The 2023 NBA trade deadline has come and gone, and the Chicago Bulls have done nothing, unsurprisingly.

While nearly the rest of the league made moves before the deadline, the Bulls chose to stand pat. When you consider they were one of the only franchises to not make a move, it’s actually more infuriating than anything.

For a team that appears stuck in limbo, hardly hanging onto playoff positioning and having signed their head coach to an extension, it seems like either something drastic has to change or the Bulls are going to be gluttons for mediocrity for the foreseeable future.

That drastic change? It very well could be a Zach LaVine trade.

Before the deadline passed, there was some steam to a LaVine rumor that had him heading to the New York Knicks. However, that deal never went through. Now, a recent report from Chicago sports insider David Kaplan on ESPN’s Kap & J. Hood, has the Bulls’ star guard at a breaking point with his head coach.

Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan and guard Zach LaVine’s relationship has “sailed,” according to David Kaplan

Back on November 18, Bulls fans will remember the infamous decision of Donovan keeping LaVine on the bench in a loss to the Orlando Magic. Obviously, LaVine wasn’t happy after the game.

But the fact of the matter was, he was having a horrendous night. And, up to that point, he was having a horrendous season altogether. He didn’t look like himself. He wasn’t playing with the aggression and assertiveness he needed to be playing with.

Since then, the relationship between the two has of course never been the same, despite both sides saying they’re “fine,” and whatnot.

With this report surfacing, there is no way the Bulls can keep LaVine past the summer. Quite honestly, they shouldn’t.

LaVine might be a good player, but he’s not 5-years, $215 million good. Those are the facts.

If another team wants to pick up that contract and deal a couple of first-round picks to the Bulls, that’s a deal you cannot afford to say “no” to if you’re Arturas Karnisovas. LaVine is as good as gone. Mark it down. This is his last season in Chicago.

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We want you to stay, but we’d rather not pay.

That’s the message from most city voters to the Chicago Bears as the team considers leaving Soldier Field for greener pastures in the northwest suburbs, according to a Chicago Sun-Times/WBEZ/Telemundo Chicago/NBC5 Poll.

More than half of the 625 Chicagoans who took part in the telephone survey said they don’t want to see the team ditch their iconic lakefront colonnades in favor of a new stadium in Arlington Heights.

Just about as many said they don’t want their tax dollars to fund a dome over Soldier Field in order to persuade the McCaskey family to stay put, though. That’s the Hail Mary pass that Mayor Lori Lightfoot has thrown to keep the Monsters of the Midway within city limits.

Not that the Bears are asking for that. As they finalize their $197 million purchase of the shuttered Arlington International Racecourse from Churchill Downs Inc. — a deal that’s expected to close by this spring — team brass have said they’re focused solely on a suburban sprawl.

Only 23% of poll respondents said they want that to happen, compared to 52% who want the team to bear down along Du Sable Lake Shore Drive. The remaining quarter were undecided, the poll found.

Respondents were more evenly split on the question of public funding for another Soldier Field renovation, but still leaned against the prospect of turning it into “a domed year-round commercial and entertainment center if it would keep the Bears from leaving Chicago.”

About 42% supported using taxpayer money to accomplish that, compared to 51% opposed and 7% undecided.

The poll of likely voters in the municipal election — conducted Jan. 31 through Feb. 3 by Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy, Inc. — has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Pollster Brad Coker said it’s a pattern he’s regularly seen in cities grappling with the controversial possibility of subsidizing stadiums for billion-dollar sports franchises.

“The city voters want to keep the team, without a doubt, but they’re not crazy about going into their own pockets to keep the owners happy,” Coker said.

That’s the sentiment of West Loop financial analyst Ryan Hogan, a poll respondent and casual Bears fan who has already felt the sting of betrayal from an NFL team skipping town. He grew up in St. Louis, a fan of the Rams — who defected for Los Angeles in 2016.

While an in-region move for the Bears wouldn’t come close to that level of fan abandonment, Hogan said it would yank away “part of the thread that goes through the city.”

“The team wouldn’t feel as ingrained in the city,” he said. “You’d lose that sense of identity.”

But it’s not worth sinking millions of taxpayer dollars into further stadium upgrades to woo the Bears, Hogan said — especially when the city is still on the hook for more than $630 million over the next decade to pay off Soldier Field’s often ridiculed 2003 renovation.

“You dump a ton of public money into this stuff, and then they threaten you with moving again,” Hogan said.

Even poll respondents who were OK with funding Soldier Field upgrades said they’d cut the budget far below the estimated $2.2 billion overhaul suggested by Lightfoot, who’s up for re-election Feb. 28.

The Bears and Soldier Field “belong together,” Andersonville software developer Elton Glaser said, but he’s “dubious about pouring tons of money into it.”

“It’s fine for the city to chip in, but we shouldn’t be funding a whole renovation,” Glaser said.

Most of Lightfoot’s eight challengers — U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson, Ald. Sophia King (4th) and community activist Ja’Mal Green — have said they’d lobby to keep the Bears in Chicago, but haven’t said how much money they’d put into Soldier Field upgrades.

Three other mayoral hopefuls — state Rep. Kam Buckner, Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th) and former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas have said the team’s move is inevitable, while businessman Willie Wilson has said he’d try to “bring another team here.”

Joann Butkus — whose family still isn’t sure if there’s any relation to the Bears’ legendary linebacker with the same last name — told pollsters she thinks the team should hit the road, and that the city should stop tinkering with a stadium dedicated to fallen U.S. soldiers.

“What good did that spaceship renovation do?” the retired Chicago police officer from Brighton Park said. “Just stop. Build it somewhere else.”

Officials in Arlington Heights are rolling out the navy and orange carpet to make that happen, but the Bears are still trying to find the “property tax certainty” team chairman George McCaskey says they need to realize their $5 billion vision.

Arlington Heights state Sen. Ann Gillespie filed legislation last week that would allow companies behind such massive projects to negotiate annual payments with local taxing bodies in exchange for freezing their assessments. But the bill isn’t expected to gain much ground.

“There was a note of skepticism even in the words of the person who introduced the bill,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said earlier this week. “I am of the opinion that it’s not our obligation as the state to step in and provide major funding.”

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Kenwood coach Mike Irvin is the showman, senior Dai Dai Ames is the star and Calvin Robins Jr. is the athletic intellectual.

All three took on their usual roles in the Broncos’ lively postgame press conference after beating Perspectives-Leadership 56-42 in the Public League semifinals on Thursday at Credit Union One Arena at UIC.

Junior big man Jaden Smith, a newcomer to the spotlight, hasn’t quite found his role in Kenwood’s rambunctious postgame. He kept his head down and politely said that he didn’t know if 14 points was his career high. Ames was sure it wasn’t, that Smith had scored 20 or more somewhere along the way this season.

Smith’s emergence on the court could spell trouble for Simeon in the city title game on Saturday and for all of Class 4A in the IHSA state playoffs. The 6-11 junior had eight rebounds, three blocks and shot 7-for-7 on Thursday.

“We’ve been seeing a lot of it in practice,” Irvin said. “He’s been working hard. He’s one of the top players in the country at his age. He’s coming.”

“I’ve just been focusing on what I need to do on the court,” Smith said.

Ames scored 13 for the Broncos (23-5) and Tyler Smith added 11.

Perspectives-Leadership was a heavy underdog and managed to hang with Kenwood for a half, trailing just 25-24 after two quarters.

“They took over the game in the second half with the size and scoring around the basket,” Warriors coach Mike Smith said. “And then we really couldn’t make the shots that we normally make.”

Junior Gianni Cobb led Perspectives-Leadership (19-11) with 16 points and Jakeem Cole added 12 points.

It was the first year in the Red for the Warriors, so advancing to the semifinals is an impressive accomplishment.

“I don’t want these guys to hang their heads,” Smith said. “I want them to be celebrated and learn from what happened today.”

Perspectives-Leadership is a Class 2A team and earned the top-seed in the Julian Sectional. The Warriors are a legitimate state title contender.

Kenwood moves on to play Simeon in the city championship game on Saturday at 4 p.m. at UIC. The Broncos have never won the city title.

“I told everybody Kenwood is on the rise,” Irvin said. “We are one of the best programs in the country and we have something to prove.”

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From Phoenix, Patrick Finley is joined by a special guest — his twin brother Ryan Finley! (Seriously!) — to talk about Bears returner Devin Hester missing out on the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

New episodes of “Halas Intrigue” will be published regularly with accompanying stories collected on the podcast’s hub page. You can also listen to “Halas Intrigue” wherever you get your podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Luminary, Spotify and Stitcher.

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Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was named league MVP for the second time, while Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was named Walter Payton Man of the Year.

The awards were given out at the NFL Honors, the league’s annual ceremony. Mahomes, who was at the team hotel preparing for Sunday’s Super Bowl game against the Eagles, did not attend the ceremony. Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts finished second in voting, receiving one first-place vote. Bears quarterback Justin Fields was one of eight players to receive one fifth-place vote — meaning he was tied for ninth in voting.

The Giants’ Brian Daboll was named AP Coach of the Year. Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith was Comeback Player of the Year. Nick Bosa, the 49ers’ edge rusher, was named Defensive Player of the Year.

Bills safety Damar Hamlin and the doctors and trainers who helped save his life after he went into cardiac arrest last month were honored, too.

The league also announced that the NFL’s rushing leader each year will receive the Jim Brown Award, named after the legendary running back.

Injury report

Chiefs receiver Kadarius Toney, who was limited Wednesday with an ankle injury, was a full participant Thursday. Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed was limited in practice with a knee injury.

The Eagles had four players limited because of injury — cornerback Avonte Maddox (toe), guard Landon Dickerson (elbow/rest), right tackle Lane Johnson (groin/rest) and receiver Britain Covey (hamstring) — while others were limited strictly because of rest. Former Bears defensive end Robert Quinn, who is nursing a foot injury, was a full participant for the second-straight game.

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Curie had chances to beat Simeon at the end of regulation, the end of the first overtime and the end of the second and the third overtimes.

The Condors couldn’t get it done.

“I always tell the guys that you can’t throw a rock over the Sears Tower,” Curie coach Mike Oliver said.

Miles Rubin is the Sears Tower. Simeon’s 6-10 senior was a dominating force, blocking six shots, including a potential game-tying bucket by Curie junior Carlos Harris in the fourth overtime.

Rubin and senior Kaiden Space each drained two free throws in the final 17 seconds to finally seal a 64-60 win for the Wolverines in a four-overtime classic Public League semifinal game at UIC’s Credit Union One Arena.

“I was getting a good feel for the game as it went on,” Rubin said. “Guarding the rim was a big focus because they like to go to the basket a lot. We tried to stop them.”

Oliver said Curie’s gameplan was to draw the bigs out from under the basket and then attack the rim. That didn’t happen. It wasn’t just Miles Rubin that was blocking shots, Simeon had 14 blocks in the game. Rubin’s twin brother Wes had two, Sam Lewis had two, as did Space.

“Defensively we did a great job,” Wolverines coach Robert Smith said. “We were locked in.”

Simeon has been troubled by turnovers all season and the story was the same. The Wolverines had 23 turnovers and were just unable to keep possession of the ball for the final shot in any of the overtimes.

Twice Curie players missed wild shots at the finish (regulation and the second overtime). Twice Curie dribbled out the final minute and didn’t get a shot off (first and third overtimes).

“That’s what is so frustrating,” Condors coach Mike Oliver said. “We didn’t get a good shot off at the end even once.”

Jalen Griffith led the Wolverines (25-3) with 21 points and four steals. Miles Rubin finished with 10 points and eight rebounds and Sam Lewis added nine points and four assists for Simeon.

The Wolverines beat Curie 67-58 in Pontiac in late December. Harris didn’t play in that game. The Condors beat Simeon on Jan. 26 on a last second game-winner by Harris.

“At this point, after three games and four overtimes, the x’s and o’s are thrown out the window,” Smith said. “They know us, and we know them. So, we couldn’t do anything different. We just had to play great defense.”

Harris led Curie with 17 points. He was 7-for-21 shooting and had seven shots blocked.

“It was my fault,” Harris said. “I just kept going at them.”

Jeremy Harrington Jr. scored 16 for the Condors (19-10) and Kros Barrett added 13.

Curie, which is playing as well as any team in the state, learned after the game that they were given the No. 3 seed in the Class 4A Hinsdale Central sectional. The Condors have beaten Young and Simeon and taken the top-ranked Wolverines to quadruple overtime in the past three weeks.

“I don’t know what to say about that,” Oliver said. “It’s not fair with these coaches seeding it that don’t understand who you’ve played and just look at your record. “

Simeon moves on to play the Kenwood vs. Perspectives-Leadership winner in the Public League championship game at 4 p.m. on Saturday at UIC.

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PHOENIX — Devin Hester, the greatest returner that anyone has ever seen, still isn’t a Pro Football Hall of Famer.

The NFL’s all-time leader with 20 return touchdowns, Hester inspired a generation of Bears fans to stop timing their bathroom breaks for kickoffs and punts. As “Crank That” by Soulja Boy blared on the Soldier Field loudspeaker, teammates learned not to miss the show, either. They stood up on the sideline every time the ball hung in the air and eventually sank into Hester’s arms.

Yet for the second-straight year, Hester, who played for the Bears from 2006-13, was not one of the five modern-era players picked to receive a gold jacket in August in Canton, Ohio. The 49-person selection committee, made up of media members that cover each team and at-large voters, instead chose the following modern-era players who were announced Thursday during NFL Honors:

o Former Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, a seven-time Pro Bowl player who played from 2007-17.

o Former Browns tackle Joe Thomas, who played more than 10,000 straight snaps during a career than spanned from 2007-17.

o Former Cowboys and Broncos edge rusher DeMarcus Ware, a nine-time Pro Bowl player who played from 2005-16.

o Former Dolphins linebacker Zach Thomas, a five-time all-pro whose career ran from 1996-2009.

o And former Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber, a three-time all-pro who played from 1997-2012.

Chuck Howley, Joe Klecko and Ken Riley were nominated by the Seniors Committee and put into the Hall. Former Chargers coach Don Coryell, whose offensive scheme was the precursor for some of the sport’s most dangerous passing attacks, was voted in as a coach/contributor after being a finalist in six of the last 13 years.

Hester, though, must wait another year. As word of him missing out circulated around the Phoenix Convention Center earlier Thursday, the only conclusion to draw was that the decision had nothing to do with Hester — what more, exactly, could he have done? — but instead with special teams. For as often as coaches pontificate to players and fans alike about the value of the “third phase,” it’s rarely received the respect of offense or defense.

Hester would have been the first player known specifically for his returns to be voted into the Hall. Only three special teamers are in the Hall — kickers Jan Stenerud and Morten Anderson and punter Ray Guy. Guy didn’t get until he was a senior candidate.

Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher was one of the Bears players that would stand to watch Hester return kicks instead of gathering with his teammates on the bench.

“I didn’t sit down,” he told the Sun-Times on Thursday. “No one sat down. Every time we’d give up a field goal or touchdown, I’d be like, ‘Dammit, I’m mad, but I gotta watch this return.'”

Another former teammate, Charles Tillman, said it was simple to explain what made Hester so great.

“Everything,” he said. “His ability to read blocks. His speed, quickness. His vision. That’s what made him great. Everything.”

Someday, that greatness will be recognized by the Hall. Being one of 15 finalists means he’s on the right track. But we said that last year, too.

Hester has been frustrated by not being included in the Hall the last two years. His friends have told him to do what he did so well when hunting down return lanes — to be patient.

“Eventually, yeah, he’s gonna get in,” Urlacher said. “There’s no doubt what he did. No one’s ever going to duplicate what he did.”

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NEW YORK – On the same day that executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas put his faith in keeping this Bulls team together at the trade deadline, they didn’t just bite the hand that fed them, they chewed off a few digits.

Facing a Brooklyn team that was dismantled of star power the last 48 hours, all the underachieving Bulls did was get shot out of the gym from outside, losing 116-105.

To make matters worse, it came just hours after Karnisovas insisted that he felt the inconsistent three-point shooting wouldn’t be a major issue through the rest of the season.

“Yes, we’d like to bring the three-point rate up more,” Karnisovas said. “But I think we’re still making at a very good rate, the threes.”

Not against the Nets. While Brooklyn (33-22) went 17-for-44 (38.6%) from three-point range, the Bulls didn’t hit their first three until Zach LaVine nailed one with 5:40 left in the third. They finished 5-for-26 (19.2%).

That won’t get it done, and neither will coming out to start the game playing passive basketball on both ends of the floor.

That’s what disappointed coach Billy Donovan the most. He warns his players about it, and it’s still happening.

“Every single day that goes by we have less opportunity to take on this challenge,” veteran DeMar DeRozan said. “The room for error is getting slimmer and slimmer. It’s on us to realize it.”

As far as how the loss looked from the outside, especially with the front office putting its trust in this core group to get it done, DeRozan realized it’s like a marriage, but one that may need some counseling.

“When you’re in a relationship … through sickness and health, you stick together,” DeRozan said. “That’s how I look at it when I’m with a group of guys. Through sickness and health, til death do us part.”

Guard Zach LaVine, who finished with a game-high 38, took it a step further.

“It’s us vs everybody,” LaVine said.

Talking the big man

Nikola Vucevic told the Sun-Times this week that he wants to stay in Chicago, but that he also knows his value if he makes it to the free agent market this summer.

Karnisovas sounded confident in at least attempting to re-sign Vucevic.

“He’s having an unbelievable year,” Karnisovas said. “And you know we want him to be here.”

Where it could get interesting is at what price?

The market on centers was somewhat set by Indiana two weeks ago when they extended Myles Turner for two-years at just under $60 million.

Vucevic was asked about the Turner deal and how it related to him, and said, “It’s pretty well known around the league what I can do, what I bring to the table. That’s great for Myles, but I don’t try and compare myself to other guys where, ‘Hey, this is what he got, this is what I should get.’ I don’t think like that. I’m more individual in the way I think about it.”

Ball game

Karnisovas didn’t want to get into the details about Lonzo Ball and his road to recovery from left knee surgery, but did say, “I think he’s making small improvements, but we’re still going to have more information for you probably post All-Star Weekend, and we’re going to inform you about that.”

All indications are that Ball will officially shut the point guard down for the season at that point, hoping he can be ready for next fall camp.

Ball last played in an NBA game on Jan. 14, 2022. By the time the 2023-24 regular season starts, it will be 21 months between games for Ball.

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Cubs players will be representing countries from across the globe when the World Baseball Classic kicks off this spring. Five players on the Cubs 40-man roster and several top prospects were included on WBC rosters, announced Thursday evening.

Seiya Suzuki and Marcus Stroman – who made early commitments to Japan and Puerto Rico – headline the group.

Outfielder Nelson Vel?zquez joins Stroman on Team Puerto Rico, a deep squad on the position-player side. Right-hander Javier Assad, one of at least three players in the Cubs organization who drew early interest from Team Mexico, made the roster. Utility man Miles Mastrobuoni, who the Cubs acquired from the Rays in November, is on Team Italy’s roster. Vel?zquez, Assad and Mastrobuoni all made their MLB debuts last year.

Standout prospects Matt Mervis and Owen Caissie bring their left-handed power bats to Team Israel and Team Canada, respectively.

“There’s guys with a lot of big-league experience coaching and playing,” Mervis said. “We’re playing against super teams. It’s the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico, and Venezuela and Nicaragua [in Pool D]. Those teams are full of MLB All-Stars, so getting that experience, playing in a big environment like that, and it’s in Miami, so the crowds are going to be loud and excited. So, it was really a no-brainer for me.”

Cubs non-roster spring training invitees on WBC rosters include Roenis El?as (Cuba), Vinny Nittoli (Italy) Ben DeLuzio (Italy), Jared Young (Canada)

Other Cubs minor-leaguers in the WBC include Danis Correa (Colombia), Fabi?n Pertuz (Colombia), Liam Spence (Australia), Curtis Taylor (Canada), Lars Huijer (Netherlands), BJ Murray (Great Britain), Branden Noriega (Great Britain, designated pitcher pool).

WBC pool play begins March 8, with tournaments played in Miami, Phoenix, Tokyo and Taichung, Taiwan.

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