“League gossip” from the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago this week suggests that Zac Lavin, who will return to the Bulls this summer as an unrestricted free agent, will no longer be considered the same as before, K.C. Writes. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. According to Johnson, the two-time All-Star has been linked with the Lakers, Trail Blazers, Mavericks and Hawks, which are more likely to follow.
As Mark Stein has heard in his latest substack article, “Hope is more prevalent than expected” that Star Wing can be sure to join a rival team in a free agency.
The 27-year-old is expected to have a relatively small knee opportunity early next week, but that won’t dampen interest in Johnson Riley, Lavin’s free agency. Some rival executives think Chicago might be reluctant to give LaVine a full deal. The Bulls can give him approximately $ 212.3MM over five years, while any other team will be limited to a maximum offer of $ 157.4MM over four years.
The Bulls have expressed a public desire to keep LaVine afloat, and said they are pleased with the team’s last offseason move (signing separate sign-and-trade for Lonzo Ball and Demar Derozan and Alex Caruso), which helped. The club reached the playoffs for the first time since 2016/17.
“It simply came to our notice then. Obviously it was hard to have that feeling for my first two years here. This year has been incredible, “Lavin said in late April, according to Johnson. “You have to consider everything. And of course our team here needs you to consider how good we were last year and moving on. “
The Lakers, Mavs and Hawks don’t currently have the cap space to sign LaVine – they’ll have to draw a sign-and-trade to get it, which is more complicated. And when the blazers can technically create enough space to sign it, they will have to make a number of moves first.
In the end, Johnson believes a return to the Bulls is still the most likely outcome – assuming that’s what LaVine wants.
