The Chicago Bulls between a rock and a hard place a quarter through the season as they’ve failed to meet their expectations, currently at 11-15 and the No. 11 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Their struggles have led to increased speculation on if Chicago should trade their veterans in order to rebuild and potentially tank for Victor Wembanyama.
Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus discussed the Bulls in a recent article and how teams around the league have their eyes glued to the Windy City’s situation.
“Everyone is watching Chicago very closely,” one NBA source said. “They’re so poorly constructed, they need to blow it up.”
Pincus added to the speculation surrounding the Bulls:
According to NBA sources, the Lakers are interested in both Vučević and DeRozan. If L.A. is willing to give up two first-round picks (2027 and 2029) along with Russell Westbrook as a buy-out candidate, the Bulls may end up in a better lottery position to retain their pick in June. This is the draft to do it.
Chicago could also look to move LaVine (after Jan. 15), who re-signed on a five-year, $215.2 million contract this summer. His name hasn’t buzzed yet on the rumor mill, but Chicago could find willing suitors if it made the two-time All-Star available.
The Bulls would have takers not just for DeRozan, Vucevic, and potentially LaVine if they wanted to go that route, but veterans such as Alex Caruso, Goran Dragic, and Andre Drummond will surely attract contenders to make a phone call.
As hard as it would be to swallow their pride, if the Bulls can’t turn the corner hard and fast, blowing up their core has to be a serious discussion.
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