The Chicago Bulls have a very difficult situation in front of them when it comes to a Zach LaVine trade. While LaVine is a great player and could help a lot of teams, his contract situation makes him tough to move.
There have been several reports suggesting a team trading for LaVine will be looking for draft compensation or another rotation player attached to the deal in order to take on his contract. In a recent report from Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, it was revealed that the Philadelphia 76ers may no longer have strong interest in LaVine now that Alex Caruso has been dealt to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
According to Scotto, Philadelphia would have potentially been open to a LaVine deal if they also received Caruso in the same trade. Now that Caruso has already been moved, Philadelphia may have taken themselves out of the LaVine discussion entirely. If true, this removes one of Chicago’s top options for a LaVine trade, as Philadelphia has the cap space to absorb his deal.
The 76ers were not expected to have LaVine near the top of their offseason list, but he could have been a potential fallback option, especially if a player like Caruso was added in the deal. It seems the Bulls still want to deal LaVine, but it may be much more challenging than they initially hoped.
JJ Redick Fires Back at Former NBA Star Over Viral Michael Jordan Statement