One thing that isn’t up for debate at this point is Zach Lavine is the best player on the Chicago Bulls roster. It’s not even close. Almost every time they were able to pull out close victories, he was the one getting the crucial baskets. Just look at his 4th quarter against the Hornets. In a game where he amassed 49 total points, he delivered 27 in the final 10 and a half minutes including the 3-point dagger to steal the win 116-115 as time expired.
He scored over 40 points six times during the season, establishing himself as one of the best pure scorers in the NBA. Sadly this wasn’t enough to earn him a trip to the All-Star game. Something Bulls fans were quite vocal about. It seems Lavine himself is still feeling that disrespect. When Andy Bailey and Dan Favale of Bleacher Report ranked the 100 best players of the 2019-2020 season, they put the Bulls guard at 44th overall. Something the 25-year old wasn’t happy about.
“Zach LaVine’s place relative to the rest of the league remains in flux. Someone who clears 25 points per game while nailing nearly 50 percent of his twos and 38 percent of his threes is clearly good, but the degree to which he can impact winning isn’t yet known.
Billing him as an empty-calories scorer is more than a touch too bold. LaVine’s numbers are not solely the offshoot of unchecked volume. He has meaningful layers to his game…
…Figuring out whether LaVine’s production elevates those around him is where things get tricky. He is fine as a complementary playmaker but overstretched as anything more…
…LaVine isn’t Devin Booker or Trae Young, two lifelines on losing teams who redefine their offense’s ceiling. He’s more of a floor-preserver—the kind of player who’d be a lot better off as the Bulls’ No. 2.”
Zach Lavine knows his play means little without winning
The fact is neither side is entirely wrong. Lavine is within his right to feel disrespected. He feels like he played well enough to get greater recognition, which is true. On the flip side, the reality is his play did little to elevate the team. The Bulls were still one of the worst in the NBA. This raises questions about whether he can be that focal point of an organization. Somebody to build around.
While undoubtedly a tremendous scorer, the rest of Lavine’s game can best be called below average. His defensive win shares ranking for the season was 79th with a 0.077. That was just among guards. By contrast, Russell Westbrook, who averaged 27.5 points, also had a defensive win shares rating of 0.133. Good for 12th among guards. Almost double what Lavine accomplished. This is why the guy doesn’t have a ton of believers. They feel he’s a one-dimensional player. Great for getting points but not much else.
Combine that with being on a losing team? Yeah, it’s not hard to understand why he’s overlooked. Until either of those changes, it will probably stay that way. Fair or not.
