RealGM Basketball Wiretap

05 February 2023

• Lakers, Heat, Knicks, Mavericks Among Teams Interested In Zach LaVine Trade

  If the Chicago Bulls decide to make Zach LaVine available via trade, he is expected to have a number of teams interested in dealing for him.

  The Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, New York Knicks and Dallas Mavericks have been consistently mentioned by league executives as teams with a desire to trade for LaVine. The Portland Trail Blazers also had interest in signing LaVine last offseason.

  LaVine signed a five-year, $215 million contract with the Bulls as a free agent.

  In 46 games this season, LaVine is averaging 23.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists. LaVine was an All-Star in 2021 and 2022.

• Bulls Have Shown Interest In Jae Crowder

  The Phoenix Suns are widely expected to trade Jae Crowder before the February 9 trade deadline. The Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks are known to have pursued Crowder for months. Now, we can add the Chicago Bulls to the list of suitors for the veteran forward.

  The Bulls have had talks with the Suns about trading guard Coby White for Crowder. Chicago has a surplus of guards and have a need for frontcourt depth. Phoenix has suffered several injuries in their backcourt throughout this season.

  Both Crowder and White are on expiring contracts. Crowder is set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer, while White is eligible for restricted free agency.

• Alex Caruso Nearly Untouchable In Trade Talks

  Chicago Bulls guard Alex Caruso has been mentioned in trade rumors for weeks, if not months. But the Bulls have no plans to trade Caruso. In fact, Chicago has set the asking price so high for Caruso that he's considered to be virtually untouchable.

  The veteran combo guard's stat-line doesn't pop, but that belies Caruso's impact for the Bulls. He's been Chicago's best backcourt defender, and he helps set a tone for the team.

  "High-IQ, knows what's happening, what's coming, what he's going to do, where his man is, is he going over, under?'' Bulls coach Donovan said about Caruso. "He really reacts pretty spontaneously, and he has such a good feel for it. And then, like we've all talked about, he throws his body into everything all the time.''

  Chicago has reportedly told rival teams they would need two first-round picks to part with Caruso. The veteran guard has two years and $19.4 million left on his contract through 2024-25, and the final season is only partially guaranteed.
• Lonzo Ball 'Nowhere Close' To Returning

  Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball is "nowhere close" to returning, per Bulls coach Billy Donovan. Ball still hasn't progressed to consistent running a year after having meniscus surgery.

  "He's made some progress, but I'd be the first one to tell you he's nowhere near playing," Donovan said. "He's just not. Because he's not running on a consistent basis. When he can get to that place where he can do that consistently and be able to come back the next day and do it again, do it again and do it again - I think you'll feel a little bit more optimistic."

  Ball last played in a game on January 14, 2022. Ball still can't run at full speed and do more than light jumping to shoot or dunk. Donovan said Bulls leadership would need to see significant improvement before the All-Star Break, or it's time for some difficult conversations.

  "If you start to get to that point, I think there will probably end up being some conversations: 'OK, what if he's still not close to playing? What's the plan going forward?'" Donovan said.

• Knicks, Warriors Linked With Potential Alex Caruso Trade

  Several teams have inquired about potentially trading for Alex Caruso, sources told K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.

  Sources add that the Knicks have recently looked into a possible trade scenario, with the Warriors also reportedly interested in Caruso.

  The Bulls are said to be looking for two first-round picks in exchange for Caruso.

• Bulls Could Trade Andre Drummond Before Deadline

  The Chicago Bulls could move on from Andre Drummond before this year's trade deadline, sources told Marc Stein of Substack.

  Drummond, who is averaging 6.1 points and 6.6 rebounds on the season, has played less than 15 minutes in each of the last 12 games.

  The Bulls are also reportedly looking for two first-round picks in exchange for Alex Caruso.

• Bulls Reportedly Looking For Two First-Round Picks For Alex Caruso

  The Chicago Bulls are looking for two first-round picks in exchange for Alex Caruso, Jake Fischer said on his live audio show Please Don't Aggregate This (h/t Marc Stein).

  Caruso is currently in the second year of a four-year, $36.9 million contract.

  The Bulls are 22-26 on the season and out of the play-in game due to a tiebreaker as of Thursday night.

• DeMar DeRozan Plans To Return For Paris Game On Thursday

  Chicago Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan plans to return to the lineup for Thursday's game in Paris, France against the Detroit Pistons. DeRozan had missed the last three games due to a strained right quad.

  The Bulls went 1-2 with DeRozan missing his first games of the season. The 33-year-old is turning in another All-Star season for Chicago. DeRozan has averaged 26.1 points 5.0 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game this season.

• Bulls Could Have Very Quiet Trade Deadline

  The Chicago Bulls season hasn't gone at all how they expected. Chicago is approaching the trade deadline in a battle to simply make the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament.

  That sort of middling year has many expecting the Bulls to shake things up at the trade deadline. However, others think Chicago may be in for a very quiet deadline.

  The Bulls could explore the trade market for veterans DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic ahead of the deadline. The former is playing at all All-Star level, but will turn 34 years old ahead of next season. The latter is on an expiring contract and may not be a part of the long-term future in Chicago.

  For now, Bulls coach Billy Donovan isn't asking for trades. He simply wants his players to play hard and to be focused from play-to-play. Donovan is asking the questions, but he thinks he already knows the answers.

  ''Can we sustain that competitive, heightened level for a long period of time?'' Donovan said. ''That's our challenge, and I have a lot of confidence and belief in the group because of the people they are. But you want to be able to get better at those things.''

• Billy Donovan: Lonzo Ball Making 'Progress' On Knee Injury

  Billy Donovan said that Lonzo Ball is making progress on his left knee injury after Ball posted an Instagram video of himself dunking a ball.

  "Those are things that maybe six weeks ago he couldn't do. As much as they're little steps, it's still progress that he's continuing to make," said Donovan on Friday.

  Donovan did temper expectations of Ball's return by saying the guard still felt pain in the knee.

  "Is there pain there? Yes, there's still some discomfort there. But not at the level it was six weeks ago. I'm not trying to say what Lonzo's pain is.

  "But the question is does he have pain? Yes. Is it the same pain he was dealing with six weeks ago? No. How much better is it? It's good enough that he can get on a treadmill and do some running and he can go jump and go dunk the ball," added Donovan.

  Ball last played an NBA game on January 14, 2022.

  Donovan added that Ball will still need an adjustment period once he returns to the court.

  "When you're out a year, whenever he gets back to playing, I don't think missing that much time is going to expect him to pick up right where he left off. There's going to be an adjustment period, there's no question."