Stock Watch: The Chicago Bulls Risers and Fallers

1. Holds: Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen

Zach LaVine – Stats: 20.2/3.6/4, .447/.387/.722, .518 eFG

Zach LaVine is reprising his role as the Bulls top scoring threat. While his scoring numbers are down across the board, most concerning is his lack of production at the free-throw line. LaVine is already getting to the line less frequently overall but his not converting those opportunities is what hurts most.

The Bulls are shooting about 10 more threes per game as a team this year and Zach has expressed his affinity for the mid-range jumper. But just as key to his game is his driving ability.

LaVine is 18th in the NBA in drives per game and 16th in free throw attempts off of drives. He was 14th and sixth, respectively, last year.

He is only converting 64.3 percent of those attempts. That number was 81.2 percent a year ago. LaVine shoots better than 82 percent from the charity stripe for his career and was around that this preseason so those numbers should bounce back. He might also look to pass more if he was on the floor with more scorers in crunch time.

The sixth-year pro’s shooting efficiency jumps from the first half (37.8/36.8/71.4) to the second (52.5/41.7/72.7) while only his free throw attempts rise; not a bad thing. It’s just in those moments when he is looking for a whistle instead of his shot or a teammate that is costly.