According to The Athletic's Sam Amick, the Sacramento Kings still maintain some level of interest in Chicago Bulls backcourt star Zach LaVine, but they need the Bulls to invest more valuable assets in order for the deal to get through. Amick also said the Kings could match LaVine's contract by packing Harrison Barnes and Kevin Huerter.
LaVine has only played 25 games for the team this season, averaging 34.9 minutes per game, averaging 19.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.3 blocks, and 2.1 turnovers while shooting 45.2% from the field, 34.9% from three-point range and 85.4% from the free throw line. In this season's NBA regular season, Barnes played all 82 regular-season games. He averaged 29 minutes per game, averaging 12.2 points, 3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.1 blocks while shooting 47.4% from the field, 38.1% from three-point range and 80.1% from the free throw line. In the NBA regular season this season, Huerter played a total of 64 games for the team, averaging 24.4 minutes per game, averaging 10.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.4 blocks per game, shooting 44.3% from the field, 36.1% from three-point range, and 76.6% from the free throw line.
Huerter's contract for next season is $16.83 million, and his contract expires in the summer of 2026. Barnes has a contract value of $18 million next season, and next season is his contract year. LaVine's contract for next season is $43.03 million, and his contract doesn't expire until 2027. From a salary perspective, as long as the Kings add a player to the trade, such as Sasha Vezenkov or Davion Mitchell or Chris Duarte, the deal can go through, and these additions are all expiring contracts, the impact on the Bulls' future will not be too great.
It was previously reported that the Philadelphia 76ers had been interested in LaVine. But according to the latest news, the 76ers are no longer interested in LaVine because the Bulls just sent away Alex Caruso, the 76ers' favorite backcourt iron gate in a previous trade. For the Bulls, judging from the team's current roster structure and staffing, keeping LaVine will not only affect the playing time of other players, but also lead to a serious waste of team resources. For the sake of the Bulls' long-term development, they will definitely find a way to send LaVine away. It's just that from the current situation, it is not easy to do this. The Kings' Barnes and Huerter are not particularly good players, and their arrival will not greatly improve the team's competitiveness. The bottom line is that to get the deal done, the Bulls will have to put in a first-round pick and young players. Will the Bulls be able to find a better trade partner than the Kings?