Sports
NBA Rumors: Bulls' Zach LaVine Not Being Pursued by Heat amid Trade Buzz – Bleacher Report
As the Miami Heat look for options to solidify their offense, it doesn’t appear as if they will be in the Zach LaVine sweepstakes.
Per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, the Heat have “not been pursuing a trade for” the two-time All-Star since it was reported the Chicago Bulls would be open to moving him.
Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported on Nov. 14 there was an “increased openness” from the Bulls to explore a LaVine trade.
The Heat, Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers were cited as teams expected to have at least some level of interest.
If a trade is going to happen, the earliest it would likely occur is mid-December when most of the players who signed contracts during the offseason are eligible to be moved.
The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry reported earlier this week the trade deadline on Feb. 9 is a “more realistic” timeline for a potential LaVine deal to take place because it can take “additional time to construct a trade for high-contract players, and [executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras] Karnišovas has demonstrated numerous times that he’s patient in making a deal.”
It would be a surprise if the Heat don’t at least engage in talks for scorers leading up to the trade deadline. They were long favored to get Damian Lillard before the Milwaukee Bucks swooped in with a deal the Portland Trail Blazers couldn’t turn down.
Even without Lillard, the Heat are off to a strong start this season. They have won nine of their last 10 games and are tied with three other teams for the second-best record in the Eastern Conference (10-5)
If there is a flaw on this roster, it’s scoring. Their 114.7 offensive rating is 12th in the NBA, but they rank 21st in points per game (111.5). They have the fourth-best three-point percentage (39.0), but are just 18th in attempts per game (33.2).
Head coach Erik Spoelstra’s team is led by one of the best defenses in the league. They are top 10 in both points allowed per game (108.1) and defensive rating (111.2).
Unless the Heat desperately want another ballhandler on the roster, LaVine would be redundant with a player like Tyler Herro.
The Bulls would presumably want a player like Herro back if they are going to trade LaVine, but that doesn’t seem like a smart move for Miami. LaVine is earning $40.1 million this season and is owed $89 million over the next two seasons plus a $49 million player option for 2026-27.
If anything, Herro is more valuable to the Heat because the ball doesn’t stop with him in the way it has with LaVine throughout his career. Herro is averaging a career-high 4.6 assists per game this season.
LaVine is averaging his fewest points (21.3) and assists (3.3) per game since the 2017-18 season.