UNC Basketball: Former Tar Heels center signs with Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls are adding another former UNC Basketball player to their roster as they continue to make moves in the NBA free agency period.

With Coby White on the roster and Sterling Manley joining their Summer League, the Bulls are adding another former Tar Heel as they have agreed to a deal with center Tony Bradley Jr. per reports. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that Bradley is heading to Chicago on a vet minimum deal to join the Bulls and provide some frontcourt depth.

The 6-foot-10-inch, 248-pound Bradley spent one season at North Carolina and has now found a new home in the NBA after being drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the 2017 NBA draft and then traded to Utah on draft night. He spent a few seasons with the Jazz before joining the Philadelphia 76ers in 2020 and most recently playing for Oklahoma City.

Bradley isn’t a star but is a solid role player that can come off the bench and should be the primary backup to center Nikola Vucevic. In four seasons, Bradley is averaging 5.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game in that span. He’s coming off his best year last season, averaging 7.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1 assist per game.

This could be an ideal spot for Bradley to land, playing a role that will allow him to learn behind the veteran Vucevic and can be a solid contributor in terms of grabbing rebounds on both ends of the floor. Chicago has made a few really good moves acquiring Lonzo Ball, DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso over the past few days to start the NBA free agency period this Summer.

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