INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - APRIL 07: Jalen Smith #25 of the Indiana Pacers dunks the ball in the first ... [+]
With the dust of NBA Free Agency having mostly settled, it's time to take stock of some of the potential bargains made over the summer.
One such contract is that of Jalen Smith, who signed a three-year with the Chicago Bulls worth $27 million.
The 6'10 center was one of the most efficient scorers in basketball last season, converting on 59.4% of his shots, including 42.4% from downtown, on his way to 9.9 points per game in just 17.2 minutes.
Smith took 41% of his shots near the rim, where he hit 76.5% of his shots, with 36.5% of his shots coming from behind the three-point line.
Smith's shot profile has evolved since his entrance to the league in 2020, as he's trimmed most of the fat out of his shot diet, and thus turned himself into a player who should have a fairly high offensive baseline.
Futhermore, Smith is a strong rebounder who grabbed 5.5 boards per game in the aforementioned 17.2 minutes, making him extremely effective on a per-minute basis.
While he's still got some ways go defensively, and as a playmaker, the 24-year-old is by no means a finished product, particularly when taking into account that big men quite simply take a bit longer to fully develop.
As such, attention turns to Chicago, a team that's clearly chosen to initiate a rebuild, but has yet to move off starting center Nikola Vučević, whose acquisition in 2021 turned into an outright catastrophe for the Bulls.
Head coach Billy Donovan, along with executives Arturas Karnišovas and Marc Eversley, will need to give Smith a proper start in Chicago, if the team is to fully embrace a new beginning.
That means starting Smith, or at least playing him close to 30 minutes per game. Anything but a clear devotion to one of the most creative signings the Bulls have made in years, would be a complete undermining of their own work.
With Chicago also having re-signed forward Patrick Williams to a five-year contract worth $90 million, it makes sense for the Bulls to immediately develop the chemistry between the two, seeing as they - more than Vučević - represent the future in Chicago.
Finally, if the Bulls are to also devote themselves to Josh Giddey, who they acquired for Alex Caruso last month, it means surrounding him with shooters. Smith is quite simply a better shot-maker than Vučević, even if the latter is far better in short-roll action and play initiation.
For Giddey to have a legitimate big man option to play both pick and roll and pick and pop with, should increase his effectiveness.
In short, the Bulls could be looking at a major free agent steal in Smith, as long as they actually commit to him.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
