The Exchange
Basketball-Reference's Chicago, New York and league transaction logs agree that the Bulls sent Charlie Paulk to the Knicks on December 10, 1971 for New York's 1973 second-round pick. Pro Sports Transactions preserves the same exchange and adds cash going to Chicago. That source difference is kept explicit rather than silently treating the cash as universally documented. The important draft lineage is much clearer: the pick ultimately became No. 32 in 1973, but Chicago did not use it on Caldwell Jones. The Bulls traded the selection to Philadelphia on October 18, 1972 for Dennis Awtrey, and the 76ers later made the Jones pick.
New York Return
Paulk's Knicks tenure was brief. He appeared in 28 games in 1971-72, totaling 151 minutes while averaging 1.4 points and 1.7 rebounds in 5.4 minutes. Basketball-Reference's Knicks transaction log records New York waiving him in June 1972, ending the club's realized return after less than one full season. Paulk had played only seven games and 60 minutes for Chicago earlier that season, so New York was acquiring a low-minute reserve rather than an established rotation forward. There is no later Knicks transaction value to trace because Paulk's NBA career ended with that stint.
Chicago Return
The Bulls converted the pick into a useful veteran center before the 1973 draft ever arrived. On October 18, 1972 Chicago sent the selection to Philadelphia for Dennis Awtrey; Basketball-Reference lists the pick-for-player exchange, while Pro Sports Transactions also records cash going to Philadelphia. He immediately became a substantial part of the Bulls' 1972-73 rotation, playing 79 games and 1,650 minutes while collecting 433 rebounds and 222 assists. Awtrey also appeared in all seven of Chicago's playoff games that spring, totaling 268 postseason minutes. In 1973-74 his regular-season role fell to 68 games and 756 minutes, but he again appeared in all ten Bulls playoff games. Across the two seasons, Chicago received 147 regular-season appearances plus 17 playoff games from the asset it had acquired for Paulk.
Why Caldwell Jones Is Not Chicago Value
The legacy summary labels the asset as the pick that became Caldwell Jones, which is useful for identifying the selection but misleading if treated as Chicago's realized player outcome. Jones was selected by Philadelphia because the Bulls had already traded the pick for Awtrey. His long ABA and NBA career therefore belongs to Philadelphia's downstream use of the pick, not to Chicago's side of the Paulk trade. The source-backed evaluation credits the Paulk pick with a major role in acquiring Awtrey, but not with Awtrey's entire value because Chicago also sent additional unpriced cash in the Pro Sports Transactions record. Awtrey was then selected by New Orleans in the May 1974 expansion draft, so Chicago received no additional trade return when his Bulls tenure ended. The original Paulk trade brought cash to Chicago, while the later Awtrey deal sent cash out; neither amount is known, so the two cash flows are preserved but not netted or used to inflate the grade.
Final Verdict
Bulls Win, B+/D+. Chicago receives a B+ because a reserve forward who played only seven Bulls games became a second-round asset that played a major role in acquiring Dennis Awtrey, who produced 147 regular-season games and 17 playoff appearances for the Bulls. The grade stops below A-range because Pro Sports Transactions shows Chicago also sent unpriced cash in the Awtrey deal. New York receives a D+ because Paulk played only 28 games and 151 minutes before being waived, with no traceable downstream return. Confidence is high on the player-for-pick exchange, pick-to-Awtrey conversion and player production, and medium-high on the cash component because Basketball-Reference omits it while Pro Sports Transactions includes it. The verdict reflects only verified transaction terms and realized team value.