Will Zach LaVine’s season-ending foot injury push the Bulls‘ front office over the edge?
Chicago has been reluctant to break up its core group but it may be hard to justify keeping the roster together at this point.
If the plan hadn’t gone awry due to injuries and underperformance, the Bulls might have been a contender in the Eastern Conference. They’d have Nikola Vucevic, Patrick Williams, DeMar DeRozan, LaVine and Lonzo Ball in the lineup and solid players like Coby White and Alex Caruso on the second unit.
Of course, Ball has been plagued by knee injuries and hasn’t played for more than two years. Williams, currently sidelined by a foot injury, hasn’t developed into the impact player the front office anticipated when using a high lottery pick on the power forward.
White has emerged as a reliable starter in his fifth season. Otherwise, the Bulls have not shown any improvement. They’re four games under .500 with little reason for optimism of turning things around.
The Bulls do have players with some trade value. DeRozan is on an expiring contract and could boost a contender’s chances. The hard-nosed Caruso would be a quality pickup for a team needing backcourt depth.
Vucevic’s contract extension was cost-effective and there are teams looking for centers. His backup, Andre Drummond, is on a bargain deal, which might make him even more attractive than Vucevic.
Ball’s contract includes a $21.4MM player option for next season. The Bulls could include him in a wider-ranging deal to shed salary and create more flexibility for 2024/25.
That brings us to our topic of the day: Should the Bulls go into fire sale mode before the trade deadline and start a serious rebuild? Should they wait to retool until the summer? Or should they look for trades to remain competitive?
Please take to the comments section to weigh on this topic. We look forward to your input.
There’s going to be a big difference between what they logically should do (in terms of what is best for them long term) and what their front office thinks they should do. As soon as they found out how serious Ball’s injury was last year, they should have traded everyone away and done a full, proper rebuild like OKC.
But not only did they not do that, they re-signed Vuc and tooled up because to the front office, simply making the playoffs is their goal. And they likely will make the playoffs this year. They’re a better team without LaVine and are 18-13 in their last 31 games after starting 5-14.
They will probably stand pat at the trade deadline (or even add someone like Bogdan) and find themselves around the 6-8 seed mark if they keep playing this well. They will probably get bounced in the first round.
Is this a good thing for the team long term? Not really. But I would bet it’s what they’re going to do.
First off good post , secondly I think it’s super complex – They really like DDR Vuc and Caruso- They feel they have found an identity w them … that’s a lotta harder to parcel than just bit players w some value or going full Okc
I’d prolly still move the parts but I understand the hang up , rebuilds are tough to stomach and most end up just being failed projects leading to another rebuild / Chi knows this game all to well
* I don’t have a problem w teams who aren’t Ring contenders not selling , it’s kinda the template your Knicks have used to get to the great spot they are in now – it can be frustrating and sometimes feel like watching paint dry but it’s a nice template that Nyk have gone through
Not complex at all hrd. This franchise is a debacle. U move derozans expiring asap. Deal a fully healthy lavine asap. Get max u can for Caruso. Put ball in rear view mirror.
I wouldn’t say debacle , low ceiling sure but they have shown an identity and an ability to win Games the last couple years which is more Than I can sat for quite a few franchises today
This is all so easy, except our owner worships satan and hates Chicago and all the fans, the fire sale should already be happening, but the organization is run like garbage by a loser, they will stay the course to get embarrassed in the play in
Now I think that the Bulls should trade and start over. In the last few weeks, the Bulls were beat on their home court by Golden State (without Draymond Green), Toronto (without Barrett, Quickley and Poeltl) and beat badly by Sacramento. Bulls are just overachievers at times.
Can see the Bull’s management’s dilemma. Hard to justify not at least trying to be a play-on game team and see where it goes.
I would be extremely frustrated if I were a Bulls fan. They’re not good enough to be a legitimate playoff team (no, barely making the play-in doesn’t count) and have no foundational young players to start a rebuild around. They could kickstart a rebuild by trading DeRozan, Vuc, etc. this season, but realistically they’re gonna be bad for the next 3-5 years at minimum.
At the very least they should trade DeRozan. It makes no sense to extend him and so it’s better to try to get something valuable while they are in time. As for the other vets, they should trade them sooner or later as well, but there’s no need to give them away either if they don’t get the right deal.
doing nothing is still doing something? v
You have to be active at the deadline otherwise what’s the point, a wasted season and no return on DeRozan, Pat Will and Drummond.
I’d start with GSW who desperately needs to do something themselves and according to reports they are after a 7 footer offensive minded big man. Steve Kerr has also said many times that he’d love to have Alex Caruso. The deal:
Nikola Vucevic and Alex Caruso for Andrew Wiggins, Moses Moody, Gui Santos and a protected first.
After that, I’d actually keep LaVine. If he’s out for the season and on that contract you’re not going to get anything at all for him. Your better off waiting till next season and getting a better return then, so instead it’s DeMare DeRozan. The deal:
DeMare DeRozan and Jevon Carter for Jordan Clarkson, THT and 2 second round picks
Then lastly and rather randomly,
Lonzo Ball and Patrick Williams for Gordan Hayward
Thus leaving the Bulls to just ride the season out.
In the offseason Hayward and THT both expire which gives you a little money. You’d start the season off with LaVine as your starting SG but ideally he doesn’t hang around long cause I think Moses Moody is primed and ready for a breakout season next year. You’ve got Clarkson as a sixth man off the bench, Wiggins starts at SF and is a good role player but you do need to add some bigs. That works nicely with your position in the draft, you’d be lined up well to grab a big man like Filipowski, Missi or Salaun.
Overall you’re clearing some money, getting back a couple draft picks and adding some fresh young talent.
Break it up and cash in on draft capital and some young prospects.
DeRozan, Vucevic, Caruso are all worth a lot to playoff bound teams. They should get 1st round pick for each of those guys plus players – expiring contracts and youth.
Drummond a team may pay a 1st to beat out another suitor. Jevon Carter can provide vet PG depth for a team like PHX and should fetch 2nd rounders.
Patrick Williams I’d be on the fence on as he’s still developing and a rebuilding piece. Do they want to pay him? If not trade him too.
I think Billy Donovan is a good coach and his college success should carry over to complete rebuild with very young players.
Break it all up in the off-season and hope to get cooper Flagg in the draft the following year and go from there
TRADE everyone besides Coby White. They have no sense of direction, no sense of urgency when it comes to maximizing a player’s trade value. AKME have horribly miscalculated everything. Their solution was to “run it back” but add Javon Carter who was the missing piece. Unacceptable, unorganized, incompetence by both of them.