Things aren't going great right now for the Chicago Bulls and more specifically shooting guard Zach Lavine, who missed most of the 2023-24 season due to injury. Lavine has long been considered a trade candidate for a Bulls team that seems to have finally opted to undergo a rebuild, but the problem is that there doesn't seem to be a ton of interest for the shooting guard due to his injury history, age, and seemingly team-unfriendly contract.
When healthy, Lavine remains one of the most talented scorers in the league, but that hasn't stopped members of the team from airing their grievances about the guard.
“He's never won, he's done it his way the whole way and never won,” said a team source, via Jamal Collier of ESPN. “If he's interested in winning, he'll do what's asked of him. And if he's motivated to not be here, one way is to come, be compliant and be who he is.”
Lavine indeed at times seems to maintain a relatively nonchalant demeanor, but is still more than capable of showing some fire when his team needs it.
Where do the Bulls go from here?
The Bulls have been the NBA's symbol of mediocrity for the last couple of years now, with the team seeing their last two seasons end in the exact same fashion: with second round play-in game losses to the Miami Heat on the road.
That wasn't always the case: In early 2022, the Bulls were riding high, and the quartet of Lavine, DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vuceviv, and Lonzo Ball had Chicago sitting in first place in the Eastern Conference a considerable chunk of the way into that season.
However, injuries and the law of averages eventually saw that season end with a first round gentleman's sweep to the Milwaukee Bucks, and things have only gone downhill from there.
The Bulls appeared to fully commit to a rebuild this offseason by letting DeRozan walk (well, technically signing and trading him) to the Sacramento Kings, and exploring trade options for some of their other players. Chicago has a lot to be excited about with players like Coby White, who dropped 40 on the Atlanta Hawks in the first play-in game this year, as well as Matas Buzelis, the talented forward they just drafted from the G League ignite.
However, all things considered, it's very difficult to envision Lavine being a part of the long term plans in Chicago. At this point, the main question is if there's any other team that seems him in that light.
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