Chicago Bulls jump in proposed blockbuster trade with Denver Nuggets, Washington Wizards

In the three-team swap, the Chicago Bulls get Zeke Nnaji, Peyton Watson, a 2026 second-round pick (least favorable of Dallas, Oklahoma City and Philadelphia, via Washington), and 2028 first-round swap (top-10 protection, via Denver) for Ayo Dosunmu from the Washington Wizards and Denver Nuggets.

It’s a pretty big haul for just Dosunmu, although taking on the Nnaji contract is less than ideal. However, this gets the Bulls some more future draft capital, and it gives the Nuggets a player they can really use in Dosunmu.

“Dosunmu is not a conventional floor general, but he’s shown glimmers of improved playmaking coming around ball screens, and he knows how to facilitate when attacking downhill,” Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale said.

Only Payton Pritchard and Tyrese Haliburton matched Dosunmu’s scoring efficiency (57.1%) and assist rate (12.4) on drives while finishing at least as many of them (371). He can also defend better than Jamal Murray on the Nuggets currently.

“Stomaching the three years and $23.2 million remaining on Nnaji’s deal is a tall order,” Favale admitted on behalf of the Bulls. “However, it’s also not the back-busting task many make it out to be. Nnaji tops out at 5.3 percent of the salary cap.”Plus, if the Bulls also move on from expiring contracts like Nikola Vucevic or Zach Collins, they’d have minutes for Nnaji.

“Getting a flier Watson is worth the financial trouble. He could be their perimeter-defensive anchor of the future and more on-ball offense to plumb,” Favale added. “Having to pay him next summer adds a wrinkle to the equation, but the Bulls are seeing firsthand with Josh Giddey how restricted free agency favors incumbent teams.”

Additionally, if Chicago is bent on bringing Giddey back and re-signing Coby White next summer, Dosunmu has no place on the team anyway. “Exchanging him for a higher upside play in Watson and an unprotected swap from a Nuggets team with one of the NBA’s most complicated cap sheets is perfectly defensible,” the analyst concluded. “If the Bulls’ front office feels otherwise, they can push for Denver’s 2030 swap or maybe even Julian Strawther.”

It remains to be seen what the Bulls plan to do with Dosunmu, but this would be a viable option to move on and set themselves up a little better in the future.