[Shams Charania] Patrick Williams intends to sign a five-year, $90 million deal to return to the Chicago Bulls, league sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
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4d
Pats just being realistic. He ain’t getting that anywhere else. That’s good money for him and a good deal for the Bulls.
4 years. 5th is a player option.
18 mill a year is a great price. The new mid level exception is like 12 mill, this is the new salary of a role player. Be happy, he’s young and still has a ton of upside
Yeah I don’t get the people who are upset about this. Frankly, it’s a good deal
Everyone probably thinks about Coby’s contract after his 4th season, but we all knew that was a bargain
idk why anyone here doesnt factor in age and think teens wont develop. they said same crap to lauri, carter look what happened.
coby is the best contract in nba but kinda similar to caruso he expires soon. while i love him, wouldnt be mad if we got det 2025 pick similar haul. pat complements future franchise player way better contract will make him last as a bull decade. pat is so cheap locked long he is nearing untouchable with insane these new deals are.
Love Colby, but Jalen Brunson is the best contract in the league rn
While I agree because Coby still has to show he can will teams to a win like Jalen you have to bear in mind that Coby is earning half of Jalen right now
and Jalen is a lot better right now too, his contract is a huge steal for a top ~10 player in the league
Nah Wemby is. Cheap and long team control.
Nah because Wendy is exactly where he should be. Colby White is straight up under paid lol.
I’m guessing outside of rookie contracts right? Otherwise I’d easily give it to Wemby
In four years, he’s gone from averaging 9 points a game to 10.
His rebounding averages have actually decreased.
Never more than one steal or block a game.
Never more than two assists.
FG% has decreased to a career low in his fourth year.
How many NBA players have had that kind of a start in their first four years and then went on to be a star?
But but we have to believe or we’re bad fans or something like this 😂
I understand criticism because that’s all I’ve done with this team since Jimmy was traded but I do think there are fair points on both sides of this argument. I just want to give him a year without Demar iso ball or Zach. See if he becomes the aggressive guy we saw in those 2 (literally) games. If not then it is who he is and it’s an easily moveable contract with the cap going up. And this time it actually is easily moveable
I just need Bulls fans to stop saying the phrase “easily movable contract”, when it isnt necessarily the case.
There was a report yesterday that no team wanted to take on Lavine with a 1st round pick included to take him.
Easily movable contract …
Agreed in general BUT $18 mil with the cap going up is sizable difference than $43 and up over 3/4 years cmon.
I think Pats contract is a good number, it was the phrase I had a qualm with
My only frustration is that we finally had a chance to see him be a key player and he got hurt again. Hope he stays healthy next season.
I think it's mostly old heads like me that can't believe what contracts are now in the NBA.
Like $18m a year is close to all star level in the MLB. It's more than any player makes in the NHL period, and it's pro bowl level money in the NFL
I think it has a decent (d-cent?) amount to do with the fact the NBA just has the smallest roster of the aforementioned sports.
Cause 90 million sounds like a lot and people don't realize it's over 5 years or something idk
better than coby contract bc its way longer. the bulls core of coby,pat, ayo makes less than a regular max if this was destination like miami, u could sign two max fas like lebron, pg13 and win a title.
This contract has steal potential. And if he doesn't pan out, very tradeable. Great deal for us
I think I saw that the Jazz had 50 million in space, and I got worried that Danny Ainge was going to throw a 4yr/120m offer sheet just for shits and giggles
And if he doesn't pan out, very tradeable.
I'm not entirely out on PWill yet, but I swear people say this about every deal we make no matter what.
This is exactly right. NBA salaries are insane so anything under $20M is pretty damn good even if he never gets any better it's not a horrible amount to pay someone who is just a role player.
i've been hearing about this dude's upside for 16 seasons now
Details didn't show up. But it probably starts below 18 and has set raises... I'm sure we'll find out soon
Would like it better if it's a declining deal but either way it's fine.
He definitely does not have a ton of upside. That said, this money is fine for a fringe starter in what should be his prime.
And it's for FIVE years! If Pat improves like we know he can, that's a steal.
You know he can? Cause it's been 4 years and I haven't seen much improvement. He's a bench player locked in for 5 YEARS. That's insane. Bidding against no one too.
its a steal either way. if he becomes star/superstar hes like several times worth scottie/iq contract looks disgusting easy to contend titles bc u saved hundreds of millions spent for fa.
if he busts, hes still value contract elite 3 and d complementing cooper flagg. theres 0 scenario hes not worth. he would have to be injury prone like lavine.
“If he becomes star/superstar” - what makes you think that’s a reasonable outcome based on his four year career so far?
“If he busts, hes still value contract” No, he becomes Jordan Poole or Davis Bertans. If he busts, he’s useless. 18 million isn’t a ton by today’s standards, but having that on the books for FIVE years can be crippling. Teams will not sign up to take that if he “busts”.
“Elite 3 and D” - lmao. The percentages on three isn’t terrible, but he also shoots at low volume. Defense is encouraging. Not saying he doesn’t have potential, but you’re suggesting his floor is elite 3 and D. That’s crazy.
“Complementing Cooper Flagg” LMAO so now we’re assuming the Bulls are getting Flagg. Ok.
You are beyond delusional bro. But thanks for the laugh.
Yeah, in year 5 this could look like one of the better contracts in the league
It’s not a great price for a guy who’s averaged 10ppg and played only 50 games a season. It’s just about fine.
If you look at competitive teams, usually the 3-5th best paid player is making $18M. On tanking teams, he’d be 2nd or 3rd at times but those are weird cap situations.
This contract is assuming he can become a very solid starter, something he has yet to prove.
For a guy that defends and shoots the ball the way he does, this is the price for that. If he were making 15ppg we’d be paying way more.
He’s been benched and injured multiple times. Yeah his defense is great but this isn’t a “great” deal. It’s just fine. I have a feeling it’s also the biggest deal he could have gotten anywhere.
BS, he’d have gotten at least 20 on the open market, every team needs his skill set.
Then why didn't he choose to hit FA?? He signed now bc he knew market wasn't giving him $90. Bulls overpaid for a 8th man.
Comfort, his boy Coby is here, he obviously likes it in Chicago. Dude shoots 40% on a team that desperately needs shooting and is coming in at 18 a year, this is a steal that they can move off of in the next few years if they want
holy fk was there 0 suitors this is literally coby contract..
Feels like we bid against ourself here
People are going to hate, but that’s the price for someone of his caliber, age, and potential these days. Hoping he can stay healthy and have a bigger role this year.
I’m really happy about this, I just want to see us do something about the big man position now.
wtf is his caliber
Young forwards who shoot 41% from three and can guard the opposing team’s best player on any given night. They don’t grow on trees, and with more usage that’ll become more apparent.
Its honestly a bit cheaper than I thought lol
This is completley fine. ANd not the VUc extension sort of fine when everyone was just coping lol.
I don’t know how people can hate. By the time P Will is like 27 that contracts gonna be MLE level most likely. Is the aav higher than what he’s earned off his own level of play? Sure. But in terms of percentage of the cap will this contract hurt us? Nope. At least it would’ve hurt less than the 40M/yr we offered Demar or the 40M/yr we’re currently giving Zach
potential lol
Please take that Coby leap for the sake of all of our mental health
Think the Giddey and White combo helps him out tremendously. Basically what the FO had been wanting to do when Ball was healthy.
I think we all know pat doesn't have that dawg in him. He has the body to be great, but he just isn't. I hope I'm wrong. But I'm tired of seeing 1 20 point game from him and being like hell ya this is his year... And then scoring 20 pts in the next 7 games while being benched for javonte green to close out games
Exactly this! If he just played more aggressive I think he can actually be effective instead of just sitting in the corner, I’ll give him one more year but if he doesn’t do it this year then I’m over it. Literally all I need to see is just him trying to score😂😂
People still used to the old prices for Mid level contracts. Y'all gotta calibrate your gauges. This is perfectly reasonable for a young player on a mid level contract.
This is a good deal. If he doesn't pan out, then so be it. If he develops into an exceptional role player, he will be a great trade asset. This is assuming we're going to be losing for the next few years. This fits into our timeline.
At his current level he is fine for that deal, 40% 3pt shooter with good defensive skills.
why offer him more money after a season where he played less games, less minutes per game and played worse? why give him a player option?
We paid a young player with upside instead of giving up on them. Thank god
Another young player with upside. Don't forget we also extended Ayo and Coby.
This
I expected him to get 4/$80 million so not bad. He still needs to be better to earn this.
Let’s see if with DeMar likely gone and LaVine also possibly gone he can take the next step
This is better than that.
People will complain about this deal but it’s a really great cost controlled contract.
People would have equally complained if Pat took the tendered offer and went into next season unrestricted. I like the signing.
cap is rising so high pats deal is new mle. and 5/90 is way cheaper than 4/80 he wanted.
give pat the keys nothing to lose by developing him he has great trade value if he becomes 3rd option.
If he reaches even 75% of his potential this deal will be a steal.
He needs to be the 2nd-3rd option on Offense this year. See what he can fucking do for once.
Hopefully this contract looks like a steal the last couple years of it
The deal isn't great but it isn't awful. I'm just bummed because I can't stand watching that low motor doofus stand around all game. Truly a masterclass in not finding ways to contribute every time he steps on the floor.
Lol who ever is hating on this is stupid. This is good value, just hope that Pat stays healthy.
Here for healthy Pat and more development. More hungry Pat would be nice.
The guy is still what, 22? I always feel like I'm taking crazy pills talking about Patrick Willaims with Bulls fan.
Guy can reasonably defend 2/3/4 and even straight 1-5 in spurts. Good on ball defender, average off ball defender. 40%+ from 3 for his career. Frustratingly Bad rebounder, no doubt there.
We're talking about at 22 year old who has already installed a floor as a good rotational 3/D.
Yeah, its not the ceiling you wanted. But hes also still ERY young. Imagine what a full season playing with an actual Point guard and not next to Demar/Zach could potentially do for him?
This contract is basically paying for his floor, his ceiling is mostly a bonus.
Amazing deal. This will look like a steal in years 3-5 when he's entering his prime
I don't hate it. I don't love it. It's up to him to start improving and make us excited about it
Great era to play in. These contracts for subpar players is wild. Good for him! Go get paid young man!
As an NFL fan mostly, $90 mil is crazy for a borderline bust
Not bad at all. Let’s hope this turns out like Lavine’s first contract and it looks even better two years from now. With no Lavine, Demar, and Vuc soon I’m expecting Pat to be less passive on offense.
Honestly I'm cool with it - cap keeps rising and we're going nowhere fast so he should have plenty of shot opportunities. If he still can't make a leap, it'll be a pretty affordable contract to trade.
We’ve seen how good he can be, and he’s still super young. Just has to stay on the court.
Well now that he is paid, he gotta put the work in… no more excuses (and thankfully we can finally rest that stupid ass one about DeMar “taking away” from Pat) I want to see massive improvements on his handles & everything else can follow.
Giddey will get the same or more, but most likely the Bulls are going to have highly paid role players. Without some ping pong ball luck, I see some more 5-10 picks coming while rebuilding.
AKME is going to have a 30 win team and continue to draft role players like the last rebuild.
Also Coby has to be thinking what the fuck just a year later. Showed way more deserving of money and didn’t even get half of PWill.
thats Mozgov money!
This could pay off like Coby’s deal if he takes a leap next season without the Mid 3. Just buy him out if he bums out lol
Won't even have to buy him out it'll be good salary filler for trades
Bulls youth movement actually getting me excited again.
this gif brings me joy. i wonder what they’re laughing about
Good price. Got him locked up for a while and that contract could look like a steal in 2 years. Now Pat has to show us what he's got.
Welcome back to my GOAT.
I BULLIEVE.
5 years is great, love this contract
Im sure Coby White is happy for him, but this is another motivation for him … guy’s got 36/3
Totally. But in perspective, Coby is going to make $25m in the next 2 years. Williams will make maybe ~$35m. But the 3 years after that, Coby will probably make $90-100m (if not more) and Williams will make $55m. Still good motivation.
I’m not mad really but I am curious, last year Coby White got only 3 years so why would Pat get 5?
Coby likely preferred a short deal because he think he could prove worthy of a max
The frustration is because there was no market for him so why bid against yourselves. Also locking yourself into a role player for 5 years is risky and kind of indicates that the front office really isn’t committed to a rebuild. In four seasons he’s missed over 60 games already, never a great sign for long-term health when a player has injury issues this young.
In a vacuum 5 years and $90 million isn’t bad
As much hate as PWill and Vooch get, I feel pretty comfortable with the value on both of those contracts now
Another #KeepVuc member? A rare breed around these parts.
I'd like to see Vooch gone but his contract isn't a bad value for the Bulls specifically.
Agreed. He’s an above MLE replacement center production wise. His best trait is being available.
People want to keep vuch? Drugs are bad mmkay
Are we winning a chip next season? No. Do we want to make a playoff push with a top 10 protected pick? No.
So you want to try and get better and lose our pick? Vooch is the best C in the league for our goals this season lmao
I never had an issue with the size of Vuc’s contract, I just had an issue with resigning him at all. In terms of cap hit it’s honestly not bad at all
He was restricted, why not see what he got offered on the market and match if you think it’s fair? I been waiting for the kid to blossom but I feel like this is an overpay.
6M more than the MLE for a 22 y/o wing with 40%+ from 3? This is the going rate for role players.
Unless Pat had a season ending injury, he was getting over 20/yr next year regardless. 3/D Wing is the most over inflated position in the league today regardless of injury concerns.
Hope he pans out
This deal could very well end up aging in a similar fashion to Coby’s deal.
Is the core Coby, Matas, Giddey & Patrick?
Why do people keep forgetting Ayo?
Dunno, people shouldn't ayo is good
Now I know the Bulls are likely not signing DeMar, but if they did would that impact their Tax bill? Because if signing him meant going into the Tax it's 100% certain he's gone because Jerry would burn the UC down to the ground for the insurance money before he pays the luxury tax.
If they re-sign demar bull fans need to march.
good deal! the age of the roster is young and their timelines are aligning nicely
This is like, a little more per year than Rui Hachimura's contract and it's for 5 years. I don't pay attention to contract stuff usually but that sounds good?
Not only is this a bargain deal, but 5 years is a long time. I thought he'd want to take a smaller "prove it" deal so he can get a bigger one. Hope to see some growth in the following seasons.
I’m not a huge fan of his at all so far but that’s a really good deal considering the state that we’re in. That’s like the floor for the role/age that he’s at. Hopefully he grows into it, if not not the kind of deal that will be difficult to move at all.
In today's NBA, that's not bad. Now, don't get me wrong, he could obviously completely fail to develop in which case the contract is bad, but this is probably the best case scenario for a young player like him who has some upside (even though I have been very critical of him and still think he's more likely than not to not amount to much).
Let’s see him play without Zach and Demar controlling the offense. I bet we see a different type of player…hopefully.
Pat with no Demar, and an actual point guard to feed him, this could be as massive steal.
And if it isn’t, teams will still want that contract and want to trade for it. 5 years is huge
Why?
Don't like it. Coby should be pissed off at AK, the organization and his teammates.
When u get a raise but haven’t gotten any certifications.
Did he get any other offers? Were we biding against ourselves again?
Who is better Obi Toppin or Pat Williams? Obi just signed for 30 million less.
I know this sub wants to be hopeful but what is the upside here? 5 year deal for a guy who has literally improved on nothing over a 4 year career. He's an average defender who shoots 40% from deep on like 3-4 attempts. He does nothing else offensively, he doesn’t rebound, and he’s had 2 season ending injuries.
This franchise desperately needs to shed this roster and continuing to bring back the players like Pat is just going to keep us in this capped out, play-in hell.
AK is on a roll so far.
I'm going to PUKE
Dude is a bum. He’s lucky he’s even getting a contract for that much.
Not a terrible deal, but he still needs to take a decent step up in ability/availability to be worth it. Either way glad we didn’t lose him for nothing and he can be a solid contributor for us for a while now
Of course. It's hard to get good value from any contract if a player is missing more than 35% of possible games. But assuming he can get consistently healthy then it's hard to see this being one that we regret in years to come. It's high end role player money, not star money.
Great value! About what I expected. I know he got clowned on for the 200m/4yr but this is great if true.
People misunderstood that quote. He wanted mid 20s. He couldn’t even be offered 200M
I'm ecstatic with that, love me some PAW, I still think he can really be something.
nba money is so crazy
this is honestly a fair price but its just crazy how a player like pat can get a contract like this
edit: i dont know why this is getting downvoted i think people are misunderstanding what im saying 😭 this is a good signing and a fair price but basketball is the only sport where a role player can get 90 million dollars
so this is what we're doing now? doubling down on this bust?
fuck it. i'm in. ordering his jersey. i'm sure his 9 ppg will get us over the hump.
SEE RED!
I’m very happy. Pat for $18 mil per is great value, a lot to improve but a wing like him who’s young & shoots well has value still
I think this deal is much better than giving max contract to limited players like Zach LaVine and resigning with Vuc.
Salary cap has significantly incresed over the years. I know Pat has shown none-to-little positive signs to be an all-star but at least the team could use his size and defense and 3pt shooting.
Haven’t given up on him yet, & $18 mil/year isn’t a bad price nowadays. Hoping he is more aggressive offensively this year.
Everyone gets paid in the nba and this is a perfect example. I really wish he was better but it is what it is. Guy has been below average and still managed to get 90 million.
Hell ya
Way too much money for this bum
Given the steady rise of cap space, this is a good value relevant to the payroll. Though this will trigger Coby and Ayo who produced more and received significantly less money.
Fantastic, I’m actually liking what AKME have done so far, feeling quite hopeful at the moment. I’m sure that will end soon.
Probably fine because everyone knows rookie contracts are underpaid. I just hope it's a declining deal so we front load the pain to years we don't expect to compete anyway.
great price
As someone with a Williams jersey, fuck yeah.
Excited to see how this young core continues to grow.
Big Pattie.. Let me hold a little something something
Do you remember when the 20 mil a season for Zach was considered a high salary? Crazy how much the cap has gone up in the last five 5-6 years.
YES SIR!!
I’m so happy we got this man signed for 5 years. S/o to the Bulls front office for having faith in this man!
this is good news, I like the price for 5 years
I’m pretty sure Patrick’s latest history really the deciding factor in this.
I’m hearing rumors he won’t be ready for the start of the season and the injury was significant.
This is a win in my eyes. With the crazy amount of money role players are making in the league today, I’m stoked this contact is less than $100M over five seasons. Let’s hope Pat can stay healthy and finally grow into the player we’ve all expected him to over these last few seasons.
This will be a STEAL if he turns into a true #1 or #2 option with Zach & Demar gone
Great value.
about right I would like 15 but solid. in before AK doesn't do this etc
I’m not a fan of P Will. Don’t ever think he will be better than like 10ppg and 5 rpg but who else are they gonna spend their money on? No free agents are walking thru that door.
This is a great deal.
Eh I’ll take it. Not a bad contract and potential for project pat to still improve.
5yrs for 90m? He has to show some far better development if he's worth 5 years. The only reason I see that we did this is to get him on a cheap contract to add him a trade package for lavine. Giddey could help develop him and hopefully we'll get a homegrown superstar, but we'll see. If he doesn't it's another lavine signing.
This is when we will finally find out about Patrick Williams. No more dominant ball handlers around him, players around his age, and more growth/maturity. We saw Colby evolve last year, and hopefully this is the year we see the same from Patrick. I remember Lauri constantly be told he was soft, and now he's completely different. Hopefully the same happens with Williams.
Y’all hate LaVine so much, but this bum just got this type of contract without playing even close to what should warrant it…
Even though I have little hope for Williams, when I saw this deal it made sense to me…I see why the team would want to hang on to him at this cost.
4 for $60M should have been good. Should have let him find an offer and match it at best. No one was going to offer 5 for $90M or more.
Bulls front office played themselves here. A lot people trying to talk themselves into this deal.
If Pat never develops a handle/hands this contract isn’t as movable as people act. And 5 years is a long fucking time too for a guy who can’t stay healthy
“This is a steal if he becomes good” seems to be the prevailing sentiment here. I mean, sure, but hard to get excited about a player who’s not good signing up for a long stint with a bad organization that isn’t good at developing players.
LMAO. enjoy being mid with PWILL back in the fold!
you pwill enjoyers will never learn.
Let’s go. That’s a fantastic price for a soon to be 23 year old, especially as the cap increases. Hell yeah!
This is a fantastic deal. Now get rid of DD, Lavine and Vuc, and let this kid along with Coby become the focal point of the offense. This could become a major bargain contract.
Good value. Fair. He’s only 22, lots of time for development.
Not a front office move that is good. Use that money on a player who is worth it
Get off the pipe before negotiations.
If Patrick can stay healthy, significantly improve his handles, and have a featured role in the offense he will reach his all star potential.
What the hell did he do to deserve that money?
Well with the cap going up it's not a bad deal plus it could be a very good tradable contract to a team that values him long term
This is like 6th-7th player money now, just have to adjust your expectations
Looking at the actual contracts of other teams, it’s more like 3-5. I don’t think he’d be the 7th best paid player in any team at 18M.
You are looking at the past year, should be 5-6 money in 2024-2025 on most teams by the end of the contract it will be 7-8 money, I just middled it.
Salary cap will go from 141 million next year to over $200 million by the end of his contract. NBA is going bananas.
He's young, shoots around 40% from 3, and plays good defense.
He makes 1.5 wide open 3’s a game.
He averaged less than 4 rebounds a game at his size. Literally has no court vision and does nothing on offense besides standing on the 3 point line waiting for a wide open shot.
He sucks. It is what it is because nba money is wild but he is not good.
One of the few sane fans here. This sub is raving about the length and his potential but the truth is the dude has shown nothing at all, shoots a putrid 44% on FGs total, and 18mil for five years could easily look like a curse.
Its a move where they gave him the max years banking on him making a decent leap but even if he doesn’t it’s just a slight overpay for a forward that can shoot the three and play decent defense. If he makes the jump it’s great because he’s locked in for 5 years on a bargain deal. If not, he’s still a moveable contract down the line.
I’m sorry you’re getting downvoted. You’re right. He’s done absolutely nothing. I am just so over this team. The only thing he’s done right is that he’s only 22.
This sub will be lamenting that it was a five year deal soon. Even at 18mil a year, this could be one of the worst contracts in the league. It’s already arguably a negative value. Who would give up assets to take that deal on? No one.
Really, what other team would have matched this offer? He scores 9-10 points, gets 3-4 rebounds, hits 1 3-pointer and gets an assist every game. There are about 250 other guys in the league who could do this if they were playing 27-30 minutes a game.
No team would make this offer. If they tried to trade this contract tomorrow, The bulls would have to attach a first or take on another bad contract just to move it. I’m shocked at the blind optimism people are showing right now
Have you ever seen a player not show any meaningful growth in his statistical categories over four years and get paid that kind of money?
No, it’s honestly crazy… I truly do not understand what everyone else is seeing. If he wasn’t drafted 4th (which he clearly shouldn’t have been), I don’t think everyone in this sub would be so high on him.
I think it’s a reflection of a franchise that has basically hit rock bottom. There’s just very little to be excited for. I do have high hopes for Matas and at least they’ll be bad enough to get a top 4 pick next year.
Ha, yeah agreed.
Making more money than Lauri Markkanen, Grayson Allen, Austin Reaves, Malik Monk, and Naz Reid. Just criminal. PWill has been in the league for 4 seasons, has no idea where to be on the court and most of time looks afraid to shoot. His stats are almost no different than when he was a rookie. He was drafted way too high at number 4 and now the Bulls don’t want to look stupid for that, so they are giving him a bag. Ridiculous. No other team in the league would probably give him half this money.
People afraid of the length when it's probably the best part. He's stuck at 18 million for 5 years as the cap increases?
With our need to go younger if nothing else he's a guy that doesn't get in anyone's way regardless of who we draft or who leads the team. Whether we switch, play small or big he's at his core a very simple player who shoots and defends.