Why Chicago Bulls’ RFA Josh Giddey has had no outside attraction

The Chicago Bulls have had the best possible situation fall into their laps with Josh Giddey. He has had no interest from any other teams, meaning the Bulls won’t have to decide whether or not to match a lucrative offer sheet some other team signs him to.

It also means that Giddey has no leverage whatsoever. How did this happen for a 22-year-old star in a depleted FA class? Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailay discussed why Giddey is the best remaining free agent and why he’s still available at all.

Despite “valid questions” about his three-point shooting and defense, Josh Giddey really had a good season, especially after the All-Star break. Over the last 19 games he played, Giddey scored 21.2 points and added 10.7 rebounds, 9.3 assists, 1.9 threes, and 1.5 steals, all while shooting 45.7% from range.

During that time, the Bulls were an impressive 7.2 points per game better with Giddey on the floor, and they had a winning record of 12-7 in those contests. “That kind of production from a 6’8″, 22-year-old guard, even from an abbreviated stint, should be intriguing enough for him to have multiple suitors, but he just happened to hit restricted free agency in perhaps the worst possible summer,” Bailey said.

This was because virtually no team in the NBA had the ability to sign him. He was always going to cost a fair amount, even if the $30 million annual price tag proved to be a far-fetched idea. That doesn’t matter, though, since few teams could’ve really come close to that price tag in the first place.

“Spending power throughout the league was almost entirely spent before the offseason even started, so Giddey doesn’t have a ton of leverage in negotiations with the incumbent Chicago Bulls,” Bailey said, adding that Giddey’s RFA status gives him virtually no power whatsoever.

“Unless he’s willing to play one season on his $11.1 million qualifying offer and then try unrestricted free agency in a year, he might be forced to play on a very team-friendly deal for the Bulls,” Bailey said. The Brooklyn Nets had the money to spend and were pegged as a possible suitor, but then they drafted a plethora of guards in the NBA draft, leaving the Bulls with no competition and a depleted market for Giddey.