Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas wasn’t bluffing after all.
Karnisovas insisted at the end of the 2022-23 season that atop his to-do list was to keep his young backcourt depth intact.
That meant making sure restricted free agents Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu still were wearing red and white by the end of the summer.
The Bulls agreed to terms with White quickly when free agency began July 1, signing him to a three-year deal worth up to $40 million. And a source confirmed a report Friday that Dosunmu finally got his payday, signing a three-year, $21 million deal.
The move added another piece to the logjam the Bulls have at guard and showed just how bleak the Bulls think Lonzo Ball’s future is.
If the Bulls thought Ball would be back by the 2024-25 season after three surgeries on his left knee, Dosunmu would have been somewhat expendable. With Zach LaVine, Alex Caruso, White, Dalen Terry and the addition of Jevon Carter, Dosunmu gives coach Billy Donovan six guards to shuffle among the starting lineup and the rotation.
Not that Dosunmu is about to complain. Since the Bulls drafted him 38th overall in 2021, the former Morgan Park and Illinois standout always has embraced playing NBA ball in his own backyard.
In 157 games with the Bulls, including 91 starts, Dosunmu has averaged 8.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.9 assists and has shot 50.6% from the field.
