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By Alex Kirschenbaum
Contributing Entertainment Writer
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Chicago Bulls team president Arturas Karnisovas appears to be all-in on adding controversial lottery cast-offs this season.
The Athletic's Darnell Mayberry broke the news that free agent swingman Joshua Primo, formerly the No. 12 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, had inked an Exhibit 10 training camp contract with Chicago. The Bulls later verified the deal, per K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Sports Network.
Primo was cut by San Antonio very early into 2022-23 after he allegedly indecently exposed himself to multiple women, including a former Spurs team psychologist, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. He was suspended for four games and didn't suit up for another team for the rest of that season.
Read More on NBA
The 6-foot-6 Alabama wing eventually did sign a two-way deal with the L.A. Clippers to kick off 2023-24. That agreement was converted to a standard roster contract early into the year, but Primo wound up playing just two games for the Clippers proper. He logged averages of 16.7 points on .469/.369/.758 shooting splits, 3.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.1 swipes for L.A.'s G League affiliate, then called the Ontario Clippers. They are now the San Diego Clippers.
Across 56 regular season contests (all but two with the Spurs), Primo has career NBA averages of 5.7 points on .371/.300/.750 shooting splits, 2.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 0.5 blocks a night.
As a training camp signing, Primo could see his contract converted into a two-way deal. What's more likely, however, is that he'll be cut, and link up with Chicago's NBAGL squad in Hoffman Estates, the Windy City Bulls.
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Still just 21, Primo is the second recent former draft lottery selection with alleged unsavory misbehavior to become a Bull this year.
Ahead of the 2024 NBA Draft, Karnisovas flipped probably the Bulls' third-best player, two-time All-Defensive Second Team guard Alex Caruso, to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for that team's eighth-best playoff contributor, combo guard Josh Giddey, the No. 6 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
Giddey had an encouraging first two pro seasons, but his play and reputation nosedived in 2023-24 after he became the subject of a police investigation over allegations he had a romantic relationship with an underage girl. Authorities ultimately did not charge Giddey, and the league ended its own investigation in the spring.
Read more: Bulls, Thunder Agree to Huge Trade to Send Two-Way Star to Oklahoma City
Karnisovas hasn't exactly endeared himself to the Bulls faithful during his time in charge. These two moves are certainly not going to help.
The longtime lead front office decisionmaker has guided Chicago to a middling 156-162 overall record and a single playoff series during his four seasons at the helm. Karnisovas has taken some big swings for the middle, offloading future lottery picks to construct an underwhelming "core" comprising center Nikola Vucevic, shooting guard Zach LaVine, forward DeMar DeRozan, and Caruso, forward Patrick Williams, and point guard Lonzo Ball.
DeRozan departed for the Sacramento Kings in a sign-and-trade deal this summer. Ball has missed the past two-and-a-half seasons following three knee surgeries. Vucevic was inked to an inexplicable two-year extension last summer that the Bulls are already (reportedly) trying to trade, while Williams signed a shockingly generous five-year, $90 million extension despite having essentially stagnated since his All-Rookie debut season in 2020-21.
For all things Chicago Bulls, stay tuned to Newsweek Sports.
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