Josh Giddey agrees to 4-year, $100M extension with Bulls

Josh Giddey is staying put in the Windy City. The Chicago Bulls have locked up their rising star, striking a four-year, $100 million deal with the restricted free agent guard, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.

The 22-year-old Aussie guard is fresh off a breakout campaign, stuffing the stat sheet with 14.6 points, 8.1 boards, 7.2 dimes, and 1.2 steals a night, while hitting nearly 38% from beyond the arc.

After testing the waters in a tight free-agent market, Giddey ultimately found his payday in Chicago — a well-earned reward for a career year that solidified him as part of the Bulls’ long-term core.

Giddey saved his best for last in 2024-25, closing the season on a tear. Over the final stretch, he averaged 20.2 points, 9.5 boards, and 8.1 assists per game, while knocking down triples at a blistering 45% clip, all while gutting it out through a muscle tear in his shooting hand.

After three developmental years in Oklahoma City, the 22-year-old guard has planted roots in Chicago, where the Bulls see him as a cornerstone in their long-term rebuild and a central figure in their push to re-emerge as a true force in the Eastern Conference.

Still, Giddey’s free agency was far from smooth sailing. With the market bone-dry this summer — the Brooklyn Nets were the lone team with real cap flexibility — the Australian playmaker had little bargaining power. On top of that, his status as a restricted free agent meant Chicago held all the cards, as the front office could match any deal he might have received elsewhere.

That left the Bulls in no rush to overspend, knowing Giddey’s only real alternative was to take the $11.4 million qualifying offer and try to gamble on himself with another career season before testing unrestricted free agency in 2026. Instead, the two sides found common ground, and Giddey’s breakout year was rewarded with long-term stability in Chicago.

Billy Donovan found the right formula for Josh Giddey last season, handing him the keys to the offense and letting him dictate the flow. That freedom not only unlocked Giddey's all-around game but also accelerated the development of rookie forward Matas Buzelis, who benefited from playing alongside such a creative facilitator.

With Giddey, Buzelis, and Coby White forming the foundation, Chicago suddenly has a youthful trio that looks capable of anchoring the franchise for years to come. The next challenge is twofold: Donovan and his staff must keep putting trust in Giddey's playmaking instincts, while the front office needs to surround that core with more firepower.

There’s also a subtle but important takeaway from this deal, the Bulls' decision-makers showed restraint. Rather than panicking and overspending, they secured Giddey at a fair price, a sign of maturity compared to their hasty five-year, $90 million investment in Patrick Williams, a gamble that hasn’t paid off as hoped.