Chicago Bulls

The big question: Can the Bulls escape the middle?

Chicago made a league-high seven trades ahead of the deadline that netted eight second-round picks and onetime first-rounders Rob Dillingham and Jaden Ivey.

"We've maintained substantial flexibility heading into the offseason," Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas told reporters after the Feb. 5 trade deadline. "That gives us real options, whether that is free agency, the draft, trades or continuing investment in development."

The flexibility Karnisovas referred to is the potential $64 million to use in free agency -- Ivey's free agent hold would need to be renounced -- and a likely top-10 pick. The Bulls have selected in the lottery five times since Karnisovas took over in 2020 and have not drafted better than 11th in any of them.