Zach LaVine reportedly will be back on the trade market this coming offseason as the Chicago Bulls will try again to move the high-scoring guard.
“The Bulls engaged in multiple trade conversations centered on LaVine dating to last offseason,” wrote Bulls insider K.C. Johnson. “When this season began poorly, both the Bulls and LaVine’s representation agreed to be open to trying to find LaVine a new home. But NBC Sports Chicago reported last month that LaVine never specifically asked to be traded.
“Nevertheless, the Bulls engaged with the Detroit Pistons leading up to the Feb. 8 trade deadline but gained little traction on moving LaVine. A source said the Bulls will look to trade LaVine again this offseason.”
The 28-year-old currently remains sidelined as he recovers from surgery he had on his right foot in early February. His season is already over. He appeared in just 25 games for the Bulls this season, averaging 19.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists per contest.
In seven seasons with the Bulls, he is averaging 24.2 points per game and is a two-time All-Star. Based on that production, he seemed to be an attractive trade option earlier this season. He reportedly saw teams like the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, among others, as attractive landing spots.
Lakers superstar LeBron James reportedly was in support of his team acquiring LaVine prior to the NBA trade deadline last month, but the Lakers reportedly were among the teams that were hesitant to take on his contract. LaVine’s deal runs through the 2025-26 season and has a player option for the 2026-27 campaign.
Interestingly, LaVine is not the only player the lowly Pistons have been linked to at some point. One NBA executive recently linked Klay Thompson to Detroit if he ever were to leave the Golden State Warriors. The Pistons are 10-52 this season and have made the playoffs just once since the start of the 2016-17 season. It remains to be seen if they could again emerge as threats to add LaVine this offseason.
The Bulls have overcome a difficult start to the season and were in ninth place in the Eastern Conference – a play-in round position – entering their game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday. Chicago had won three in a row and four of its previous five games but lost to the Clippers to put its record at 31-33.
Back in December, the Bulls sported a 10-17 record at one point, and in January, after winning the game when LaVine last played, they were 20-23. They’ve done a solid job of staying afloat since.
He reportedly will remain in a walking boot for the next three weeks but said he is ahead of schedule in his recovery and hopes to resume basketball activities within three months. That, of course, would not give him the opportunity to return this season as the Bulls are not expected to make a playoff run long enough to allow that.
But it looks like he will be a name to watch closely when the NBA’s offseason activity begins.
