Zach LaVine is a very good NBA player. Bulls fans have known that for years. He's a flamethrower on offense, a true three-level scorer who is more fun to watch when he's cooking than potentially anyone else in the league. But Bulls fans have also known for years that, despite his massive contract, LaVine can't be relied on nightly to be a team's No. 1 scorer.
Now, the Sacramento Kings are learning that in real time as their season slips into despair — a familiar place for the franchise and its fans. I get no joy out of saying that. In fact, I get sad. The good people of Sac Town don't deserve this.
To be fair to the Kings, I don't think they ever really wanted LaVine to be their top option; they were forced to scramble when De'Aaron Fox asked for a trade last season and they did a solid job getting LaVine in return with how little time they were given to make a move.
Still, the end result hasn't been thrilling. Bulls fans could have told you what the results would be when a team builds a roster around Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, though. Likeable? Yes. Fun? On occasion. Competitive at a high level? Not as much.
Zach LaVine is playing well, but the Kings are stumbling
"A feeling of having already experienced the present situation," is the dictionary definition of deja vu, if you were wondering.
I mention that because what's going on in Sacramento right now looks eerily similar to what happened in Chicago for the past many years. A team is trying to make Zach LaVine the focal point of its offense, and sometimes he delivers and wins games. Mostly, he shows why he should be a very good No. 2 option in the league, instead of the top scorer role that he keeps being forced to inhabit.
It's not Zach LaVine's fault that he can't singlehandedly lift the Sacramento Kings to relevance. He didn't ask for this, and the roster around him is not nearly good enough for this team to make any noise. It's not even DeMar or Domantas Sabonis' fault, either! The Kings have been constructed in a confounding manner by a front office that has no direction, no end goal, and no respect for a fanbase that has supported its team through some brutal basketball.
Hey, that sounds kind of familiar, too! I don't think Bulls fans would wish this predicament on anyone, much less the fanbase of a team thousands of miles away in the other conference. But if Kings fans need some help coping with a roster that looks how their team's currently does, I know a fanbase that can offer advice.