The Chicago Bulls have crucial choices to make this summer as they ponder the direction of their franchise. Arturas Karnisovas is determined to run back the same core, but the group of Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic isn’t quite good enough to make a serious playoff run.
A rebuild could be the better option for the Bulls. It would allow them to hit the reset button and start over. Trading LaVine would be the logical first step. However, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News, LaVine’s camp is against a potential trade to the New York Knicks.
That doesn’t mean the Bulls shouldn’t look to trade him. Jake Rill of Bleacher Report recently urged Chicago to continue fielding trade offers for LaVine.
“At this point, Chicago doesn’t have enough complementary players around LaVine in order to have success,” Rill wrote. “The Bulls are coming off a 2022-23 season in which they went 40-42, missing the playoffs for the fifth time in six years.
“It will be easier for Chicago to construct a postseason-caliber roster without LaVine’s contract handcuffing it. That’s why it makes sense for the Bulls to look to trade him, even if it can’t be to the Knicks because of his camp’s wants.
“Now, where should Chicago trade LaVine? That remains to be seen. But surely there are going to be other potential suitors, and one of them will likely give the Bulls an offer they’ll want to accept.”
As the offseason drags on, the Bulls should keep considering their options, including the idea of trading LaVine.
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