Bulls Trade Deadline Fire Sale Sends Vucevic White Dosunmu

Merlin sees the Bulls made seven deadline deals and ripped up the present roster, trading Coby White, Nikola Vučević, Ayo Dosunmu, Dalen Terry, Ousmane Dieng and Kevin Huerter as Artūras Karnišovas shifted focus from short-term fixes to a longer plan. "Play-in is not the goal. Championship is," Karnišovas said, and Chicago sits 10th at 24-27, so the moves trade immediate scoring for future flexibility. Merlin notes the front office finally chose urgency over quiet patience and will not call it a rebuild, saying "We're in a stage." The cost is short-term pain, but the payoff could be clearer cap room, younger assets and draft positioning that a true contender needs. Expect roster flux and a longer runway before results arrive.