
The Bulls may have done it yet again: set up the next champion. At some point the franchise will get better management, but until they do, the rest of the league will and should continue to take advantage. The Cavaliers just did, and it may mean the franchise's second title.