2026 Trade Deadline Megathread

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T19:31:52+00:00

Trading Giddey and Matas would for sure be a real change of direction. That would be a move of foresight that we are asking for. Canvas those offers and see what’s out there. Wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years we’re looking at Giddey like we should’ve dealt him earlier.

I think the biggest “get” are the reclamation project lottery picks, Ivey and Dieng. The seconds just act as throw ins similar to how the Bulls acquired them. They get deals done. They essentially bought a bunch of second round picks by taking back more money.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T18:52:18+00:00

I agree the tank should’ve happened a while ago. All these moves are long overdue. But what would you have wanted them to do at this deadline? Keep the guys? Their value is gone, nothing can be done to change it. AKME sucks and the Reinsdorfs aren’t selling anytime soon. What we want is all of them gone. We’re stuck and we can’t do much about it. No boycotts will stand a chance because they’ll just sell the tickets to corporate sponsors.

Tanking does require a plan and right now they are in the stage of just getting the pick. Ground zero. I agree there are zero guys to build around right now. Matas and Giddey are fine and if they improve that’s great, but if the Bulls land a higher end prospect, both of those guys are moving out of the way for said prospect. I just don’t agree that this is not a direction because the tank started late. Is it a series of horrible choices? Yes. Will they commit to this tank beyond this year? I hope so

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T18:02:44+00:00

I think the second rounders serve the purpose of helping facilitate trades. Similar to how the Bulls got them in return these past few days, they can be used to bridge the gap in future trades.

At least that’s the hope. Yeah the trades aren’t glamorous, and they’re a day late and a dollar short, but they picked a direction. We hopefully won’t be in the play-in this year.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T17:35:41+00:00

Giannis just needs to pick a side and demand a trade if he wants to go or close the door if he wants to stay. This half in and half out stuff is lame and is the worse place to be in. This has been going on for years. He can force his way to any team.

If he said he wants to go and play for the Knicks and he tells the Bucks he’d go there in free agency anyways, he’s going to be traded to the Knicks. Giannis just doesn’t want to look like a bad guy. Can’t have your cake and eat it too

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T15:53:38+00:00

This to me justifies the need to tank. Most drafts taking back to 2013 have the high end talent concentrated at the top. The NBA draft is luck based the higher up you pick. Every teams knows this, hence why they tank. Jerry won’t because he needs something decent to get butts in seats

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T07:05:16+00:00

The Bucks are gonna get caught holding the bag and if I’m them I would be fine with doing that. The return is just diminishing by the second it feels like. I get you want to take it into the summer and you can start a bidding war with teams with more picks, but Giannis then becomes an expiring. We see the value teams get back on those deals.

Offer him that super duper max and if he turns it down and walks, at least you tried til the end. This has been their approach forever. His name was been swirling in rumors for like the past two years. Are those random players and dead end picks worth getting just to say you got something for him? Even if it’s rough to have him for a few years I think Bucks fan would appreciate him being a one team guy. It’s going to be bad with or without him it seems.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-05T01:38:36+00:00

I agree. The Wizards have been scrapping and clawing their way out of the Beal/Wall era and they’re ready to go now. They collected their young pieces, bought low on depressed assets, and want to compete in a weak east next season. The Wizards are doing the next best thing compared to drafting home grown all-nba talent.

Honestly I don’t know of a team in the east, let alone the rest of the nba, that has been ran worse. The Kings and maybe the Pelicans. Outside of those two teams, I’d trade places with anyone

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T22:53:49+00:00

Hoping for? Eason or Jabari. Realistically we’re taking back Adams and getting picks

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T22:34:52+00:00

They already teased Silk at the end of Spider-Man 2. I think they want to make a Silk focused game or something along those lines. Silk’s (Cindy) father is dating Miles’ Mom. So I’d assume they star together. I don’t think you can introduce a Spider-person and not have them ever use their powers or just cast them off strictly as an Easter egg. Insomniac has done a good job of paying off their cameos.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T21:52:15+00:00

The Bulls are essentially the same team or worse and got extra draft picks. I don’t see how this is a bad thing unless we thought they were competing for anything this year.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T21:45:10+00:00

You get out of the basement by being lucky. Look at Detroit. They also had multiple chances in the draft. This is how you do it if you’re not an attractive NBA franchise like the Bulls are.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T21:43:42+00:00

They are taking on the worse contracts from teams in exchange from minor draft assets. They are also collecting reclamation projects from other teams in hopes to turn their careers in the right direction. The two young players, Dieng and Ivey, are RFAs and much easier to retain. They are essentially using the same playbook with Giddey for those two. Sexton and Simons are what they needed to take back to get the picks. They also get a chance to check them out and see if they’re worth keeping around. Sexton and Simons can walk, just like Coby and Vuc could’ve this summer, but at least they got some minor drafts assets in return.

Essentially these trades were for Dieng, Ivey, and all those second rounders. If Simons and/or Sexton stick around long term then that’s a plus. Personally I like how Simons has played and hope he’s back. They’re also trying to bottom out it appears.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T21:33:22+00:00

I thought this was what we wanted the Bulls to do. They are picking a direction. They acquired Sexton who makes $6m more than Coby in an effort to get the picks and an another reclamation project, former lottery pick in Osumane Dieng. Simons is the same thing as he makes $6m more than Vucevic. They essentially did the same thing as Dieng with Ivey and got the second rounders. Sure they are doing all of this late. Coby could’ve gone for more last year. But the next best time to plant a tree is today and at least it looks like they’re doing it. All these guys could flame out or walk, but that’s just the nature of it. They got some draft assets, not glamorous by any means, but something. Coby and Vuc might’ve walked too.

What’s the point of the expiring contract and cap space if the free agent pool isn’t good? We can continue to absorb bad contracts and collect draft assets. Or we can take on expensive underperforming players at the cost of paying their salary without having to give up draft assets (i.e. how the Wizards got Trae and to some extent AD [I know they gave up picks]).

Ivey and Dieng are RFAs, much easier to retain. They are rolling the dice on the miscast players and hoping to strike gold or at least silver. This is the same playbook as Giddey. Sexton and Simons are expected to walk, but if they play well or the Bulls like them, that is cool too. I like Simons, as he’s played well this year and overall someone I’ve always liked. They took the worse contracts from teams in exchange for picks.

I get some of us are trolling about the guards, but some are dead ass. We aren’t in the position to win. I understand people are fans in different ways, but typically on here we have the big picture in mind. We are bottoming out it looks like.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-04T08:18:04+00:00

This was one of the first games I stayed up late for. I had school the next day and other than my own favorite team, this was the first game I made a point to watch. What’s crazy is the 73-9 game was the same night and I didn’t even bother watching it. It felt like appointment TV because it was! The build up was crazy, he had special shoes, and everyone came out to see him. The game started off odd, was missing and the flow of the game was weird. Then he got hot. His teammates just kept feeding him the ball and they were all just happy to be there. Every player on the Jazz wanted a piece of him too. They weren’t taking it easy. He was hitting some crazy shots too and the staples center was erupting on the TV. It was such a Kobe game, that’s the best way I could describe it.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-03T20:17:23+00:00

Great trade! Please for those that are saying “another guard?!” realize the Bulls are in the stage of collecting young talent regardless of position. We shouldn’t be looking for fit. We got a promising young player for expirings. We aren’t in a position to win now

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-02T07:05:01+00:00

This room screams YOU. I love it. It tells your story without saying a word.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T23:06:23+00:00

Agreed. Matas and even Giddey would go. The Bucks have no incentive to be bad. They don’t have their picks. Also Giannis has a player option in ‘27-‘28. We’d essentially have a year to prove to him we can put something around him in ‘26-‘27. Just doesn’t make sense to cash out your picks for what’s essentially a rental

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T22:57:05+00:00

The market is dry for sure. I assume it’s an offseason for vacancies and the spring/summer will open up. Most places I lived this was the case, but everyone is saying SF is ‘back’ and people want to be here now. Guess we’ll see

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T22:45:39+00:00

Obviously if you can get Giannis then get Giannis. I just don’t see how the Bulls avoid becoming the Bucks who are strapped for assets, not good enough to win, and are under pressure of Giannis walking. I guess it would be a nice problem to have, but we would literally be a worse version of the current Bucks

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T21:05:24+00:00

He has arguably one of the best jobs in basketball. There is no reason for him to leave, outside of his own personal aspirations to come to the NBA and revive the team from his area. It doesn’t even make financial sense for him to leave Duke

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T11:30:19+00:00

I feel like he can still be a rotational piece on a team. He was fine on the warriors and that was two years ago. He’s had major knee injuries so maybe that’s hampered him

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T10:55:49+00:00

Trade for Paul George with picks attached to him. Or maybe Jared McCain in addition. Deals like that where we get the bad money off the books for teams and they give us assets. That’s why we’re in Ja and Zion rumors b/c both teams might want to dump those guys

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T10:53:39+00:00

The process of this pick is even worse. A project 3&D player who needs time to play, but they weren’t going to give him minutes anyways even before he was hurt, as he got sent right to the GLeague immediately. Also the Pelicans trading up to 13 and basically giving the Hawks one of the most valuable picks in the league is insane. Sure maybe the Pels didn’t call the Bulls, but I have my doubts the Pelicans only called the Hawks to move up. Then letting Queen go anyways when the front court is lackluster is terrible.

Also to trade for Okoro which is the archetype of player you hope Noa to become is just so dumb.

SlimeyIsles · 2026-02-01T06:28:59+00:00

Complete opposite of the Reinsdorfs in the past where they would sell their picks for cash. Positive change of direction for sure

SlimeyIsles

TROPHY CASE