Chicago Chose Aşık's Interior Defense
The Bulls acquired the draft rights to Ömer Aşık from Portland in a June 2008 multiteam draft transaction. Aşık was a Turkish center prospect with size and a defensive profile that distinguished him from the perimeter prospects involved in the deal. Chicago was willing to surrender future second-round opportunities and rights to another drafted player to obtain him. Aşık would later supply actual rebounding and rim protection for the Bulls, giving this move a direct receiving-team payoff beyond the abstract value of a draft-rights exchange.
Denver Received Sonny Weems in the Same Agreement
The Nuggets acquired the draft rights to Sonny Weems from Chicago. Weems was a young wing with athletic ability, making him a prospect Denver could evaluate as part of its broader perimeter depth. This incoming player-rights leg had been missing from the previous Bulls-focused archive, falsely presenting Denver as an empty participant. Weems's future NBA minutes are a separate measure from the simple fact of acquiring his rights. The correction also keeps Denver's outgoing future second-round selection distinct from the two selections Chicago sent to Portland.
Portland Collected Three Second-Round Rights
The Trail Blazers received second-round selections associated with No. 38 Jon Brockman in 2009 and No. 44 Jerome Jordan in 2010 from Chicago, along with a separate Denver 2009 second tied to No. 55 Patty Mills. Those links describe the draft-rights chain; they don't mean all three eventual NBA players stayed with Portland. Accurately recording the Nuggets-originated selection matters because omitting it reduces Portland's compensation and makes the transaction look like an ordinary two-team swap. All three incoming choices carried potential but required later scouting and roster decisions.
Aşık's Chicago Tenure Supports the Inherited Edge
Chicago receives B+ for obtaining Aşık, whose defensive contributions proved tangible in the Bulls' rotation. Denver and Portland each earn B- for their draft-rights packages. Weems had value as an athletic prospect, while the Blazers received several chances to draft or trade for later talent. The Bulls' grade shouldn't be based on assigning all of Aşık's later career with other franchises to Chicago, but his Bulls appearances supply more direct evidence than speculative draft outcomes. The repaired three-party ledger allows those returns to be compared without missing a team.
Final Verdict
Bulls Win. Chicago earns B+ for Ömer Aşık's draft rights and his later defensive contribution as a Bulls center. Denver receives B- for Sonny Weems's rights, and Portland also gets B- for three second-round choices associated with Jon Brockman, Jerome Jordan and Patty Mills. The latter includes a distinct Nuggets-origin pick. Chicago gained the clearest receiving-team NBA contributor from the trade.