NBA trade season is officially open, with 81 players who signed contracts as free agents the previous summer becoming eligible to be dealt. With all the new faces now available, speculation will ramp up across the league on who will go where until Feb. 8, the last day that trades can occur.
Other than OG Anunoby or Pascal Siakam, the biggest name to watch is Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine. The Bulls and LaVine both seem ready for a fresh start, especially now with Chicago playing better as he sits out with a foot injury. While most rightfully assume LaVine will head to the Los Angeles Lakers or Philadelphia 76ers at or before the trade deadline, another team with contending ambitions has entered the chat.
Bulls ask Cavs about Zach LaVine-Darius Garland trade
LaVine has been linked to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a bold pitch by Chicago, according to Yahoo! Sports NBA insider Jake Fischer.
“The Bulls are still searching for the type of haul that a multi-time All-Star typically draws, which LaVine certainly is based on résumé: an established starter, plus a young player with upside and then first-round draft capital, according to league sources. Chicago has also attempted swapping LaVine for other All-Star players, such as pitching Cleveland on the concept of acquiring Darius Garland from the Cavaliers, sources said.”
While it's certainly brazen of the Bulls to pitch the idea to the Cavs, hopefully, the conversations didn't go far. A swap between Cleveland and Chicago, where the trade only favors the Bulls, would be organizational malpractice for the Cavs.
Why this Zach LaVine trade would be terrible for Cavs
First and foremost, Garland is clearly the better player between the two. While he's making the same amount of money as LaVine, Garland is younger and has all the trappings of a franchise guard who can run an offense.
That's not to say LaVine can't run the show — he's shown some playmaking chops as a de facto point guard in the past. While LaVine could thrive in that role, it would never be on the same level as what Garland gives Cleveland currently. It would force the Cavs, who don't have a reliable point guard option outside of Garland, to take a step back and crater the overall development of key players like Evan Mobley.
Secondly, Cleveland already has Donovan Mitchell, a player who overlaps with LaVine, on their roster. If this was a hypothetical player-for-player swap between Mitchell and LaVine, the trade makes much more sense on paper. While LaVine is nearly two years older than Mitchell, there wouldn't be a drop-off scoring-wise for either team. Unfortunately, the chances of Chicago jumping on that deal seem less likely since Mitchell could walk in free agency sooner rather than later.
Of course, they could agree on an extension, but it feels like Mitchell's heart is set on going home to New York. Besides, the Cavs trading for LaVine seems like a fool's errand, so it's for the best to put the kibosh on it all.
If anything, Cleveland should look into the availability of other players on Chicago's roster, namely Alex Caruso, Dalen Terry or Coby White (this is looking unlikely given his breakout). Heck, even a reunion with Andre Drummond should be considered before Cleveland even entertains the notion of landing LaVine.
Unfortunately, as Fischer notes, the Bulls are in a holding pattern until they find a trade partner for LaVine and want to evaluate the rest of their roster without their All-Star guard. So, for now, all this will be is speculation when it comes to the Cavs, or any NBA squad, thinking about kicking up trade talks with Chicago.
But if things open up, it's worthwhile for Cleveland to circle back and call the Bulls. Just as long as it isn't a trade involving Garland for LaVine.
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