The Chicago Bulls are on the verge of starting a full rebuild, but they may need to make one or two more trades to get there.
If the team doesn’t trade Zach LaVine or Nikola Vucević before the season begins, they risk remaining in a frustrating middle ground: not poor enough to rebuild through tanking, yet not strong enough to be serious contenders.
Being stuck in mediocrity is the last thing the Bulls can afford for the 2024-25 season, as it could jeopardize their chances of keeping their top-10 protected pick for the highly anticipated 2025 NBA Draft.
The Bulls have had difficulty finding a market for Zach LaVine, but there may be some less obvious teams interested in him over the next seven weeks.
The Toronto Raptors could be a potential suitor for LaVine. Although Toronto has players like Scottie Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, and RJ Barrett on long-term contracts, they lack sufficient pure scoring. LaVine could address this need and add balance to their roster.
Chicago’s goal is to move LaVine’s contract to a team that offers expiring or short-term deals in return, given that LaVine has three years remaining on his contract. The Bulls would be open to taking on Bruce Brown’s expiring $23M contract and Kelly Olynyk’s two-year deal worth $12.8M per season in exchange for LaVine.
While LaVine to the Raptors hasn’t been discussed widely, it could be a smart, understated move for both Toronto and Chicago.
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