Insider Drops HUGE Bulls Trade Update...

The Bulls are 1-6 and the biggest story in Chicago isn't a win, it's a price tag. Norman Powell, the Bulls' best scorer, is reportedly being shopped and the Bulls are listening to offers. And I'll say it, this is the best thing that could have happened to this team. Not because Powell is bad, but for what opportunity it opens up for Chicago. First, let's be clear, this is just reports that they are shopping him, there hasn't been a trade done yet. Powell can't even be moved yet. He signed in July as a free agent, so the earliest he can be traded is December 15th. The deadline is February 11th. That's about three months of 1-6 basketball between now and then. And here's the problem for a team that's 1-6. Powell is an aging player at 33. Every loss makes him worth a little bit less to Chicago, and the date on his birth certificate doesn't wait. And remember who was talking, the Bulls are 1-6 on a 5 game losing streak right now and a team in that spot doesn't hold on to a 33 year old for sentiment, it holds for a reason and I can't think of a reason to keep him. Look at the contract, Powell has $21.5 million guaranteed this season, then a team option for 27-28. That option is the whole trick because a contender gets a score with a way out and Chicago gets a trade chip with one year of commitment, not two. The Ringer's Michael Pina floated three ideas back in September. Orlando offering Jalen Suggs, Denver offering Christian Braun, and Detroit offering Kevin Huerter, Ron Holland, and a first round pick. Pina called that the best Chicago can get. Take Detroit's version. Huerter is a veteran winger, Holland is a young forward, and there's a first round pick coming back in this as well. That's three different ways that this team can rebuild. And it doesn't have to be Detroit. This can be any team. You just have to get shooting back, a young player back as well, and a first-round pick, and you have the bones of a trade here for Norman Powell. Those are analysts' ideals, not a written-in-stone kind of formula for a trade for Norman Powell, but where the Bulls are young and building, they're going to want young assets and picks back in return regardless. The one thing I don't want is a trade that only saves money. Chicago has $165.8 million of cap hits this season. That isn't a roster that needs saving. It's a roster that needs direction. To see why this works, look at who's already on the books. Josh Giddey is at $25 million a year through 28-29. Nick Claxton is at $23.3 million. Patrick Williams at $18 million. Powell is third on the list at $21.5 million this season. Isaac Okoro at $11.8 million comes off the books after this season. Cale Wilson is on a rookie deal at $10.7 million. So the Bulls aren't a team with no money and no direction. They just have three big contracts on the book right now and a young core that hasn't been built around yet. Powell is the one with the big contract and easiest move because he isn't connected to this young core. And his option makes this a lot easier for any teams buying him because they have a way out of this deal if they don't like how he's playing. So what should Chicago ask for? I want a young player and some draft capital here. We shouldn't get another aging player back in this deal. The pick side is thin. The Bulls own their 2027 first round pick, and their 2027 second goes to OKC, no strings. So extra picks matter, and there's another wall. The Bulls are hard capped at the first apron, so whatever comes back has to roughly match Powell's salary. If you agree the Bulls should be thinking about their future, go down below and hit that like button. Think of it like a used car dealership. You're not getting what you put into it, you're getting what fits best on the lot. A young guard or wing on a cheap deal fits the most and leads to the part I love the most. If Powell leaves, then that leaves an open spot in the backcourt for Daylon Swain. Back in July, the Sun-Times had Powell and Giddey as the starting backcourt, with Powell as the true floor spacer. Take Powell out of that, the minutes and touches go somewhere else, and that's the opening. Now, to be honest about where Swain is, he missed the opener in Toronto with an illness, and the Sun-Times says his plan includes the G-League. So I'm not promising a starting job here, but trading Powell is what I'm saying gives that opportunity for him to come up and make an impact. And that's the thing with rebuilding teams that have a lot of these young rookie players. They don't develop sitting on the bench. They develop going out there and playing minutes every night. And without Powell, you can give Daylon Swain 20 minutes a night on a 1-6 team, and he's going to learn a lot from that. So the question isn't if Powell can score or not, it's whether the Chicago Bulls can afford to have him out there to score rather than putting players out there that will build for their future. So what kind of player would you be handing the keys to? He's 6'6.5", 211 pounds, with a 6'10 wingspan, and he's 20. At Texas last season, he averaged 17.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists a game. That's a guard who rebounds like a forward. His game is going downhill. He shot 61.8% on drives in the 95th percentile in the whole country. And notice he did that as the guy who led Texas in rebounds and assists. A driver who can go to the net and finish around the rim and also pass is a very lethal combo. Swain's preseason debut told you who he is. He scored 10 points on 3 of 3 from the field and 4 of 4 from the line with 6 assists and 2 steals. He also had 3 turnovers and that's the story with drivers though. The ball is going to end up in places that you don't want it to be and they're going to turn it over. At the rim, he made 63% of his 236 attempts, and he dunked 25 of 27. And he doesn't need a play call for him. 82% of his rim shots at Texas were unassisted. He creates his own looks. Picture the complete opposite of Powell. Powell is a floor spacer who can score on three levels of the floor. Whether it's in close, whether it's mid-range, or behind the arc, he can create those chances. But with Daylon Swain, he's a guy who can go to the rim. Make the chances happen himself and just finish down there as well. So they're complete opposite players here. Defensively, he averaged 1.6 steals a game at Texas. Think Herb Jones, long and active. And Coach Splitter has said it himself in the preseason, quote, I see him as a primary ball handler creating for us. That's a different kind of pace for Chicago. Obviously, Powell kind of slows the offense down with his pick and roll. But Swain, he takes it all the way to the basket and he can either drive, finish it there, or kick it out with his pass because he has some great passing. Think of Powell like a scalpel and Swain like a sledgehammer. You know, Powell is more precise. Swain just drives through everyone and scores. And for a young team that's up and coming, I'd rather have the sledgehammer breaking down the walls. And think about the shape of the lineup with him in it. Obviously, Giddey is a guy who kind of slows down the offense, finds the passes and stuff like that. Now, next to him, you don't have Powell who kind of does that as well. You have a guy like Daylon Swain who can cut to the rim, catch lobs, do a lot of stuff down low as well. And also Bucelis, that creates more space for him to kind of get his shooting back. So I really like that. I really like having a guy, a complete slasher like Daylon Swain with Giddey. Because Giddey can find him down low on cuts. He can also make passes to Bucelis and also to Caleb Wilson. And our shooters, that can be wide open because they're going to have to collapse on Daylon Swain down low. So what do I want to see? Obviously, we have to wait till December 15th because then we can actually trade him. Then I believe talks will heat up and he'll be on his way out of Chicago. Second, the return. We need a young player that can shoot and some picks here involved in this. Ideally, a first round pick back. Those are two things that help Swain and the future of this team. Third, the minutes. If Powell goes and Swain doesn't get the real minutes, the trade only did half of its job. Last, the record. At one and six, there's no reason to protect a 30-year-old's feelings over the rotation. Now the catch, because there is one, the shot. Swain went 4-of-31 in Summer League. At Texas, he made 34.4% from three, but only 2.6 attempts a game, so he's not a shooter yet. But I'll take the risk. A rookie who's shooting 81.5% from free throw and 61.8% on the drive rate is worth building around more than a 33-year-old. And the free throw line says the shot isn't broken. He made 81.5% of his free throws at Texas. The oldest tell in scouting is that a rookie that has an 81.5% free throw at the line and 54.2% from the field usually has a shot and it can come around. But that's a bet. Four of 31 in Summer League is the other end of it, and I wouldn't tell you he's fixed the shot quite yet. That's why the return matters. If Chicago trades Powell, the spacing has to come back in another form, or Swain has no room to drive. A downhill driver next to Buzelis and Giddey needs someone to space the floor so he can get open. So here's my answer. Trade Powell and you win in two ways. You get a young asset back and the first real minutes for a rookie you drafted at 15. It won't win a game this month, but a 1-6 team isn't playing for this month. And that's why this report is the best news the Bulls have had all season. So who do you want back? A young player or picks? Let me know what players you would love to see Norman Powell traded for down below in the comments section. It's been another episode of Bulls Digest. If you're enjoying, go down below, hit that subscribe button, hit the like button. As always, I've been your host, KC. We'll catch you in the next one.