The Chicago Bulls’ unfortunate injury run could not have arrived at a worse time. It was up to the team’s front office and coaching staff to discover methods to bolster the squad because they did not make any moves to acquire new players around the trade deadline.
Onuralp Bitim and Andrew Funk now please. In order to remedy their injury-related lack of depth, the Bulls signed both players. The 6-foot-5 winger Funk, a product of Penn State and Bucknell Universities, has shown promise while playing for the Grand Rapids Gold of the G-League.
Bitim, however, is a known face to the Bulls because he was a player for the Windy City Bulls, their G-League club. With an average of more than 16 points per game in 12 regular season games, the Turkish shooting guard demonstrated promise while playing for Windy City.
After deciding not to pursue any player on the buyout market, the Bulls decided to change Bitim’s two-way contract to a normal agreement. In his six games with Windy City, the 6-foot-6 two-guard has averaged 16.7 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.9 rebounds. Above all, Bitim’s shooting from beyond the arc has wowed with a shooting percentage of above 43%.
The Bulls see potential in Bitim, despite the fact that he hasn’t seen much playing time in his first two games in uniform. With the team’s struggles with injuries this year, Bitim might offer a much-needed energy off the bench.
Funk, meantime, receives a two-way contract after demonstrating exceptional play with the G League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets. In 37.3 minutes per game this season, he averaged 13.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. With 71 triples for the Gold, Funk has additionally demonstrated his accuracy as a shooter.
Given how well Chicago’s guard rotation is playing with Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu, it is still uncertain if Funk will actually get called up to the Bulls.
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