As the year has gone on, the Chicago Bulls have had a ton of players involved in trade rumors. Alex Caruso is likely sought after by almost every team in the league, and even players like Jevon Carter and Andre Drummond have been mentioned as potential targets for contenders around the association.
But no Bulls player has been more involved in trade rumors than Zach LaVine, and he’s been connected to a bunch of different teams, headlined by the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers have been linked to LaVine by multiple reports, but the latest has supposedly stated their final decision.
According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, the Lakers have ruled out a potential trade for LaVine in their deadline plans.
“Zach LaVine of the Chicago Bulls is not considered an option at this point, team and league sources told ESPN,” McMenamin wrote. “The reasons are varied: With injuries already costing him 18 games this season, his production failing to translate to team success in Chicago and nearly $90 million guaranteed to him in the next two years — with an additional $49 million player option for 2026-27 — there would be too much risk involved for L.A.”
LaVine has been having a solid season for the Bulls, but he’s now out for 1-2 weeks with an ankle injury just ahead of the deadline.
His offensive shot creation would definitely give the Lakers a much-needed boost on that end of the court, but at the same time, his salary would seriously restrict them from making moves in the future.
