Bulls Will Try to Sign Nikola Vučević to Contract Extension, Karnišovas Says

Chicago Bulls general manager Artūras Karnišovas says the team plans to re-sign center Nikola Vučević, who can become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

"We want him to be here," Karnišovas told reporters Thursday.

The Bulls can offer Vučević an extension worth up to $118.1 million over four years. It's unclear what level of negotiations have taken place regarding an extension thus far.

After getting off to a slow start to the season, Vučević has been in All-Star form for more than a month. He's averaging 22.5 points, 13.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in February, helping lead Chicago to a 3-1 record to start the month.

The Bulls spent much of the lead-up to Thursday's trade deadline fielding calls from teams hoping they would become a seller. Zach LaVine was the overwhelming focus of those rumors, but Karnišovas chose to stay stagnant at the deadline. Had the Bulls decided to blow up their core, it's possible Vučević would have found himself elsewhere by 3 p.m. Thursday.

"Obviously, there are going to be certain things to talk about and figure out," Vučević said. "But I'm happy here. I have a good relationship with a lot of my teammates and I'm playing much more comfortably lately. So all those things are important.

"Obviously, how we finish the season and the plan going forward will matter. But I don't focus on that right now. That's for whenever that time comes. Just focus on playing now. Now that the deadline has passed, we can put all these rumors to rest and just focus on finishing this season off strong."

The Bulls are currently 26-28 and in a fight among several teams looking to make the play-in tournament.

Vučević's recent uptick in play will give him some leverage in contract talks, but it is fair to wonder how much Chicago should be investing in a core that can't even lock up a top-six playoff berth.