Kofi Inkoom
According to sources, the Chicago Bulls will consider trading LaVine this offseason after failing to find any takers for him during the season.
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report has proposed a trade scenario where:
LaVine would join the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for D’Angelo Russell, along with Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt.
Buckley noted, “It might pain the Bulls’ brass to let go of LaVine and not get a draft pick in return, but if draft picks were available for the oft-injured and overpaid scorer, a deal surely would have been done by now… Chicago could instead view a lottery win as enough of a draft reward to just be done with the LaVine era and allow its next ballyhooed prospect to start their career without that cloud of uncertainty hanging above the Windy City..”
He added, “This return isn’t much, but it does deliver three usable rotation players who are all on more reasonable contracts than LaVine. Even if the Bulls don’t plan on keeping all of them, each would be far easier to trade than LaVine is now. And if they decide to finally blow up this roster, any one of the three might help deliver assets for an overdue rebuild.”
Despite being linked to the Lakers multiple times, LaVine’s season with Chicago was cut short due to a right foot surgery in February, limiting him to just 25 games.
On the other hand, Russell, who averaged 18.0 points and 6.3 assists for the Lakers this season, has the option to become a free agent by declining his player option for the upcoming season.
For Vincent and Vanderbilt, they struggled with injuries throughout the season, diminishing their trade value across the league.