NEWSLETTER
As attention turns from free agency to Summer League, Ayo Dosunmu is still waiting to sign his next contract.
The Chicago Bulls did extend the guard a $5.2 million qualifying offer, officially making him a restricted free agent a couple of weeks back. However, the guard has yet to accept the one-year deal and there has been barely any reported traction about a possible multi-year agreement between the two parties. With that being the case, the door remains open for other teams with money to spend to throw an offer sheet at the young guard. The Bulls would then have to decide whether they match that deal or let Dosunmu walk.
The good news for Chicago is that Dosunmu’s market has remained somewhat quiet, but we do now know of one team that has reportedly expressed interest. According to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer, the Toronto Raptors had their eye on Dosunmu after the departure of their starting point guard.
The Raptors have a lot left to determine after losing Fred VanVleet to the Rockets. Toronto did add Dennis Schröder as a replacement, and the Raptors, sources said, had also expressed interest in Bulls restricted free agent guard Ayo Dosunmu. It remains to be seen if Toronto will conduct further business to overcome the loss of its starting point guard.
The Raptors watched Fred VanVleet depart for Houston on a highly lucrative three-year, $130 million deal. As Fischer notes, they acted fast to sign veteran guard Dennis Schroder to a two-year, $25.4 million contract, but does that mean they are done adding to the backcourt?
VanVleet’s absence has left some big shoes to fill. While Dosunmu may not be the most traditional point guard, nor anywhere near the scorer that VanVleet is, he would give Toronto a developing player who has shown flashes on both ends of the floor. As the team tries to build around former Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes, he could be an interesting piece of the puzzle.
Still, it’s possible the signing of Schroder has taken a Dosunmu pursuit off the table. Not to mention, according to Spotrac’s team management tool, the Raptors only have about $4.9 million to spend before hitting the luxury tax. They could bump that number up to about $6.8 million by sending Joe Wieskamp packing, but would that be enough to create a truly competitive offer that the Bulls wouldn’t match?
As the clock continues to tick, my eye would be more on teams like the Utah Jazz and San Antonio Spurs. Both are rebuilding squads that have cap space left to spend, and they may view throwing a bid at Dosunmu as a worthwhile gamble.
If Dosunmu were to stay with the Bulls on his qualifying offer, the team would have roughly a $5.3 million cushion before the luxury tax (assuming Spotrac’s listing of Torrey Craig taking the vet minimum is accurate). Obviously, that leaves basically two vet minimum deals to fill the final two spots on the roster. If Dosunmu were to walk, however, the Bulls would find themselves with $10.5 million separating them and the luxury tax. There aren’t many names left worth spending that much money on, but extra money to spend is rarely a bad thing. Could the team throw their own RFA offer at someone like Charlotte’s PJ Washington?
Anyway, I still think the most likely outcome is that Dosunmu returns to Chicago next season. While his role may be a bit ambiguous at this point, he’s still a 23-year-old versatile defender who has shown signs of being a real draft steal. For a Bulls team that has a relatively unclear future, investing in long-term talent remains pivotal.
