Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine reportedly has “fans” within the Dallas Mavericks front office.
LaVine, who reportedly hasn’t been on the same page as the Chicago front office lately, could end up on the trade market this season if the Bulls decide to blow up their roster.
“I just know that there are fans of him that hold prominent positions within the Mavericks,” ESPN’s Tim MacMahon said on the Lowe Post podcast. “Again, I’m not sitting here and telling you there’s some great consensus. I think there’s enough fans of him where I wouldn’t totally rule it out.”
LaVine just signed a new deal with the Bulls in the 2022 offseason, tying him to the franchise through the 2025-26 season. He has a player option on the deal for the 2026-27 campaign.
However, the Bulls have gotten off to a slow start in the 2022-23 season, and with Nikola Vucevic’s contract expiring at the end of the season, it’s possible the team could look to make some changes.
If the Bulls went into full rebuild mode, they could trade LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Vucevic to teams that are looking to contend this season and beyond. It would be a major shift for Chicago, but it can’t be ruled out at this point.
The Bulls currently hold the No. 11 spot in the Eastern Conference with a 14-19 record.
Dallas appears to be looking for a secondary star that it can have alongside Luka Doncic. The Mavericks let guard Jalen Brunson walk in the offseason, and the team has struggled at times to find consistent scoring after Doncic.
Spencer Dinwiddie, Tim Hardaway Jr. and others have stepped up at times to fill the void left by Brunson’s departure.
The Mavericks don’t have a ton of young trade pieces, but they could entice the Bulls with draft capital and moveable salaries.
Dallas made the Western Conference Finals in the 2021-22 season, and it’s hoping to build on that success, especially with Doncic currently playing at an MVP level.
LaVine is a great scorer, but he’d certainly have to get used to playing off the ball even more if he was dealt to Dallas.
So far in the 2022-23 season, LaVine is averaging 22.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 45.2 percent from the field and 36.9 percent from beyond the arc.
