Patrick Williams signing $90 million contract to return to the Bulls

Patrick Williams got his bag.The forward is signing a five-year, $90 million contract to return to the Bulls, according to The Athletic.

The deal includes a player option for the fifth year, according to ESPN.The Bulls selected Williams with the No.4 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft after he spent one season at Florida State.

Williams, 22, would have been allowed to negotiate with any team he wanted starting at 6 p.m.ET on Sunday, but he and the Bulls reportedly reached an agreement before that could happen.

Teams have been able to negotiate with their own free agents since June 18.Williams averaged 10 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.8 blocks per game this past year, his fourth with Chicago, and is a strong defender.

He’s delivered mixed results across his four seasons, two of which were shortened by injury.He played just 17 games in 2021-22 after breaking his wrist and played 43 games this past year after undergoing foot surgery in February.

“We gotta look at his schedule, but he was planning to be ready for training camp,” Bulls vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said about Williams’ health during the 2024 NBA Draft.Karnisovas’ first move in charge of the Bulls was drafting Williams four years ago.

Across his four seasons with the Bulls, Williams averaged 9.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.Karnisovas is clearly trying to shift the Bulls’ makeup younger this offseason.

Beyond bringing back Williams, he traded 30-year-old veteran Alex Caruso to the Thunder for 21-year-old Josh Giddey and drafted 19-year-old Matas Buzelis with the No.11 pick on Wednesday.

And veteran stars Zach Lavine and DeMar DeRozan’s Bulls futures are uncertain.“Everything is on the table,” Karnišovas said about possibly trading DeRozan.

“And you know, it’s still an option.”...