The Chicago Bulls are nearing a deal with free agent guard Patrick Beverley for the remainder of the season, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports.
The Los Angeles Lakers traded Beverley to the Orlando Magic as part of a trade-deadline deal to acquire backup center Mo Bamba. The Magic waived Beverley three days later, and he became a free agent.
The Bulls are signing Beverley amid reports that point guard Lonzo Ball is done for the season with a knee injury that’s sidelined him since January of the 2021-22 season. They’ll need to waive a player to clear roster space for Beverley.
After making the playoffs with a 46-36 record last season, the Bulls have regressed in 2022-23. They’ll come out of the All-Star break at 11th place in the Eastern Conference with a 26-33 record. But they remain in play for a play-in berth that’s awarded to teams seeded 7-10 in each conference. The Bulls are two games behind the 10th-place Toronto Raptors and 6.5 games behind the New York Knicks, who would earn the East’s last guaranteed playoff spot as the No. 6 seed if the playoffs started today.