Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine turned some heads during his 2021-22 season exit interview when he talked about enjoying his free agency and exploring all options rather than committing to the Bulls. Since then, there have been a number of rumors about LaVine's free agency. While the general consensus is he's still likely to re-sign with Chicago, it's not a slam dunk anymore and other teams are lurking.
There have been some very curious rumblings of late about LaVine's free agency, and these involve a possible rift with DeMar DeRozan. LaVar Ball started it all by claiming LaVine is going to leave the Bulls because he doesn't want to be second fiddle to DeRozan, and then both Marc Stein and Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer followed this up with reporting/speculation from around the league suggesting that LaVine might not be happy about ceding the spotlight to DeRozan, who just earned All-NBA Second-Team honors. LaVine didn't make All-NBA and didn't become supermax eligible as a result after a knee injury limited him the last few months of the season and into the playoffs. He just underwent surgery.
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Based on everything that happened before this, these rumors sound preposterous. Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan have been nothing but supportive of each other since they became teammates. They teamed up to bring the Bulls back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017 and were two of the best fourth-quarter scorers in the NBA. Yes, DeRozan did become The Man over LaVine in Chicago this past season, but they both had a major hand in the Bulls' early-season success that had them as the talk of the NBA for a while.
Perhaps it was a shock to LaVine's system to not be the alpha dog anymore, and that can be a check on the ego. But after so much losing in his NBA career, it just doesn't seem like this is something that would truly be an issue based on everything he has said and done. It reads like hopeful teams trying to stir up trouble and force LaVine out, and there's also a strong possibility Klutch Sports has a hand in some of the rumors out there as a leverage play to help make sure the Bulls give the two-time All-Star the max contract he wants.
On the latest episode of Blue Wire's Cash Considerations pod, we discussed these LaVine rumors and expressed little concern about the possibility of him leaving (discussion begins at )
While it's always a possibility he leaves, given the information right now, the expectation is Zach LaVine will be back. If anything, perhaps the biggest concern is the Bulls not paying up because of their history of frugalness. LaVine did just undergo that knee surgery, so there's always the possibility Chicago balks at giving him a full max, at least to start negotiations. But despite the Bulls' rather cheap history, all signs still point to them being willing to give LaVine his money after investing so much in building around him. If that's the case, he should be back, though nothing is ever set in stone until that contract is signed.
Cash Considerations: A Chicago Bulls Podcast is part of the Blue Wire Podcast Network. The pod can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts.
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