Man… has anyone else’s timeline been absolutely flooded with trade rumors today, or is it just me?
From Giannis Antetokounmpo to Trey Murphy, everybody caught a stray. Fortunately for the Bulls, Nikola Vučević’s name was in the mix too, and unfortunately for the Bulls, it involved a trade that went absolutely nowhere.
© Patrick Gorski-Imagn ImagesNikola Vučević Offered to the Celtics
Michael Scotto, NBA insider for HoopsHype, reported that the Chicago Bulls offered the Boston Celtics Nikola Vučević and were expecting a return of Anfernee Simons and a first-round pick. Boston, “wasn’t interested.”
The Chicago Bulls reportedly offered Nikola Vučević to the Celtics for Anfernee Simons and a first-round pick, but Boston declined, per @MikeAScotto “For example, earlier this season, well before Boston surged into second place in the East, the Chicago Bulls inquired on the… pic.twitter.com/lWvauNv0F7
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) January 28, 2026There are really two ways to look at this report—and the timing is everything.
Simons was brought in by the Celtics as part of their offseason maneuvering to dodge the second apron, moving on from the Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porziņģis contracts. Nobody ever expected Simons to be a long-term piece in Boston anyway. The roster was already guard-heavy with Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, and Jaylen Brown firmly in place.
The real hole, then (and to some extent, now) was at center.
If this trade was floated back in November, when Simons was barely clinging to a rotation spot, it actually makes some sense. And honestly, I’d commend the Bulls’ front office for aiming that high. Boston would’ve gotten a legitimate big man still putting up starter-level production at age 35, plus some salary relief by season’s end.
From that lens? The ask wasn’t crazy at all.
But considering this report surfaced now, I have to assume the offer came after the Bulls had already seen Simons’ impressive production in a Celtics uniform. As the season went on, Boston found a perfectly serviceable center in Neemias Queta, while Simons’ value quietly climbed to its highest point all year.
And that’s where Chicago’s ask starts to look… laughable. At that point, the Celtics would essentially be selling the barn, giving up a productive guard and a first-round pick, for neither a position of need nor equal value in return. From Boston’s perspective, it just doesn’t add up.
In the same report from Michael Scotto, it was also mentioned that the Boston Celtics offered Anfernee Simons, a first-round pick, and a first-round pick swap for Clippers center Ivica Zubac.
That’s one of the best big men in the league. An All-Defensive Second Team selection last season. And oh yeah, he’s 28 years old.
The Boston Celtics trade offer for Ivica Zubac (Clippers declined), per @MikeAScotto:Celtics receive:• Ivica Zubac• Salary fillerClippers receive:• Anfernee Simons• One 1st round-pick• One 1st round-pick swap( t.co/rRCvcaSf6z) pic.twitter.com/cqXqE2evKp
— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) January 28, 2026The Clippers ultimately turned it down, but the offer itself tells you everything you need to know. That’s the benchmark. That’s how highly the Celtics value Simons and a first-round pick when they’re trying to acquire a true difference-maker at a position of need.
And when you stack that next to what Chicago reportedly asked for Vučević? The gap in value becomes impossible to ignore.
© Matt Marton-Imagn ImagesAre Bulls’ Trade Values Unrealistic?
Throughout the 2026 season, one thing was painfully clear: the Chicago Bulls needed to be aggressive sellers. A team with no superstar and no clear direction doesn’t rebuild from the middle—it starts from the bottom.
That’s why, with seven expiring contracts on the books—each with varying levels of trade value—the expectation was simple: asset accumulation. Young players. Draft capital. Future flexibility.
Instead, as the season dragged on, the reports and rumors surrounding what the Bulls were actually interested in didn’t line up with that vision at all.
Take the Zion Williamson rumors, for example. The idea of trading expiring contracts for Zion never made sense. Zion himself is on a non-guaranteed deal. If the Pelicans truly wanted to move on, they could’ve done so by simply cutting him. In that scenario, expiring contracts mean absolutely nothing.
Then there were the constant reports about teams calling on Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu, followed by claims that the Bulls wanted a young player and a first-round pick in return. That’s a massive haul for a player who’s set to become an unrestricted free agent in a matter of months.
Any team interested in Coby could trade for him knowing full well Chicago had no intention of re-signing him. And just like that, the Bulls’ leverage vanished.
And finally, there’s Nikola Vučević.
An aging center whose value decreases with every passing season. The Bulls could’ve moved him at almost any point for at least a late first-round pick. But the longer they waited, that late first turned into a couple of seconds… and now maybe just one. Yet somehow, in the eyes of the Bulls’ front office, Vučević’s trade value never seemed to dip.
When they should’ve asked for first round picks, they didn’t, and when they shouldn’t, they are willing to die on that hill. That disconnect, between reality and expectation is the story of the Bulls’ front office in a nutshell.
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NBA Rumor Roundup: Giannis Trade Coming? LeBron Homecoming? Trey Murphy’s Price Tag, MoreHence then, the article about the bulls reportedly tried to trade vucevic but failed was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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