Key pieces of the Chicago Bulls new core to build around: Zach LaVine
Now we’ve reached the part of the list that has some truly special talents for the Bulls to build around moving forward. Star former UCLA Bruins 26-year-old shooting guard Zach LaVine is clearly a piece that Karnisovas and the Bulls would like to stick around for a long time. His current contract runs up next offseason, and extending him should be a priority in the near future.
Zach is one part of the Bulls star duo that could also potentially attract more star-caliber talent to Chicago. Now that LaVine has a legit star running mate in center Nikola Vucevic to push this starting unit to the next level, more standout players might find it appealing to try and contend for a deep playoff run by joining the Bulls.
At this point of his career, Zach might not keep having career years for the Bulls, but it is nice to see his game still improving in bits and pieces on both ends of the floor. LaVine definitely deserved to get his first career All-Star nod this year. And there could be more on the way in the near future with the way he’s played the last two or three seasons.
Zach has gone from fitting the image of what most people thought would be a second option at best on a team that could make a respectable playoff run, or a third piece on a title contender, to a bona fide star in the league. The way he helped the Bulls improve as a whole this season bodes well for the direction of his game moving forward.