Could the Chicago Bulls go after a young guard amidst a negative situation?
Over the past few months, two losing records and unfortunate endings have had different effects on a pair of franchises. The Chicago Bulls are coming off a 22-win season, and in any other year, fans would be feeling apathetic yet again. The Sacramento Kings were a 31-win team this past season, and fans may not be sure how to feel.
But, for Chicago, this year has seen the Bulls finally take a turn for the better. Hiring Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley to come in and tag team a retool, combined with hiring Billy Donovan as their next head coach, has the fan base buzzing.
Meanwhile, Sacramento has seen one of their star players seemingly wanting out. According to a recent report, guard Buddy Hield has stop returning Luke Walton’s phone calls.
Although Hield agreed to a four-year extension with Sacramento last year, he doesn’t seem thrilled with sticking around. He got his money, but now he wants out.
This brings up an interesting proposition. Would the Bulls be interested in trading for Hield?
In a recent piece from Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic, Eversley talked about how this Bulls team is in the middle of a retool — not a rebuild. He and Karnisovas want to continue building this roster around a solid core group. They believe this group is better than 22 wins.
With that in mind, what would they say about a deal involving Hield, the Kings’ no. 12 overall pick and Zach LaVine?
It’s been rumored for a while now; LaVine’s name whispered in a potential trade, that is. Swapping two primarily offensive-minded players while netting a lottery pick would be an interesting deal for Chicago. It would also give the Kings their guy they tried signing away from Chicago once upon a time.
Remember, the Bulls matched Sacramento’s offer sheet to LaVine in order to keep him around back in 2018.
The only negative to this deal may be the fact that Hield’s contract pays him over $86 million for the next four years. If Karnisovas and Eversley do not want to be tied down to a contract like that, they would resist interest. It’s likely that they want to go out and build upon “their guys” while keeping the majority of Chicago’s core intact.
Is LaVine one of their guys? Would Hield fall into that category? Those are key questions.
To put it in perspective, both LaVine and Hield shoot the ball well from the field, with Hield being a slightly better three-point shooter. LaVine has Hield beat on points per game (25.5 versus 19.2) while also averaging more rebounds and assists.
Because LaVine is viewed as a better player, the Kings would throw in their no. 12 pick. That would give Chicago the no. 4 and no. 12 pick to work with in the upcoming draft. But, would they then be able to package those picks together to either move up or work towards a bigger and better trade?
This is all an intriguing proposition for both sides. It’s speculation at this point, but Hield’s situation in Sacramento is worth monitoring for the immediate future.
