The Chicago Bulls are in a rough spot this summer, as they are one of the many middle-of-the-pack teams around the NBA. Unfortunately, unlike the Portland Trail Blazers, armed with the third pick, or Washington Wizards, who just completed a blockbuster deal, the Bulls don’t have a clear pathway out of the middle.
Arturas Karnisovas seems determined to run back the same core group, but that’s a decision that would only lead to the same middling results and more years of mediocrity. According to Will Gottlieb of CHGO, the only way out of Chicago’s current position is to trade Zach LaVine.
Chicago has explored the idea of trading LaVine, and even though there doesn’t seem to be a ton of interest, Gottlieb sees a trade as the only option to push forward.
“So the only hope for the Bulls now is to get bailed out by an overzealous bidder desperate for star power,” Gottlieb wrote. “But from rumors around the league, there doesn’t seem to be much of a market for Zach LaVine, despite the Bulls reportedly shopping him to select teams. He’s reportedly not a legitimate target of Portland’s in a potential trade for the third pick.”
He says the Bulls need to go after the sort of deal that would land them a plethora of draft picks rather than an established star.
“This is absolutely the kind of deal the Bulls should aspire towards,” Gottlieb wrote. “But what if they missed their chance to get Donovan Mitchell or Dejounte Murray type return? Is it time to re-evaluate what sufficient return could be?”
If the Bulls bring back the same core players next season, the results aren’t going to change.
