Marko Simonovic had no problem producing dominating moments for the Windy City Bulls in the G League. Last season, he averaged 15.9 points and 10 rebounds.
But when the Bulls selected the 7-footer in the second round of the 2020 draft (No. 44 overall), they wanted him to produce in the NBA, not Hoffman Estates.
That’s why, as expected, the Bulls announced Thursday that they waived the seldom-used center, a day before his $1.84 million deal would have been guaranteed for the 2023-24 season.
In two seasons going back and forth between the Bulls and the G League, Simonovic played in 16 NBA games, but all in mop-up duty. The knocks on him were a lack of strength in the post and the inability to adjust to the speed and athleticism of NBA bigs.
It was obvious he fell out of favor after his rookie season, when executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas added Andre Drummond rather than rely on what he hoped was a second-round steal in his first Bulls draft class.
