Nikola Vučević, Bulls Agree to 3-Year Contract Worth Reported $60M Ahead of NBA FA

Despite plenty of trade speculation that lasted into the past season, Nikola Vučević isn't going anywhere after the sides agreed to terms on a new contract Wednesday.

According to The Athletic and Stadium's Shams Charania, Vučević's new deal is valued at $60 million

This comes after Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reported in August ahead of the 2022-23 campaign that "both sides want him to stay with the team beyond the last year of his contract this coming season and will have initial discussions on what that might look like when training camp begins in the fall."

The USC product's previous contract expired after he made $22 million in base salary in 2022-23.

Chicago doesn't have much flexibility in the immediate future with Zach LaVine on a five-year max deal, DeMar DeRozan under contract through 2023-2024, and Alex Caruso and Lonzo Ball under contract through 2024-25.

Extending Vučević to match up with the rest of that core makes sense as the Bulls look to take another step and compete with the best teams in the Eastern Conference in the Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers and others.

The Bulls lost to the Bucks in the first round of the playoffs in 2021-22. While it was the team's first playoff appearance since 2016-17, Vučević was a target for criticism with DeRozan an MVP candidate and LaVine an All-Star for the second consecutive campaign.

The big man was supposed to be the third piece in a Big Three, and for good reason. After all, the two-time All-Star has been a double-double threat for much of his career and can extend his game beyond the arc.

He seemed like an ideal complement to the perimeter playmakers in DeRozan, LaVine, Ball and Caruso, and he was at times.

However, his first full season with the Bulls didn't go exactly according to plan.

Vučević's 17.6 points per game was his lowest mark since 2017-18, and his 31.4 percent shooting clip from deep was a far cry from the 40.0 percent he shot the previous season. He was also anything but an elite rim-protector on the defensive side as well.

The 2022-23 campaign figured to be an important one for Vučević as he looked to bounce back at 32 years old, and he responded by averaging 17.6 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game behind 52.0 percent shooting from the field and 34.9 percent shooting from deep.

The numbers were almost identical to the previous season, although the shooting totals improved.

Chicago's outlook didn't, though, and it settled for the Eastern Conference's No. 10 overall seed before losing in the play-in tournament.

Yet that didn't stop the Bulls from running things back with Vučević as they attempt to improve their future outlook in the East.