The Chicago Bulls are in a very tricky spot, as they could choose to push forward and make a run at the playoffs or completely tear things down and head toward a rebuild. Arturas Karnisovas seems intent on the former, but that means he will have to keep the current core intact.
One player who will be in need of a contract extension very soon is Patrick Williams, who is nearing the end of his rookie-scale contract. Williams, just 21 years old, has plenty of room to grow and improve, but nothing is guaranteed. During a recent edition of the “Bulls Talk” podcast, NBC Sports Chicago’s KC Johnson said as much (h/t Arthur Hill of Hoops Rumors).
Johnson stated that while Williams still has believers in the Bulls organization, he’s not guaranteed to earn a contract extension this offseason.
“Patrick Williams still has a lot of believers within the Bulls organization, but that doesn’t guarantee he’ll get a rookie scale extension this summer, Johnson said on the Bulls Talk podcast,” Hill wrote. “Johnson notes that management typically takes a hard line in extension talks and suggests that the team might handle Williams the same way it did [Coby] White, letting him play out his rookie contract and negotiating with him next summer as a restricted free agent.”
If the Bulls hope to take a serious step forward, they desperately need Williams to make major strides. Maybe letting him play out his current deal could be a way of motivating him to do so.
