A source connected to the Chicago Bulls slammed star guard Zach LaVine in a recent ESPN piece that touched on the state of relations between LaVine and the franchise.
“He’s never won, he’s done it his way the whole way and never won,” the team source told ESPN. “If he’s interested in winning, he’ll do what’s asked of him. And if he’s motivated to not be here, one way is to come, be compliant and be who he is.”
The anonymous source may have a point in the sense that LaVine hasn’t led the Bulls to much collective success in his seven seasons with the team. After all, he has yet to lead Chicago to a playoff series victory since he joined the squad ahead of the 2017-18 campaign.
The Bulls have qualified for the playoffs just once with LaVine on the roster. The team’s lone playoff appearance during the span came in the 2021-22 season, when Chicago lost to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
There’s an argument to be made that the Bulls have had other roster issues during the LaVine era, preventing them from going on any deep playoff runs in the Eastern Conference, but some responsibility has to fall on the veteran’s shoulders.
Chicago’s 2023-24 season came to an end before the 2024 NBA Playoffs even commenced, as the team lost to the Miami Heat in the play-in tournament. LaVine missed the final few months of the season.
Considering that the Bulls have been treading water from a progression standpoint for two seasons in a row now — Chicago won 40 regular-season games in the 2022-23 campaign before winning 39 this past season — perhaps it would be in the best interest of both LaVine and the franchise to cut ties.
But LaVine’s lucrative contract could continue to serve as a roadblock if the Bulls decide it’s time for him to play elsewhere. The 29-year-old is set to earn more than $43 million in the upcoming 2024-25 season, and his deal will only get more expensive after that.
LaVine is also under contract for the 2025-26 season at nearly $46 million, and he has a player option for the following season at nearly $49 million.
