NBA buyout market moving slowly, could limit Bulls options
Some were expecting a robust buyout market across the NBA after the trade deadline passed, but it's been pretty quiet so far.
Veteran guard Goran Dragic is expected to have plenty of interest once he clears waivers. NBA insider Shams Charania reported Dragic agreed to buyout terms with the Spurs on Tuesday.
Dragic played in five games for Toronto early this season. after being included in the Kyle Lowry sign-and-trade to Miami. He took a leave of absence from the team for personal reasons in late November and never returned. He was then traded to San Antonio for ex-Bull Thad Young.
Dragic, 35, averaged 13.4 points and 4.4 assists for the Heat last season. He's a career 36.4% shooter from 3-point range. In theory, he could give the Bulls some insurance at the guard spot as well as another veteran in the lineup. How much he would play if Zach LaVine and Lonzo Ball both return healthy is a question.
The Bulls also probably have a greater need for a player with size, but so far none of the potential big-man buyouts has happened. Paul Millsap looks like a keeper in Philadelphia, Tristan Thompson is getting backup minutes in Indiana, Robert Covington has moved up in the Clippers' rotation after an injury to Norman Powell, and nothing's changed with Robin Lopez in Orlando or point guard Dennis Schroder in Houston.
ESPN reported the Bucks plan to sign forward DeAndre Bembry, who was released by Brooklyn last week to clear roster space.
Players need to be released by March 1 in order to be eligible for the playoffs with a new team.
Stats within streaks:
Here's a look at how some of the other memorable scoring streaks in recent NBA history stack up against DeMar DeRozan in terms of efficiency.
Over the last six games, DeRozan has averaged 38.7 points while shooting 61.0%, giving him 1.59 points per shot taken.
• One streak that's very similar is Kevin Durant in 2014. Over six games with Oklahoma City, Durant averaged 39.8 points and shot 64.4%, for 1.81 points per attempt. Durant did not surpass 35 points in every game like DeRozan has.
• Michael Jordan, like DeRozan, didn't shoot many 3-pointers. His five-game streak in 1996 of scoring 35-plus featured 1.36 points per attempt. In Jordan's 1988 run of seven-straight games with at least 35, he averaged 42.1 points, shot 55.8% and was at 1.48 points per attempt.
• Maybe the gold standard for efficiency was Steph Curry just last season. He had an 11-game stretch of averaging 40.0 points, shooting 54.0%, and because of the high numbers of 3-pointers, averaged 1.71 points per attempt.
Curry's 2021 streak included four games shooting below 50%, four games with at least 10 made 3-pointers and he hit at least 32 points every time out.
• Kobe Bryant's nine-game run of 40 or more in 2003 had him averaging 44.0 points and shooting 49.6% for 1.41 points per attempt.
• James Harden had a 10-game stretch of at least 35 points for Houston in 2019. He average 44.9 points, shot just 40.6% overall, but averaged 1.62 points per attempt because he took so many 3s.
White hotter:
Arturas Karnisovas typically keeps his intentions close to the vest, but it's hard to imagine the Bulls gave much thought to trading Coby White at the deadline.
As has been said here before, consistent NBA scorers are hard to find, so moving someone who can fill that role and is still on a rookie contract is borderline ridiculous. In the last three games, White has found a rhythm, averaging 20.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4 assists while hitting 15 of 22 shots from 3-point range. Even with DeMar DeRozan's hot streak, White has helped push this four-game win streak.
A tough role to fill is what could be called a "professional scorer," who can get buckets consistently, especially coming of the bench. Jamal Crawford and Jason Terry come to mind as two of the best in recent years. White has room to grow, but isn't far from that level, and he didn't even have an off-season because of his shoulder surgery.
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