NBA Trade Rumors: Michael Carter-Williams To Bulls, Tony Snell To Bucks Is Nearly Official

The NBA trade rumors as of Sunday morning look to be true, and the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks will soon complete a swap of personnel. In particular, the Bulls will pick up former NBA Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams. In exchange, the Bucks will receive swingman Tony Snell from Chicago. For weeks, Carter-Williams had been the subject of trade rumors, and now he finally has been made part of a deal. It could provide both of these postseason contenders the help they need in the coming 2016-17 NBA season.

According to ESPN, the trade was officially agreed upon by both teams. ESPN’s Jeff Goodman received the news from a source close to Carter-Williams, who told him he’d been traded to Chicago as of Saturday evening. Neither Carter-Williams nor Snell played when the Bucks and Bulls met in preseason action on Saturday night.

Carter-Williams now gives the Bulls a solid backup for point guard Rajon Rondo. Rondo led the league in assists last season and will look to continue that contribution for Chicago. It gives the Bulls some assurance too, in case their star goes down with any unfortunate injuries.

The former rookie of the year in 2013-14 with the Philadelphia 76ers has spent three years in the league now. He averaged 11.5 points, 5.2 assists, and 5.1 rebounds a game in the most recent season. For his career numbers, he’s averaged 14.5 points, 6.1 assists and 5.6 rebounds a game. With the Bulls, he certainly will be a nice addition to boost the depth of their bench as they compete in the Eastern Conference.

Snell was the 20th pick in the 2013 draft, but he has been underwhelming in Chicago. A third-year player out of New Mexico, he has achieved subpar numbers, averaging just 5.3 points, under one assist, and over two rebounds a game. However, the Bucks were said to be “intrigued by Snell’s potential.” His role will be filling in for Kris Middleton and also as a backup. His long range shooting is particularly what has the Bucks interested.

Carter-Williams had been mentioned in previous trade rumors involving the Sacramento Kings. That deal was said to have involved a swap of Carter-Williams in exchange for guard Ben McLemore, but the deal never came to fruition. However, this is also not the first time the former Syracuse player has been traded in the league. He was dealt from Philadelphia to in a three-team trade involving the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks.

Brandon Knight was also part of the deal, and he ended up with the Suns. Since the Bucks received Carter-Williams, Milwaukee hasn’t been too impressed with his contributions. Gianni Antetokounmpo has also emerged as the major star of the team, with Jabari Parker also beginning to develop as a star himself. With Carter-Williams riding the bench more often, it made sense for Milwaukee to deal him and pick up some more pieces of their puzzle.

The Bulls have been one of the busier teams in the offseason. They were part of a trade during the preseason in which their former NBA MVP All-Star guard, Derrick Rose, ended up going to the New York Knicks. Chicago acquired big man Robin Lopez as part of the deal. In addition, they added longtime Heat star Dwyane Wade and former All-Star Rajon Rondo to the lineup.

According to Chicago Tribune, this trade should officially take place on Monday barring any snags in the deal. The sorts of things that could cause a deal to stall usually include players passing the required medical tests. The Chicago Bulls now add Carter-Williams to the talented lineup that includes Rondo, Dwyane Wade, and Jimmy Butler as they look to compete with the likes of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors in the East.

NBA fans, do you think this deal will help the Bulls in terms of making it to the postseason? Are both teams playoff-bound this coming NBA season?

[Featured Image by Patrick Smith/Getty Images]