Yahoo – The second part of this deal moves LaVine out of Chicago and reunites him with former teammate DeMar DeRozan.
LaVine, who will turn 30 years old on March 10, averaged 24 points (on 51/45/80 shooting splits), 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game for the Bulls this season. His 42 games played in 2024-25 are more than he played for last season’s 39-win Bulls, as surgery on his right foot limited him to 25 games.
Alright this doesn’t need to be too complicated. A lot of people like doing that with NBA trades but not me. I don’t have a crystal ball nor a PHD in advanced mathematical application systems, or whatever the hot degree is right now. I have almost no qualifications for advanced trade analysis other than to say that Zach LaVine absolutely fucking blows across the board.
Talented? Absolutely. One of the smoothest and purest and, by association, most frustrating players you will ever watch in your life. And maybe one of the softest, no doubt. A guy you just have no interest cheering for on a day-to-day basis as he carries himself like a Tier-1 superstar. The reality is he’s good enough to be confused with Tier-1 superstars on occasion and most of the time is him trying to find that occasion. That’s super annoying.
The nice thing now is that he’s no longer a Bull. Down side is obviously the Bulls are going to win 25 games the next couple seasons and we’re right back to the drawing board.
Not too long ago the Bulls were looking at the #1 seed in the East with a healthy Lonzo. That’s so far away there’s no reason to retread this topic. They completely fell apart and LaVine did nothing to salvage anything.
So he’s out which means the Bulls are full tank mode with no promise of getting it right this time around as we’ve tanked in 7 of the last 10 seasons I believe. Making it an even 8 in 2025-26 would be a really special effort.
All of this is okay with me. The worst part to be is middle of the pack with a super talented guy that doesn’t play particularly hard or give you any hope of advancing in postseason play. That’s the worst. 41-41 with a gutless first round exit is the absolute best Zach LaVine can do for the city of Chicago. So if we have to take it on the chin next couple seasons to recalibrate, so be it. Ultimately I think that’s a much healthier place for my fandom and mental health.
Go Bulls.
PS – I heard from a player that Zach LaVine was a selfish prick. He wasn’t good at socializing with the team and building relationships and all that shit. I think that caused major leadership issues with DeRozan and got people uncomfortable. Whatever. Thankfully it’s over now and we can all move on with our lives losing 60 fucking games a year.