For Ausar Thompson, the latest Pistons trade wasn’t just a front-office transaction—it felt personal. The Detroit Pistons shook up their roster on Tuesday, sending former No. 5 overall pick Jaden Ivey to the Chicago Bulls in a multi-team deal that signaled a new direction for the franchise. Around the league, it was another midseason move driven by strategy and roster balance. Inside Detroit’s locker room, though, it meant something far deeper.

Thompson and Ivey had grown inseparable over the past three seasons, sharing a bond that went far beyond the court. From daily practices to long road trips, the two young guards became fixtures beside one another—literally. They sat next to each other in the locker room from Thompson’s first day with the organization, building the kind of chemistry that doesn’t show up on a stat sheet.

So when Thompson took the floor Tuesday night against the Denver Nuggets, it was the first time in his NBA career he did so without Ivey as his teammate. After the final buzzer, the usually composed forward struggled to hide how much the moment weighed on him. “J.I., that’s my brother, that’s my brother for life,” Thompson said afterward. “We’re locker mates since I got on this team. We always sat next to each other, so to possibly lose him kind of hurts. But you know, that’s how it works.”

Ivey had been very crucial to the Pistons success, despite his minutes being reduced to under 20 minutes this season. The Bulls will look to maximize on Ivey’s potential and make him a core part of their reconstruction.

“But I gotta tell you something. Wherever J.I. goes, greatness follows. J.I.’s great, he’s gonna be great, so I have no worries for him, and love that guy,” Thompson added. 

Thompson’s reaction is hardly unique in the NBA, even if it feels deeply personal in the moment. Every season, the league reminds players that no matter how close the bond, basketball ultimately remains a business. Over the years, some of the NBA’s tightest brotherhoods have been split apart by trades that made sense on paper but stung on a human level.

Toronto fans still remember the emotional fallout when Kyle Lowry lost longtime running mate DeMar DeRozan in 2018. In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook went from inseparable stars to sudden strangers after a franchise-altering breakup.

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More recently, Jrue Holiday spoke openly about the difficulty of leaving Milwaukee and Giannis Antetokounmpo after years of shared battles.

For Jaden Ivey, a move to Chicago could offer the opportunity to rebuild, refocus, and finally grow into the player he’s always had the potential to be. He combines strong playmaking instincts with genuine scoring ability, traits evident from the very beginning of his NBA career.

Right out of the gate as a rookie, Ivey showed real promise by averaging 16.3 points per game while handling a major role in Detroit’s backcourt. He remained a fixture in the Pistons’ starting lineup over the next couple of seasons, steadily refining his game and building consistency.

That progress continued into last season, where, prior to his injury, he was shooting an efficient 46.0% from the field and an impressive 40.9% from three. Unfortunately, a broken fibula cut his campaign short and disrupted his momentum.

The injury’s lingering effects carried over into this season. After missing the first month while recovering, Ivey returned to a drastically reduced role. His minutes and usage dropped sharply, and his production suffered as a result; he ultimately lost his spot in the starting lineup to Duncan Robinson.

Despite these setbacks in Detroit, Ivey’s underlying skill set and early-career flashes suggest he still has the tools to become a valuable two-way guard, especially if the Bulls commit to developing him properly.

Losing his starting spot in Detroit raises the question of whether he can carve out a significant role in the Bulls’ lineup.

What does Jaden Ivey’s future look like in Chicago?

Chicago made a big gamble trading for Ivey before the deadline. It’s a bit intriguing why they would want to trade for a player who had lost his speed since coming back from injury. Until last season, when he faced the season-ending injury, Ivey could easily beat defenders off the dribble. However, he has rarely shown that he can still do it as flawlessly as before.

Although he has not looked like his old self, there is no reason to believe he might not regain his momentum over time. The Bulls will look for him to return to his former form and take on more ball-handling responsibility. With Jalen Duren’s rise, Ivey had a limited role as a catch-and-shoot player. He seemed like an odd man out on the Pistons roster. However, things might change for the guard under Billy Donovan.

He will enter restricted free agency next offseason. With his recent injury, not many teams would be interested in Ivey. Moreover, Chicago might end up trading Coby White and form a backcourt duo of Ivey and Josh Giddey.

Given that neither Giddey nor Ivey is known for their defensive caliber, they can bring defensive pieces from White’s trade if they have a plan to keep Ivey for the future.