Two weeks into the season might seem a little premature to begin floating trade ideas, but not for the Chicago Bulls, who are approaching the 2024-25 season as a building block toward a more prosperous future.
There are two obvious players for the Bulls to move this season: Nikola Vučević and Zach LaVine. The veteran pair represents the final vestiges of the failed project to build the team around DeMar DeRozan, which ended finally with trades of DeRozan and Alex Caruso this summer.
Neither LaVine nor Vučević earned notable interest in the offseason even as the Bulls engaged in other deals. Now, rebuilding both players’ value on the trade market is a key aspect of their strategy. So how is LaVine’s and Vučević’s stock fluctuating in the initial weeks of the season?
At the end of last season, the prospect of trading Vučević seemed like all but a lost cause. His 3-point shooting had cratered under 30% for the first time in nearly a decade. His diminished usage alongside LaVine and DeRozan was reflected in reduced statistics across the floor. And at 34 and in the second season of a three-year, $60 million deal, Vučević had slowly transformed into yet another albatross around the neck of the front office.
But nine games into this season, Vučević might be redefining himself as a desirable commodity. He’s shooting 47.5% from 3-point range while supplying the second-most points (21.2 per game) and most rebounds (10.1) on the roster. Despite a new team ethos centered around pace, Vučević hasn’t slowed down the offense. And beyond his statistical progression, the center has shown a high level of buy-in that has benefitted a young roster.
Moving Vučević isn’t just a matter of offloading salary. The Bulls truly don’t have other options at center — Jalen Smith has been hit-or-miss as a backup and Patrick Williams often struggles when playing undersized at the 5 — which means any trade should at least position them to build an improved frontcourt.
But there should be a wealth of options around the league — the Los Angeles Lakers reportedly are looking for a center and the New Orleans Pelicans are in desperate need of help in the paint. If Vučević maintains his sharpshooting, the Bulls should have a few reasonable offers across their desk by the time deadline season rolls around in February.
LaVine is the more unwieldy trade asset of the two, if nothing else because of the three seasons left on his $215 million, maximum-contract deal. But the start of this season has been a similar antidote to the free fall that his trade value took after last season’s miserable performance was cut short by injury.
A key difference in the approach now: caution. LaVine, 29, has noted multiple times that he played with a floating bone fragment (medically diagnosed as a nonunion Jones fracture) for months last season. Muscling through the pain did LaVine no favors. He was visibly diminished in every aspect of his game, almost completely losing his offensive pop above the rim while struggling to keep up defensively.
LaVine this season is less willing to play through injury — and that’s a benefit to both himself and the Bulls. He’s averaging 22.7 points and 3.7 3-pointers in six games, reintroducing himself with high-flying dunks and a return to precision from behind the 3-point arc (45.8%). But holding the guard out when he’s questionable — whether with a partially dislocated shoulder or a right adductor strain, forcing him to miss the last three games — allows him to log more valuable performances in a season in which wins and losses aren’t the main focus.
Too much time away from the court could once again land LaVine with a “fragile” label. But if the Bulls can strike a balance of playing their star guard only when he’s able to perform at his best, they’ll be well-positioned to complete their primary goal of the season.
All of this, of course, hinges on the front office’s willingness to make a move when it becomes available. The Bulls have been wary to deal at the trade deadline in recent years, with executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas and general manager Marc Eversley both citing a lack of serious offers when turning down bids for players such as Caruso.
For now, Vučević and LaVine are doing their parts to pave the way for a new future in Chicago. It will be up to Karnišovas and Eversley to guarantee that work pays off in February.
