Bulls offseason puts Josh Giddey in limbo again

Fresh off right ankle surgery and still guaranteed $75 million through 2028-29, Josh Giddey is once more caught in trade-talk uncertainty as the Bulls’ new front office, led by Bryson Graham, sets a slow-build plan. The roster math around the backcourt—and the

Josh Giddey didn’t sign up for more uncertainty. He just tried to control what comes next.

In his final press conference of the 2025-26 campaign last month. the Bulls guard described a reality that already felt shaky: he’d watched the front office that originally acquired him send that same regime out the door. he was surrounded by a locker room packed with free agents. and he knew there was a real chance coach Billy Donovan was walking too.

The way he framed it wasn’t stress. It was a job description. “There’s always those kinds of questions. and you wonder what moving forward looks like. but as I said our job as players is to go out there and win games. that’s what we’re paid to do. ” Giddey said recently. “So with respect to the things that are happening upstairs, our job is the same and it doesn’t change. That’s the way we kind of got to approach it.”.

This offseason. that mindset could be tested again—because Giddey is coming off right ankle surgery and is shut down from basketball activity until August. Even with the medical pause. the rumor mill is already moving. especially around whether the new front office. led by executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham. will remain invested in the 23-year-old.

The Bulls, though, may not have the luxury of waiting out the noise. Giddey’s contract isn’t small: he’s guaranteed $75 million through the 2028-29 season. That kind of money can be hard to ignore when a team is trying to reshape quickly. and it also creates a trade path—if the Bulls decide they want to chase a different direction with draft assets and salary matching. But the argument around Giddey is different from the easy “move him” storyline. He’s more of a finishing piece for a team that already has the right players around him. particularly on the defensive end.

What Graham appears to have in mind is patience. He can “slow-play” the decision even if the Bulls land a lead guard next month’s draft. because there’s a maturation process a new backcourt player will need through the early stages. In that framework, a trade for Giddey can be revisited at the February trade deadline or carried into next offseason.

And there’s another reason the Bulls might want to hold steady: the production he put up last season. Giddey posted career highs in scoring at 17 points per game, assists at 9.1 per game, and rebounds at 8.3 per game. From a team-defense standpoint, he also had serviceable moments.

Still, the real question isn’t whether Giddey can play. It’s whether this regime is committed to any guard long-term once the offseason priorities shift.

The backcourt situation is crowded, and it comes with a built-in churn risk under a new coach and a new decision-maker. Here’s the guard picture as it stands:

The Bulls have Josh Giddey, Tre Jones, Rob Dillingham, Collin Sexton, Anfernee Simons, Yuki Kawamura, and Mac McClung.

As for who could be on the move, the picture is complicated by timing and contract status. Simons is a free agent, and he said he wanted to return, but Graham is looking for a slow build done the right way—meaning Simons and Sexton will likely be allowed to walk.

Giddey, meanwhile, signed a four-year extension last summer. Jones has a deal paying him $16 million over the next two years in a very team-friendly structure. Dillingham is on a rookie contract and did have a few flash moments after coming over from Minnesota.

Kawamura and McClung were on two-way deals. They were wildly popular, but the argument is that they are very replaceable.

That guard churn matters because it overlaps with the Bulls’ draft leverage, which is where Graham and the organization can reshape the roster fastest.

This is everything for Graham and the Bulls: they’re holding the No. 4 and 15 picks in the first round. In the way the draft board currently mocks out, the Bulls are likely to add to the frontcourt with No. 4. But if guard Darryn Peterson drops to them, it’s considered too much talent to pass up.

After pick No. 4, there would be at least seven guards in play, leaving a realistic chance to address the backcourt again at No. 15 if the Bulls go big early. The guard to keep an eye on there is Baylor’s Cameron Carr, who stood out during combine week.

Draft choices are only half the equation. Graham also has cap room to spend. That doesn’t mean the Bulls will chase splashy names like Austin Reaves or C.J. McCollum. The fit isn’t the point—where the team is headed, and what Graham wants, comes first.

A piece like Peyton Watson makes more sense only if the price is right, with the Bulls expected to avoid shortcuts.

All of it points toward a specific kind of offseason decision-making: the Bulls land Carr with pick No. 15, then they add a veteran who checks the box for being a two-way player. Ayo Dosunmu becomes the standout suggestion—“welcome back home”—with the idea that. since only a handful of teams are looking to spend money this summer. the Bulls would be able to grab Dosunmu after Minnesota can’t afford to bring him back.

In that scenario, Giddey wouldn’t have to be shipped quickly. He’d be something closer to a measured question the Bulls can answer later—once the draft settles in. once the medical clock runs until August. and once the new front office decides how committed it truly is to a young guard anchoring its next chapter.

Josh Giddey Chicago Bulls offseason Bryson Graham Billy Donovan right ankle surgery NBA trade deadline February 2026 draft No. 4 No. 15 Cameron Carr Ayo Dosunmu Anfernee Simons Collin Sexton Peyton Watson Tre Jones Rob Dillingham