Bulls Rumors: Andre Drummond Exercises $3.4M Contract Option Amid Mavericks Buzz

Chicago Bulls center Andre Drummond opted into his $3.4 million option for the 2023-24 season and will return to the team next season, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

That decision comes as a bit of a surprise, as NBA insider Marc Stein reported earlier Thursday that multiple rival teams expected Drummond to sign with the Dallas Mavericks.

Drummond, 29, signed a two-year, $6.6 million contract with the Bulls during the offseason as a backup to Nikola Vucevic. He averaged 6.0 points and 6.6 rebounds while playing in 67 games.

The totals were by far a career low in every category, and Drummond also failed to start a single game in a season for the first time in his career. He had previously started at least 36 games in every season since his rookie year.

Drummond remained highly efficient on a per-minute basis and seems to have settled into a role as a high-energy big off the bench. His decision to opt in suggests he feels he could not have gotten a better contract elsewhere. Drummond also said he's found comfort in playing in Chicago.

"In the grand scheme of things, I'm at a point where I enjoy where I'm at. I love playing in Chicago," Drummond said on the I AM ATHLETE podcast. "The team is great. I think we just needed more time to build chemistry together. We had a lot of injuries … There wasn't really any consistency with our unit because guys were in and out of the lineup. So I think with a fresh year, we'll be fine because we showed spurts of being a really good team. Just looking forward to a new year and a fresh start."

Drummond previously played for the Detroit Pistons, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets.