A flurry of wins, five straight losses, a bounce-back victory over the LA Clippers, and most recently, a thrashing at the hands of the sub-.500 Golden State Warriors. Despite all the January turmoil, the Bulls remain in 10th place in the Eastern Conference. Chicago is three games behind the ninth-place Miami Heat and two and a half games ahead of the 11th-place Philadelphia 76ers.
Chicago's 19-26 record ranks 22nd or ninth worst in the NBA. Barring misfortune in May's draft lottery, the Bulls would retain their first-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft instead of conveying it to the San Antonio Spurs. There's been much debate about whether the Bulls should outright tank, thus trading numerous veterans, or push for a playoff spot in a weak Eastern Conference.
Halfway through the season, the direction is still unclear. As mentioned above, the Bulls are comfortably in 10th place. There's no easy path to rattling off victories or initiating a rebuild unless various trades are made ahead of the February 6 deadline.
Zach LaVine is more than likely to finish this season with the Bulls
While several teams have expressed interest in a few Bulls veterans, namely Nikola Vucevic and Lonzo Ball, Chicago's best player, is reportedly staying in the Windy City. According to NBA Insider Jake Fischer via The Stein Line, "[LaVine] would prefer to remain in Chicago beyond the Feb. 6 deadline."
The same can't be said of Vucevic, Ball, or other available veterans such as 34-year-old Torrey Craig. There hasn't been an outright trade request by any Bull—nor has any player been angling to find a way out of town. However, Fischer noted that "rival teams continue to describe the Bulls as a franchise willing to discuss deals up and down the roster."
Furthermore, even LaVine isn't completely off-limits leading up to the deadline. Fischer stated that regardless of LaVine's preference to stay in Chicago, it "won't necessarily insulate [him] from being dealt if an offer [the Bulls] like surfaces in the next 13 days."
Ultimately, Fischer's report doesn't rule out LaVine from being traded. But it does denote that the 29-year-old is content playing for the Bulls. He's enjoying a career year, averaging 24.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 3.2 three-pointers per game. LaVine has also never been more efficient—converting 51.3 percent of his field goals and 45.1 percent of his threes. Consequently, the Bulls are certainly content retaining LaVine beyond the trade deadline.
The likely reason behind Chicago's hesitancy to trade LaVine is due to a league-wide disagreement about his worth. The Bulls have notoriously held out on trading numerous veterans over the years despite receiving quality offers. Most recently, it was reported that the Bulls balked at the Warriors' offer of multiple first-round draft picks for Alex Caruso prior to last season's trade deadline. As we all know, Chicago later traded Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Josh Giddey.
Sure, LaVine is a better player than Caruso. Nevertheless, his contract is far more burdensome. He's scheduled to make $138 million through 2027 at 31-years-old. Teams around the league have been known to be put off by LaVine's contract. While he's restored much of the value he lost a season ago, it's possible Chicago remains stingy when including LaVine in trade talks.