Sports
NBA Rumors: Zach LaVine Prefers Lakers, Heat, 76ers, More amid Bulls Trade Buzz – Bleacher Report
As the Chicago Bulls continue to test the waters on a potential Zach LaVine trade, the star guard has the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers on his list of preferred destinations, according to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer.
Each of those teams have registered some level of interest in LaVine dating back to when the Bulls started shopping him in the offseason.
Fischer also said LaVine “has an eye on joining” the San Antonio Spurs, and he would “welcome” a move to the Sacramento Kings as well.
The Bulls appear ready to start a rebuild amid another mediocre 4-8 start to the campaign.
Now in his seventh season in Chicago, LaVine no longer views the Bulls’ roster as competitive and wants to play for a true contender for the first time in his career, per Fischer. Considering his marksmanship from three-point range and athleticism, he could be a potential game-changer for a number of teams.
Los Angeles and Philadelphia appear to be the two most likely destinations out of his preferred list due to his connections with Klutch Sports for the former and an arsenal of draft capital for the latter.
LaVine would be a natural third scoring option for the Lakers behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis. However, the team may need to wait until Dec. 15, when the Lakers will be able to trade the free agents whom they signed this offseason like D’Angelo Russell and Rui Hachimura to help match LaVine’s $40.1 million cap hit.
Los Angeles may also lack the necessary draft capital to acquire him.
As for the 76ers, they may have just the right mix of expiring contracts and draft picks to entice Chicago and replace some of the offense left in the absence of James Harden.
LaVine also likely wouldn’t disrupt Tyrese Maxey’s ascendence in the same way Harden did with his ball dominance.
Aside from those three main contenders, LaVine has also expressed some interest in joining San Antonio to play with generational rookie Victor Wembanyama as well as reunite with former Team USA coach Gregg Popovich, with whom he won a gold medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
LaVine is averaging 21.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game while shooting 40.7 percent overall and 33.0 percent from three-point range.