The string tying the Chicago Bulls and Anthony Davis together got tighter this week.
When the Dallas Mavericks fired General Manager Nico Harrison earlier this season, questions surrounding Anthony Davis’ future piled up. Fans, media members, and league personnel started speculating about which direction the organization would go. Would keeping Davis amid a losing start make sense for the franchise, particularly after landing 2025 No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg? Was now an obvious time to start fresh?
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon eventually said the quiet part out loud. He reported in mid-November that Dallas would “explore” the trade market for the former Lakers champion ahead of this year’s deadline. While he did not go on to name specific suitors, it felt like only a matter of time before the Bulls would come up again in conversation.
And that leads us to today.
Dec 1, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Anthony Davis (3) reacts from the sideline in the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
Chicago Bulls Thinking About Anthony Davis Trade?
ESPN’s Jamal Collier wrote about the Chicago Bulls’ up-and-down journey over their first 20 games of the regular season. As one of the NBA’s few organizations with true financial flexibility and control of all its draft capital, Collier reported that the Bulls have thought about Anthony Davis’ supposed availability.
“The Bulls have had internal discussions about how to proceed, including conversations about Dallas Mavericks star Anthony Davis, sources told ESPN, whom they believe could help the team’s porous rim protection and defensive interior,” Collier wrote.
It’s worth noting that Collier did not stop there. He went on to share that the Bulls do not want to give up any member of their young core until they prove to be a more competitive group. One team source even went on to tell Collier that “chasing X megastar” would not make sense as of today.
This feels consistent with the recent messaging from the Bulls’ front office and coaching staff. They came into the season preaching patience and player development. The team is less than a year removed from trading away Zach LaVine and diving deeper into a youth movement. Throwing that away now would certainly feel like a reckless choice to many.
At the same time, the Bulls have rarely shown a willingness to accept the struggle that comes with a true youth movement. They have pushed for the postseason each year since Arturas Karnisovas took over the team, and they are fresh off three consecutive Play-In Tournament appearances. The Bulls are currently 9-11 and barely holding on to the East’s 10th seed. Could the reality of starting 6-1 only to miss the postseason entirely lead the Bulls to make a bold move, or might they finally embrace the fight for lottery odds?
Mar 29, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) defends Dallas Mavericks forward Anthony Davis (3) during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images
If one thing is for sure, Collier’s report tells us that they have started to weigh their options. Let’s also not ignore how much season is left to play. Opinions can change. Strategy can change. Once again, very few teams around the league have the resources the Bulls do to make a big splash. As important as it can be to continue bolstering those resources, striking at the right time can be equally important.
Nevertheless, questions about whether Davis is the right player at the right time are more than fair. While there is no denying he could instantly improve Chicago’s ceiling in a wide-open Eastern Conference, this depends largely on his health. The big man has played in more than 62 games only once over the last seven seasons. In five of those seasons, he failed to play more than 56 games. It’s a troublesome sign for a player who turns 33 years old in March of 2026.
Add in the expected payday, and acquiring Davis only becomes that much riskier. He is in the first year of a three-year, $175,369,698 contract. The final year of that deal is also a player option, where he would be owed a whopping $62,786,682, per Spotrac. A franchise rarely takes on that kind of money unless (1) it sees a championship in the very near future or (2) it is heavily incentivized.
The Chicago Bulls can not check the first box, but might there be a world where they check the second? While it feels unlikely, the market could lend itself to Dallas settling for a simpler money-moving deal. The Bulls would be able to match the salary with their many expiring contracts, throwing in nothing more than their lottery-protected Portland Trail Blazers pick as a sweetener. To be sure, acquiring Davis in any capacity would be a big gamble, but this kind of price tag would make it far more of a low-risk, high-reward scenario.
At the end of the day, there is still a lot that must unfold before the trade talk really heats up around the league. If this early-season chatter is any indication, though, it appears the Chicago Bulls and Anthony Davis speculation may linger for at least a few more weeks.