NEWSLETTER
An NBA roster can carry up to 17 players, two of which are on two-way contracts. The Bulls currently have just six players on guaranteed contracts for next season, with Thaddeus Young and Tomas Satoransky both riding partially guaranteed deals. In other words, the Bulls have a significant number of roster spots to fill this summer, and considering the movement we saw from Karnisovas at the trade deadline, it feels safe to assume most of those roster spots will be filled with fresh faces.
Predicting free agency is like predicting how many times Michael Jordan took something personally: it just can’t be done. However, that doesn’t mean we can not have an educated guess about whom one of those fresh faces might be. With the 44th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, the Chicago Bulls selected Montenegrin basketball player Marko Simonovic. The big man currently plays overseas for Mega Soccerbet of the ABA League. When Karnisovas spoke to reporters on draft night, he was clear that Simonovic would remain in Europe for “at least” another season.
Well, it’s been “at least” one season, and thus Karnisovas was asked for a status update on Simonovic at his end-of-season press conference.
“Well, he’s in our plans. We’re going to look at it. He is still going to play some of his season I think for the Serbian league, but once the season is over we’re going to evaluate all of his season and see what we can do. But he is in our plans for sure.”
Karnisovas continued and said Siminovic has some more games to play this season, and the front office would use the next couple of months to decide where he stands. So the guy basically hedged, but the confidence in which he said Simonovic remained part of the organization’s plans feels important. Whether it’s this offseason or next, it’s clear Karnisovas still sees a role for the 6’11” center … and for good reason.
Simonovic averaged 15.7 points 9.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists over his 25 games played. He shot 47.3 from the field and 34.9 percent from downtown (on 5.2 attempts per game). According to Basketball-Reference, Simonovic recorded nine double-doubles on the season with a career-high 28 points in his performance against Borac Čačak on February 28th.
Considering the stems from the same program that produced MVP candidate Nikola Jokic, and Karnisovas was also the one to grab Jokic with a second-rounder in 2014, people have been quick to compare the two. However, while they do share a position and some versatile offensive capabilities, they are fundamentally different players. Jokic is a gifted playmaker who has used his high basketball IQ and methodical decision-making to become one of the best players in the world. Simonovic (other than being, ya know, an unproven 21-year-old prospect) is an athletic and lengthy big who is light on his feet and plays with a high motor.
There is no question Simonovic would have to hit the weight room if came to the states, but there are surely natural skills that could translate to the game immediately. As for the skills he has yet to learn, it feels like Nikola Vucevic could be a wonderful mentor. The All-Star could help him with his post-up game, screen-setting, and all-around decision-making. From the film I’ve watched, Simonovic certainly possesses solid court visions, but I don’t doubt Vucevic could really help elevate his playmaking.
I have no clue if Simonovic is ready for the NBA spotlight. Karnisovas is a European basketball expert, so I’ll trust that whenever he brings Simonovic over is the right time. The Bulls are set to have many roster spots open this summer, though, and it feels quite possible one of those roster spots could have Simonovic’s name on it.
