Don’t get it twisted, the Chicago Bulls took their sweet time before locking up restricted free agent Josh Giddey to a shiny long-term deal. After stalled negotiations ahead of last season, Giddey played out the 2024-25 campaign on the final year of his four-year, $27 million rookie contract.
Then, after an impressive first season in the Windy City, the Bulls stood firm and offered Giddey a four-year, $80 million contract. While significant, the deal still came in below the lucrative extensions signed by Immanuel Quickley and Jalen Suggs last offseason.
Consequently, Giddey refrained, instead seeking a contract paying $30 million annually, similar to the deal his draft-classmate Jalen Suggs received. Nonetheless, as a restricted free agent, Giddey’s leverage was all but gone. While one could argue he’s more impactful than both Quickley and Suggs, leaguewide salary cap constraints left the ball in Chicago’s court.
It soon became clear that Giddey wasn’t going to land $30 million per season, let alone a five-year deal. That became even more obvious as fellow restricted free agents Cameron Thomas, Quentin Grimes, and Jonathan Kuminga all faced prolonged contract stalemates deep into the offseason.
Among the aforementioned trio, Thomas’ situation was resolved first. However, the score-first guard didn’t sign a long-term extension. Instead, he opted for a one-year, $5.9 million qualifying offer, ultimately betting on himself ahead of unrestricted free agency in the 2026 offseason.
Following Thomas’ bold decision, there was real belief that Giddey could take a similar route, especially since his qualifying offer was nearly double Thomas’ at $11.1 million. Instead, the Bulls took action, finally backing up their words to resolve the long-standing contract conundrum.
Chicago took the lead in finalizing the Giddey contract
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, it was the Bulls, not Giddey, who showed the sense of urgency, pushing the new contract across the finish line.
Breaking down each restricted free agent situation, Fischer wrote of Giddey’s, “Yet things finally came together for Giddey [and] the Bulls this week, sources say, when Chicago called the 22-year-old Australian’s representation to say it was motivated to get a deal done and secure its lead ballhandler for the foreseeable future.”
After a months-long stalemate, Chicago deserves credit for its drive to re-sign Giddey, especially considering the Bulls’ front office blazed its own path rather than following the Brooklyn Nets by letting Giddey sign the qualifying offer, or sitting tight like the Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers until the 11th hour to make a decision.
Chicago didn’t damage its relationship with Giddey, as the Warriors have with Kuminga, and it’s fair to say the 6-foot-8 point guard should feel elated with how Chicago handled negotiations, even if they took longer than expected. The team met Giddey halfway, despite holding all the leverage.
Urgency hasn’t been a strong suit of Chicago’s front office in recent seasons—except, of course, when it came to Patrick Williams’ undeserved $90 million deal. This time, however, the Bulls’ decisiveness deserves commendation. Giddey has proven his worth and looks every bit the part of a premier starting point guard at just 22. Lastly, as an added bonus for the Bulls, he’ll earn less than Quickley and Suggs. It’s win-win all around.
