And that might finally be the curtain on the 2021-2022 Chicago Bulls‘ season. On Tuesday morning, it was revealed Zach LaVine would miss Wednesday’s Game 5 against the Milwaukee Bucks after entering the league’s health and safety protocols.
The Bulls are currently on the ropes, trailing the defending champs 3-1, and need a win on the road to stay alive. Without LaVine and potentially Alex Caruso, who’s in the concussion protocol after taking an elbow to the head on Sunday, it’ll be a near-impossible task.
It’s been evident that the duo of LaVine and DeMar DeRozan clearly isn’t enough to overpower the Bucks, and fans now have to wonder what that means for the offseason.
Throw in this awful luck for LaVine, along with his nagging knee issues that slowed him down drastically since the All-Star break, and it’s worth questioning whether the Bulls are going to give him a max contract when the time comes.
Zach LaVine is expected to miss Wednesday's Game 5 vs. Bucks in COVID-19 protocols, sources said. https://t.co/WDxP09qxCF
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 26, 2022
Zach LaVine is likely going to miss the Game 5 of the Bulls-Bucks series
LaVine has been with the Bulls since 2017-2018 and this was his first time appearing in the playoffs for his career. Unfortunately, his showings in Games 1, 3 and 4 were largely bad. He registered a total plus/minus of -45 in those three losses and went a combined 20-of-50 from the field for just 57 points (he averaged 24.4 per game during the regular season).
Not terrible for his first-ever showing in the postseason, but the fact so many teams were able to neutralize LaVine and DeRozan for much of the second half of the season after Lonzo Ball went down goes to show that the Bulls’ star power might not be as impactful as initially believed.
With LaVine slated for free agency and DeRozan under contract for two more seasons, it wouldn’t exactly be shocking if the Bulls looked to upgrade in a different manner given how much LaVine is expected to cost from a max contract standpoint.
DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine accounted for 41% of the points the Bulls scored during the regular season.
— Drew Stevens (@lookwhatdrewdid) April 26, 2022
They’re responsible for 45.2% of the 376 points the Bulls have scored in four games against the Bucks.
Much of LaVine’s tenure with the Bulls has been characterized by bad luck, and that might be enough for the organization to simply move on. He’s a tremendous talent, but if injuries limit his ability to stay on the court or his efficiency on it, then is that worth a high-end price tag? With how hard it is to come by superstar talent nowadays, most fans would be happy to keep LaVine in town, and it’s more than likely the team’s ownership would be, too.
However, throw in a COVID diagnosis right before a win-or-go-home contest, and this just might not be meant to be.
Is Zach LaVine worth a max contract for the Chicago Bulls this offseason?
Zach LaVine will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, leaving the Bulls with a tough decision on whether or not to give him a max contract.