Bulls Trade Rumors: Jabari Parker, Robin Lopez Next To Be Dealt After Justin Holiday Move To Grizzlies?

As the Chicago Bulls look to rebuild their roster around the needs of new head coach Jim Boylen, it appears two of the team’s more talented players might be on the way out. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune said the team was, indeed, shopping Jabari Parker and Robin Lopez, days after the Bulls traded Justin Holiday to the Grizzlies.

Rumors surrounding those players have floated around for a while, but Johnson’s report further confirmed that the Bulls would ideally like to get something back for them. The Bulls got two second-round picks and Wayne Selden, Jr. in exchange for Holiday.

One only has to look at how many minutes Parker and Lopez have played to infer that the Bulls might want to move on by the Feb. 7 trade deadline. Parker recorded zero minutes in a nine-game stretch that spanned mid-December into early January, after consistently playing more than 30 minutes per game earlier in the year.

He returned to the lineup on Friday, registering 14 minutes and scoring four points in a loss to the Indianapolis Pacers.

Lopez, meanwhile, is only playing 16.8 minutes per game this season, a drop-off of almost 10 minutes per game from last year. That is the fewest minutes per game Lopez has played since his 2011 season in Phoenix.

It is unclear what the Bulls could get or what they would want for either player. Parker could still be an appealing option for an NBA team, as he has averaged 15.2 points per game while shooting 48 percent from the field and 33 percent from three in his career. His playing time over the years has been limited by two torn ACLs, but the former second overall pick is still only 23 years old.

Lopez has value as a rim protector who shoots well over 50 percent at the rim, and he also has a credible mid-range shot. As NBC Sports pointed out, his expiring contract could make him an attractive trade target to teams that need a big man who will not count too much against the salary cap.

Jim Boylen was immediately named the team’s permanent head coach in early December after former head coach Fred Hoiberg was fired. His emphasis on defense at the expense of pace and scoring would receive criticism in the best of scenarios, but his attitude soured some fans, pundits and even Bulls players from the jump.

A week after he got the job, there were reports of a near-mutiny in the Bulls locker room after the team lost to the Boston Celtics by 56 points. Some players advocated for skipping practice entirely. Lopez is one of the veterans who has spoken more positively of Boylen recently.