At the end of this past season, the Chicago Bulls went out in brutal fashion. In their second Play-In game, with a chance to make the playoffs, they took on the Miami Heat. And while the game came down to the final few minutes, Chicago fell short, missing the playoffs entirely.
But rather than hit the reset button, Arturas Karnisovas said that the team didn’t want to rebuild and instead planned to push forward. While they’ve adopted that mentality this summer, some fans have urged them to pivot in a different direction. A rebuild could help the Bulls secure a brighter future in Chicago.
One trade concocted by Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report would see the Bulls do just that.
Mock trade sees Bulls ditch Zach LaVine for $180 million forward: The trade
Here’s the full outline of Bailey’s trade proposal:
Bulls receive: Tobias Harris, 2030 first-round pick, 2029 first-round pick swap
76ers receive: Zach LaVine
Mock trade sees Bulls ditch Zach LaVine for $180 million forward: Bailey's reasoning for Bulls
This is why Bailey believes the Bulls should make this move:
“Tobias Harris, who recently said “casual Sixers fans” want to trade him for a Crumbl cookie, is on a $39.3 million expiring contract that could be attractive for any team looking to get out of a long-term deal or kickstart a rebuild. The Chicago Bulls should be interested in doing exactly that.
“Zach LaVine is a phenomenal offensive player who’s averaged 25.4 points and 4.5 assists with a 56.8 effective field-goal percentage over the last three years, but Chicago has been thoroughly mediocre with a core of him, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vučević.
“The Bulls can either keep plugging away without a discernible path to contention through the duration of LaVine’s deal (which expires in 2027), or they can take some draft assets and a contract that comes off the books in less than 12 months.”
Mock trade sees Bulls ditch Zach LaVine for $180 million forward: Should the Bulls make this trade?
Whether or not the Bulls should make this trade depends on a few important factors.
1. Should the Bulls rebuild?
If the answer is yes, then it leads to another question.
2. Should the Bulls look to add young pieces or simply tear down the roster and fix their financials?
If they prefer the latter, then the trade is perfect. Getting off LaVine’s long-term money in a single season would be great for the future of their team. Harris is entering the final year of a five-year, $180 million contract and will be off the books after just one season.
If they would rather get young assets, then this isn’t the trade for them.
And, of course, if the Bulls want to compete for the postseason, which seems like the case, then this trade makes zero sense.
