Now that the NBA draft is over, the focus of the offseason shifts towards free agency. Once Wendell Carter Jr. and Chandler Hutchison officially sign, the Bulls will have 14 players under contract, leaving only one open full-time roster spot. With Zach LaVine being a restricted free agent, it’s been assumed that the Bulls would pay whatever it takes to keep him around and head into next season with their young core intact.
That might not be the case. According to ESPN’s Nick Friedell, one of the most trusted reporters in the business, the Bulls are having second thoughts about resigning LaVine.
“Bulls may still lock up restricted free agent Zach LaVine this summer — but as an organization the near universal support LaVine once had internally isn’t there anymore. Bulls will wait to see if he can find big $$$ elsewhere first and then decide if they want to match.”
That quote can be interpreted a couple of different ways:
- Either John Paxson, Gar Forman, Fred Hoiberg or a combination of the three are unimpressed with LaVine and feel the Bulls’ future is brighter without him.
- The Bulls and LaVine aren’t seeing eye to eye on the money, and if a desperate team with cap space such as Brooklyn, Dallas or Atlanta throws $100M at LaVine, the Bulls don’t think matching an offer sheet that expensive would be worth it.
I tend to believe the latter. It’s hard to tell where the Bulls will draw the line regarding the money they’re willing to pay LaVine. If someone does sign him to a four-year max offer sheet, it’s probably wise to let him walk. But man, losing LaVine after just 24 games would make the Jimmy Butler trade look really bad.
For what it’s worth, LaVine doesn’t seem to be thinking about playing anywhere outside of Chicago.
Welcome to the #CHI let’s get this thing going my g @wendellcarter34
— Zach LaVine (@ZachLaVine) June 22, 2018
The Bulls aren’t good enough yet to expect to be successful in free agency, so LaVine will be, by far, their most important target. There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding LaVine and his future, but at just 23 years old there’s a lot of untapped potential there. Hopefully he remains a Bull, we’ll just have to wait and see.
