The Chicago Bulls front office shopping shooting guard Zach LaVine in the 2020 offseason could play to a benefit with the right return and landing spot.
Ahead of the 2020 trade deadline, the Chicago Bulls were not looking to accept any calls that they got for the almost 25-year-old shooting guard Zach LaVine. John Paxson reportedly has long-term plans in store for LaVine and third-year power forward Lauri Markkanen, which held true since the Bulls didn’t look to deal either one of them at the 2020 trade deadline.
All in all, the Bulls stood pat at the trade deadline. They didn’t even make a move to deal any of the players that were considered to be on the trade block entering deadline day. Point guard Kris Dunn, shooting guard Denzel Valentine, and power forward Thaddeus Young all stayed with the Bulls through the trade deadline.
Given all the injuries piling up for the Bulls of late in combination with them mostly falling out of the playoff race, but still technically staying alive, made it very difficult for the front office to find a good direction at the deadline. The Bulls clearly shouldn’t have played the role of a major buyer, but selling off any of their current major draft assets or players would be a bad idea too.
Pax: we have Long-term belief in LaVine, Markkanen.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) February 6, 2020
Hanging onto LaVine seemed like one of the givens for the Bulls at the trade deadline.
But what should Paxson and Gar Forman hold in store for LaVine heading into the offseason?
Should the plan be to hang onto LaVine and Lauri and build around them, or find a new young core to keep progressing with. The Bulls likely aren’t going to find a superstar out of either LaVine or Markkanen. Second-year center or rookie point guard Coby White seem to be the closest thing to a potential star that the Bulls have on the roster right now.
If the Bulls so decide that LaVine isn’t a key piece of their future, where would be three potential trade destinations for him heading into the 2020 offseason?