Bulls Sign Forward Nichols

The Bulls have re-signed forward Demetrius Nichols to a one-year partially guaranteed contract.  The Syracuse product played in 11 games with the team last season after being drafted and released by the New York Knicks before the Bulls claimed him off waivers.  Nichols led the Bulls in scoring during the summer league, averaging 13.6 points.  The 6-8 forward gives the Bulls 12 players now under contract, the most glaringly absent from the roster being restricted free agent Ben Gordon.

Nichols is a talent, but still plays like a very young player.  He’s a confident young man though, who can score and provide the Bulls with some depth at the small forward position.  Nichols probably won’t see a ton of time with the team’s best player Luol Deng, as well as Andres Nocioni, playing the same position.  Nichols has good range on his shot though and could stretch the floor for Derrick Rose to do his thing.  The signing could signal that the Bulls are prepared to move on from Ben Gordon, with whom contract talks seem to be dead.  It’s unlikely that Gordon will sign the one-year qualifying offer that would enable him to hit the market as an unrestricted free agent next summer.  Nichols isn’t more than a bench payer, but he’s got upside and could contribute some outside shooting to the club.

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