A week has passed since the initial tidings of Zach LaVine’s willingness to be traded out of Chicago first surfaced, shattering the Bulls’ season-long mystery. The Bulls are going through a lot of change this season; only three years after launching a new endeavor centered on LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vučević, they may be about to embark on yet another rebuild.
Let’s examine the most frequently asked questions about the most recent wave of trade rumors:
1. Will there be a trade soon?
The short answer is no, but it depends on what is meant by “soon.”
It won’t be until mid-December that the Bulls receive a comprehensive range of offers from teams around the league. Free-agency rules, which forbid players from being traded until December 15 or three months following the date of their contract signing, whichever comes first, impose this waiting period. Some players will not be available until January as a result of this latter clause.
The Bulls are most likely to make a trade around the deadline of February 9. Artūras Karnišovas, executive vice president of basketball operations, will have ample time to utilize a range of trade options.
2. Where will Zach LaVine land?
According to reports from The Athletic and Yahoo Sports, LaVine already has a few teams on his radar, including the Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, and Los Angeles Lakers.
LaVine is also interested in the San Antonio Spurs and the Sacramento Kings, two less apparent choices, according to Yahoo Sports reports.
These choices all have something in common. It’s evident that LaVine is looking for a surefire method to contend in the postseason after only making it to the playoffs once in his nine-year career. In order to be in the NBA playoffs, partnering with players like LeBron James, Jimmy Butler, or Joel Embiid is practically a given. Furthermore, Victor Wembanyama is about as surefire as a rookie sensation can get.
Conversely, The Athletic revealed that a number of teams, including the Toronto Raptors, have expressed interest in signing LaVine. The most important question for the Bulls as both sides consider their options is which team will make the best offer to lay the groundwork for Chicago’s future.
3. What are the Bulls going to get in return for LaVine?
Some fans seem to have the general opinion that LaVine won’t be valuable on the trade market since things didn’t work out for him in Chicago. That may not always be the case, but given his contract cost and suitability for different lineups, acquiring him is a more strategic move.
A significant factor is cost. Any team that trades for LaVine will also get the remaining portion of his contract, which includes salaries of $43 million, $46 million, and $48.9 million over the following three seasons, after he signs a maximum deal in 2022. LaVine’s lackluster play this season doesn’t help either, as it may exacerbate any recency bias that inevitably affects judgment during trade talks.
Nevertheless, LaVine is an All-Star scorer with the ability to finish both behind and at the rim. He would be most effective in a setting where he could attack the rim as a secondary scorer and play off the ball.
The Bulls must acquire the pieces for a new future without LaVine if they are willing to let go of their idea of a team centered around him. This should include cheaper players who will aid in the transition period in Chicago, as well as multiple first-round draft picks.
4. Is DeMar DeRozan planning to remain in Chicago?
The Bulls seem to be concentrating on keeping DeMar DeRozan in Chicago right now. This summer, the All-Star forward declared his intention to end his career as a Bull. However, in spite of this mutual eagerness, the parties have not been able to reach a consensus on a contract extension.
DeRozan is a crucial piece to keep in Chicago, whether or not the Bulls intend to undertake a complete rebuild. He continues to be a dependable offensive force and adds an unmistakable veteran presence to the locker room, particularly during pivotal game moments.
DeRozan is qualified for a roughly $179 million, four-year contract extension. His initial $81.9 million, three-year contract was comparatively inexpensive, especially considering the upfront money DeRozan offered. Although this extension is more expensive than that asking price, it still represents the value DeRozan has brought to the Bulls thus far.
DeRozan wants to see the direction the front office is taking the team before committing to an extension, according to a report published by The Athletic last month. This makes sense for a 34-year-old veteran who is probably in the final stages of his contract.
5. Will Alex Caruso be traded by the Bulls?
Patrick Williams, how about you? Alex Caruso is arguably the Bulls’ most straightforward trade asset; maybe LaVine is more complicated.
Caruso is a valuable and easily movable asset due to his roster flexibility and reasonable $10 million salary. He is an All-Defensive player who improves any roster’s rigor on the wings and in transition by nature. He is a versatile player who can start or come off the bench. Furthermore, his increased 3-point shooting (a career-high 50% on 3.2 attempts per game) adds even more value to that trade.
The Bulls could easily exchange first-round draft capital for Caruso if they pursued a trade. But in the past, the front office has been adamantly opposed to parting ways with Caruso. Should that alter, it will be the most dependable indication that the Bulls are starting a rebuilding process instead of simply rearranging the roster following the LaVine trade.
Patrick Williams, a forward in his fourth year, is an additional intriguing trade candidate. Despite being selected with the fourth overall pick in 2020, he has never been able to live up to the high expectations placed on him. However, a recent report by Marc Stein indicates that teams across the league are still interested in Williams.
If the Bulls don’t trade Williams this season, they run the risk of letting him walk free the following summer because they failed to sign him to a rookie contract extension by the deadline in October.
6. Why was this not successful in Chicago?
Although it’s a broad question, this one will be the one that remains throughout the season.
This seems like it should work on paper. Assemble a core trio of All-Star players. Invite leading actors such as Caruso. Allow the group to gel before reaping the rewards.
But for the Bulls, that hasn’t been the case. After Lonzo Ball’s injury derailed their brief run of success, they never looked back. They made significant mistakes in the draft, such as selecting Dalen Terry and Williams, which has resulted in a franchise that struggles to develop its young players. Additionally, they didn’t give DeRozan and LaVine enough outside help to allow them to seriously compete offensively.
The most truthful response to this query is that Karnišovas did not respond quickly enough.
The Bulls front office and Karnišovas refused to make changes during the two free agency periods and two trade deadlines that followed, despite the fact that this roster hasn’t been effective since the early months of the 2021–22 season. This season, the Bulls seemed hesitant to make any changes, adding players like Torrey Craig and Jevon Carter as if those Band-Aid fixes could cover up the obvious flaws in the roster structure.
The Bulls’ front office must commit as they get closer to potentially trading for LaVine. Put an end to Band-Aids. No more makeshift remedies. It takes time and patience to build a comprehensive roster, but it also takes the resources to make adjustments when a roster is obviously ineffective.
If not, the group will have to deal with this same set of issues in four more years.