It was an odd thought process voiced by Zach LaVine.
After multiple reports came out at the February trade deadline that the Knicks had been in discussions about a package to try and acquire LaVine, the two-time Bulls All-Star went on the defensive.
“Everybody’s name in this room has been mentioned one way or another in their careers,” LaVine told reporters at the time. “It doesn’t bother me.”
LaVine then said his agent, Rich Paul, would have called him if a deal was being discussed, and the two hadn’t even spoken that day.
“Rumors are rumors,” he said. “If it doesn’t come from me, then it’s just put out there for the world to see. I’m not worried about it. It’s funny to me.”
Fast forward to this last week, when 12-time All-Star Chris Paul was traded from Phoenix to the Wizards, and admittedly didn’t find out about it until he was on an airplane flying to appear on “Good Morning America.”
Memo to LaVine: Front offices don’t necessarily need to run a trade by you or your representation.
That could again be on display as Thursday’s NBA Draft nears, with sources indicating that the Bulls remain active in looking to get their hands on a first-round draft pick.
As it stands, the Bulls forfeited the No. 11 pick overall to Orlando as part of the compensation from the 2021 Nikola Vucevic trade.
Executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas stressed continuity in the exit interview back in April, especially when it came to his “Big Three” of LaVine, Vucevic and DeMar DeRozan, but there has been growing momentum that Karnisovas has been continuing to gauge the value a LaVine or DeRozan would get on the market.
A source told the Sun-Times back in February that the asking price for LaVine was too steep at the time, but has that price been lowered in the wake of the Bradley Beal trade?
That remained to be seen, but unlikely.
What was real, however, was when the Knicks and Bulls did have those discussions in February, they didn’t officially conclude as much as they were tabled.
And New York isn’t the only place that a LaVine could fit as a perfect 2B or 3A player.
Charlotte owns the No. 2 draft pick overall and has been putting out feelers on moving off that pick, as has Portland at No. 3. Both are long shots for the Bulls, however.
But if the Trail Blazers are in fact keeping all-world guard Damian Lillard, could that make LaVine the next hot commodity for teams like the Trail Blazers or Miami? Realistically, a handful of doors from other teams would have to be slammed in Portland’s face for the Blazers to come around for LaVine.
As far as DeRozan, he will be entering the final season of his three-year deal, and up for an extension. He would be the perfect finishing piece for a team close to a championship, but wouldn’t bring back the return LaVine would.
A lot of smoke around the Bulls, but not necessarily a spark.
There’s a very good chance that the Bulls have a very quiet draft night, and are using all the dialogue with teams for information in case the 2023-24 season goes south. The eject button could always be pushed next February.
Besides prepping for the draft, the Bulls have also been trying to find common ground on a Vucevic extension. The Sun-Times reported earlier this month that a three-year deal was likely, and sources indicated that Vucevic was even willing to give the Bulls a home-town discount to stay.
Vucevic is 32 years old, but is coming off a season in which he played all 82 games, and feels like he can play into his 40s. His father, Borislav, played in Europe until he was 44.
