The Chicago Bulls have acquired center Nikola Vučević (KNEE-coal-uh VOOCH-uh-vitch) and forward Al-Farouq Aminu (al-fah-ruke ah-ME-new) from the Orlando Magic in exchange for forward Otto Porter Jr. and center Wendell Carter Jr., as well as two first-round picks with certain lottery position protections.
A two-time All-Star, Vučević (7-0, 260) has averaged 16.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 30.5 minutes per game while shooting .497 from the field over his 10 NBA seasons. This season, he’s averaging a career-high 24.5 points per game to go along with 11.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 44 games (44 starts). Vučević has scored in double figures every game this season, including 32 20-point games, nine 30-point games and two 40-point games. His 30 games with 10-plus rebounds are the fifth-most in the NBA. Vučević has one triple-double in 2020-21, and his 30 double-doubles are tied for the third-most in the NBA this season. On March 14 vs. Miami, Vučević posted 38 points, 10 rebounds and six assists while shooting 6-of-13 from 3-point range, making him the third center in NBA history (Jokic, Cousins) with at least 35 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and five 3-pointers made during a single game.
Vučević was selected 16th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2011 NBA Draft and was traded to Orlando as part of a four-team deal on Aug. 10, 2012. He has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week three times, and his rebounds per game average has been in the top-20 of the NBA seven times in 10 seasons. Vučević has seven career games with 20 points and 20 rebounds, and his total of 356 double-doubles are second only to Andre Drummond in the years since he entered the league in 2011-12. He has been in the Playoffs three times, once with Philadelphia his rookie season and twice with Magic. In the 2020 postseason, he averaged 28.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists while shooting .505 from the field, .409 from three and .909 from the free throw line in five games against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Selected eighth-overall in the 2010 NBA Draft by the L.A. Clippers, Aminu (6-8, 220) has averaged 7.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 25.0 minutes per game over his 11-season career with the Clippers, New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, Portland Trail Blazers and Orlando Magic. In 17 games in 2020-21, he is posting 5.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game on .404 shooting from the field. On March 23 vs. Denver, Aminu dished a career-high-tying six assists to go along with a season-high 17 points and 10 rebounds. He missed 27 games at the start of this season due to right knee injury recovery (24) and right knee injury maintenance (3) after undergoing an arthroscopic procedure on his right knee on Dec. 2. Aminu has been in the postseason five times with the Mavericks and Trail Blazers and has averaged 11.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists over 40 games (33 starts).
Porter Jr. came to the Bulls via trade with the Washington Wizards on Feb. 6, 2019. Over his eight NBA seasons, he’s averaged 11.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.14 steals in 26.5 minutes per game while shooting .480 from the field and .404 from three. In 2017-18, Porter Jr. posted career highs with 14.7 points per game and .441 shooting from three, which ranked third in the NBA that year. He has been in the Playoffs four times, all with the Wizards, where he has averaged 10.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 31 games (18 starts).
In his third season, Carter Jr. owns career averages of 10.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 0.99 blocks in 26.5 minutes per game. He was the seventh-overall selection of the Bulls in the 2018 NBA Draft out of Duke and was named to the 2020 NBA Rising Stars game on the U.S. Team. Carter Jr. has led the team in double-doubles his last two seasons (17 in 2019-20 and seven in 2020-21) and has 31 total in his career.
