News: 7 days agoSmith agreed Monday with the Bulls on a three-year, $27 million contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports.
Spin: After declining his $5.42 million player option for 2024-25 on Friday, Smith will get a slight bump in salary for the upcoming season plus two extra years on his deal as he heads to Chicago. He'll slot in as the Bulls' new backup center behind starter Nikola Vucevic, after Andre Drummond struck an agreement with the 76ers on Sunday. Though he occasionally found himself outside of coach Rick Carlisle's rotation in Indiana in 2023-24, Smith served as Myles Turner's primary backup and was productive on a per-minute basis, averaging 9.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.0 three-pointers and 0.6 blocks in 17.2 minutes per contest over 61 regular-season appearances. Though his spot in Chicago's rotation should be more stable with fewer challengers for the top backup center job, Smith may not see a dramatic uptick in playing time with the Bulls so long as Vucevic stays healthy.
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