Lonzo Ball was another player that teams were calling for, but the Bulls ended up signing him to a contract extension, keeping him around for years to come. There could have been a chance he was dealt, and the Bulls would have received a pick in return, according to The Athletic’s John Hollinger.

“Nikola Vučević is 34, having his best season and … is still here. According to a league source, the Bulls had a firm offer to get a first-round pick and take on future money for Lonzo Ball and extended him instead,” Hollinger wrote. “Good news, though: 12 of the Bulls’ players are signed for next season. They can just re-sign Josh Giddey, run it back, and chase the Play-In again. Yay?”

The Bulls and Ball agreed to a two-year, $20 million deal as the trade deadline approached, shutting down any signs of him being dealt somewhere else.

Are the Bulls rebuilding or competing?

Though the Bulls had been trying to trade players such as LaVine and Vucevic, the vibe is that they aren’t trying to rebuild. Before their recent game against the Golden State Warriors, head coach Billy Donovan was asked about the current roster after the LaVine trade.

“When you have a roster full of players, you want to at least see what you have,” Donovan said. “Maybe it’s good, maybe it’s not. But like tonight, going into the game, I, from a coaching standpoint, from a playing standpoint, our guys are all in trying to compete and go out there to play. Now whether or not we’re good enough to do that and conform well enough, that’s something else. But the message is not, ‘Hey, guys, we’re just going to play all these young guys and get them some experience and roll them out there and just see what happens.’”

The Bulls have players on the team who are known for competing, and they still have a roster that will win games this season. With them sitting in the 10th seed currently, they can find themselves in the playoffs if they can handle business in the Play-In.