The Chicago Bulls are sending two-time All-Star center Nikola Vučević and a second-round pick to the Boston Celtics for guard Anfernee Simons and a second-round pick, according to multiple reports Tuesday.
With the move, Boston is out of the first apron, as its tax bill drops from $39.5 million to $17 million, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks, who also noted that the Celtics are now eligible to sign a waived player who had a pre-existing salary of at least $14.1 million.
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The Celtics (31-18) are tied for the second-best record in the Eastern Conference.
Vučević, a 35-year-old double-double machine, will give the Celtics a boost in the frontcourt that’s featured Neemias Queta and Luka Garza, whereas Simons will join a Bulls backcourt that will now include 38-year-old Mike Conley Jr. and 2022 No. 5 overall pick Jaden Ivey after Chicago reportedly agreed to a three-team trade hours earlier with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Detroit Pistons.
Vučević’s five-plus-season stay with the Bulls (24-26) has come to an end.
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The Bulls traded for him midseason during the 2020-21 campaign. At the time, the Orlando Magic were hitting the reset button, and Chicago was trying to make it back to the playoffs for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The drought continued that season, Vučević’s second as an All-Star, but he helped the Bulls return to the postseason the following year.
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They haven’t made another trip since their first-round exit in 2022, though. Once again hovering around .500, they’re changing things up.
While Vučević is averaging less than a double-double — he’s currently posting 16.9 points and nine rebounds per game — for the first time since 2017-18, he still has 19 double-doubles to his name this season.
Vučević will slot into a Celtics rotation that’s headlined by wing Jaylen Brown, as well as guards Derrick White and Payton Pritchard, in the absence of star Jayson Tatum.
The 26-year-old Simons was coming off the bench for Boston, which acquired him in a trade last summer that shipped Jrue Holiday off to the Portland Trail Blazers. Simons averaged 14.2 points in his 49 games with the Celtics, shooting 44% from the floor while recording a 39.5% clip from beyond the arc.
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He’s scored 20 or more points nine times this season, even going for 39 last month in a road win over the Miami Heat. Simons has also tallied five or more assists on five different occasions in 2025-26.
Boston approached the deadline about $12.1 million over the luxury tax threshold, according to The Athletic. The Celtics are shedding some salary now, considering Simons is on an expiring $27.7 million contract and Vučević is on an expiring $21.5 million deal, per The Athletic.