Kris Dunn Set To Head To Camp With Bulls After Trade Rumors

The Chicago Bulls made it known at the start of the offseason they needed to upgrade at the point guard position, and they followed up that talk by drafting Coby White with the No. 7 pick and then acquiring Tomas Satoransky in a sign-and-trade with the Washington Wizards. The Bulls also re-signed Ryan Arcidiacono on a three-year deal, which seemed to mean the writing was on the wall for Kris Dunn.

There were rumors all summer suggesting Chicago was looking to trade Dunn after a disappointing 2018-19 campaign in which he dealt with more injury issues and inconsistent play on the floor. After appearing in just 52 games in his second season, Dunn played only 46 games last season and averaged 11.3 points, 6.0 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 30.2 minutes per game. He shot 42.5% overall, 35.4% on 3-pointers and 79.7% from the free-throw line, with the latter two coming on low volume. This added up to a woeful 48.4% true shooting mark, which was even worse than 2017-18 (48.8%).

Because of these struggles, Dunn’s trade market has been cold. There was one rumor about a trade to the Memphis Grizzlies that would have brought Justin Holiday back, but that didn’t happen. While there have been multiple reports about both the Bulls and Dunn wanting to find him a new home, the right trade hasn’t materialized. Chicago doesn’t want to dump Dunn for scraps, so it makes sense not to just trade him to trade him.

So, here we are as training camp is about to start, and Dunn is still on the roster as he enters the final season of his rookie contract ($5,348,007 salary). While the general consensus right now is that Satoransky will be the starting point guard, Dunn can still be a useful part of the rotation if he buys into whatever role he winds up with. K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago says the 25-year-old has looked good in informal workouts this month, so at the very least that’s a good sign.

Dunn has really struggled sharing the floor with Zach LaVine, so coming off the bench and focusing on being a defensive stopper while providing a little offensive punch could very well be the ideal role for him on this team. Dunn is an impact defender when locked in and engaged, and that’s something the Bulls need after several years of awful defense.

Dunn should be motivated in a contract year, and he should have plenty of bulletin board material. Playing well would increase his trade value and help him get to the new home he supposedly desires, unless Chicago decided it wanted to keep him for a potential surprise run to the postseason.

The most likely scenario is a trade before the deadline to help balance out the roster. This is especially true since Dunn is set to be a restricted free agent next summer and likely won’t be re-signed. However, nothing is set in stone in the NBA.

Either way, Kris Dunn has the chance to change the narrative around his career.