The Chicago Bulls aren’t having the best year ever. They were a really good team in 2021-22 but this year has been anything but kind to them. Between injuries and inconsistent play, things just haven’t gone very well for them.

Now, there are a couple of things that they can do to improve their chances of at least making it to the play-in tournament. One thing they can do is try and land Russell Westbrook.

Westbrook was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Utah Jazz on Wednesday as a part of a three-team deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves. This is obviously a big move ahead of the NBA trade deadline.

There is a chance that the Utah Jazz buy Westbrook out following this deal. In that case, he will become a free agent that is free to sign with any team in the league. He hasn’t been anything special over the last few seasons but he has obviously been a Hall of Fame talent in his career.

The Chicago Bulls seem to be interested in Russell Westbrook’s services.

According to NBA insider Chris Haynes of TNT/Bleacher Report, the Chicago Bulls would be interested in Westbrook if he is in fact bought out by the Jazz. That would certainly change the outlook of the entire team for the rest of the season.

Westbrook has been an MVP of this league that has had a very decorated career. Now, he is looking to have a redemption story with whatever team is next for him. If anyone has the talent to pull something like that off, it very well might be him.

Assuming the Bulls don’t trade any of their big guns, Westbrook may fit in with guys like Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic. It would certainly be interesting to see what kind of chemistry these guys have together, especially with Lonzo Ball’s return cloudy.

Nothing is set in stone yet but it is wild to hear that the Bulls would be interested in this. Clearly, they haven’t given up on this season. Obviously, there will be other suitors for Westbrook as well. At the end of the day, it would just be a cool story for the Bulls if they did this.

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NEW YORK – Bulls coach Billy Donovan said on Tuesday that he didn’t expect the Bulls to completely blow-up the roster, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t at least entertain a few big swings.

With just over an hour left until the NBA trade deadline comes and goes, a source said the Bulls and New York Knicks were revisiting talks about two-time All-Star Zach LaVine that broke off on Wednesday night.

The issue remained the players involved, but it would entail the Bulls getting some draft capital back.

As far as how LaVine would do with Tom Thibodeau as his new coach? Not an issue. LaVine always spoke very highly about Thibodeau and the one season they shared together in Minnesota, saying back in 2020, “Look, I understand the business of basketball. Yeah, he traded me, but for that one season he did coach me, he gave me an opportunity. He put the ball in the hands of 20, 21-year-old kid and said, ‘Go hoop.’ That’s bigger than the business of basketball.”

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This year’s NBA trade deadline is continuing to heat up for the Chicago Bulls, who have yet to make a move. With plenty of movement around the league so far, Chicago has remained silent.

That is, until now.

Joe Cowley of the Sun Times is reporting that the Bulls are now engaged in trade talks with the New York Knicks.

It would be a Zach LaVine trade, specifically.

The Knicks have long been rumored as a team to be interested in LaVine, but nothing has come to fruition. New York would be able to put together a pretty attractive deal, as well.

The Knicks would likely send a package centered around R.J. Barrett, Evan Fournier and possibly Derrick Rose, bringing the fan favorite home.

The Chicago Bulls should get the trade done as soon as possible, admitting to another rebuild

Trading LaVine would be entering the Bulls into another rebuild, but that’s not a bad thing. This roster was a joy to watch for a little bit, but it’s now to the point where things have gotten pretty clear. This roster is not contending for a title.

Head coach Billy Donovan was extended, and maybe that was the wrong move. Many fans are out on Donovan, but some are also out on LaVine, as they should be.

LaVine is a likable guy and a good player, but he’s not a great player. The $215 million deal he signed, for five years, looks like a massive failure. He started to play better this year after a slow start, but still, that money is absurd for a guy who is nowhere near good enough to carry a team.

The Knicks, meanwhile, have Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and LaVine might mesh well with those two. They also have plenty of picks to trade, which should be the focal point of any deal involving LaVine.

If the Knicks offered a deal where the Bulls got multiple first rounders, then Arturas Karnisovas should pull the trigger.

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The Chicago Bears are going to make the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. They were gifted the selection when the Houston Texans won their final game of the season on a miracle play. Now, it seems like they are going to cash in.

NFL insider Adam Schefter went on ESPN 1000’s Waddle and Silvy to discuss this pick and made a claim that should excite Chicago Bears fans. It sounds like the Bears are going to get a haul for the selection in a trade.

The Bears have Justin Fields and they believe in him. That means that they don’t need to use the first overall pick on a quarterback. There are also no players at other positions that you would consider “must haves” at this point in time.

Schefter thinks, based on what he’s heard, that the Bears are going to get a “franchise-changing” amount of picks out of this number-one selection. That is amazing news. Obviously, they need to be smart with what they do with those picks but this is a great start.

The Chicago Bears have a chance to change their franchise this off-season.

He called the return that they are going to get a “small fortune” and referred to their number one pick as a “lottery ticket”. If anyone in the world would have the correct insight on this, it would be Adam Schefter so his saying that it is okay to dream big is fantastic.

It would be nice to see the Bears finally take advantage of the luck that has been shown to them. Ryan Poles has an opportunity here to become a legend with this franchise.

He tore the team down to nothing and it worked, they have the top pick. Now it is time to start building it back up using the haul they get for this pick.

The Bears need help everywhere on the roster except quarterback. They need to surround Justin Fields with a better offensive line and more weapons so that he isn’t always running for his life. On the flip side, the defense needs a lot of help all over.

In addition to this haul that they are expecting to get for the first overall pick, they have the most cap space in the NFL by a lot. We can only hope that all of these factors lead to them finally having some sustained success. This is one of the most important off-seasons in their franchise history.

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The 2023 NBA trade deadline has already seen plenty of action to this point, with just a few hours to go. And, it’s still not out of the question for the Chicago Bulls to make a move.

We have already seen the likes of Kyrie Irvin, Kevin Durant, Mike Conley, D’Angelo Russell, Russell Westbrook, among others traded before the deadline officially passes.

Now, all eyes are on Chicago, who could indeed end up moving guard Zach LaVine, despite conflicting reports over the past few weeks.

Per Matt Moore of The Action Network, the Bulls are fielding offers on LaVine.

“Keep an eye on Chicago, which continues to take offers for Zach LaVine. Brooklyn and Chicago had talks before the Durant trade; it’s not known how the Durant trade affects Brooklyn’s interest in LaVine,” Moore wrote.

Despite the front office and head coach Billy Donovan maintaining their stance, Zach LaVine could, in fact, be traded

Let’s be honest with ourselves for a moment. The Bulls don’t have enough talent to win a championship. They hardly have the makings of a playoff roster, at this point.

At 26-28, the Bulls currently occupy the 9th seed in the East. LaVine is a great trade chip. Nikola Vucevic is on an expiring contract. DeMar DeRozan is an All Star.

Why not blow it up? This roster was fun for a little while, but it’s clear they do not have what it takes to win a championship, and it might all come back to the coach. But, that’s a story for another day.

Right now, unloading LaVine for picks would be a wise decision. He is not a true alpha player, meaning he’s not worth the 5-year, $215 million deal he signed with the Bulls last year.

He’s putting up good enough numbers to where he could help a contending team and slide right into the number two option. But, in Chicago, he’ll never be “the guy,” as he’s being paid to be.

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The top free agent pool is shrinking

The Chicago Bears are flush with cash. But they might have difficulty finding supply for their heavy demand as another top free agent might be extended this offseason. The Bears need to build their offensive and defensive lines for next season. However, many teams are hesitant to let their top linemen go into free agency.

Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins was a player many fanbases, including the Bears, hoped would hit free agency. But the Packers wiggled around enough cap room to extend the two-time Pro Bowl athlete. Now the Washinton Commanders are giving signals that they want to keep a top free agent on the defensive line.

The Commanders want to keep their defensive line

The Commanders boast one of the best defensive line units in the NFL. But having elite players at premium positions is pricey and can take away from having the capital to, say, build the offense that’s keeping them from a playoff run.

Daron Payne is a defensive tackle that has been linked to the Bears in free agency this offseason. A Commanders’ insider recently came out and said that the team was unlikely to extend Payne because of upcoming contracts for other players on the defensive line. A new report casts that earlier assumption into doubt.

According to Myles Simmons with NBC Sports, Commanders’ head coach Ron Rivera said that the team “have to find a way” to extend Payne, as the defensive lineman “earned” the extension. (Payne had a career-high of 11.5 sacks and 20 quarterback hits during the 2022 season.)

“The 13th overall pick of the 2018 draft, Payne is set to become an unrestricted free agent after he didn’t receive a contract extension before the 2022 season.

“It cost us,” Rivera said, via Jhabvala, of the decision to not extend Payne. “But it cost us in a good way, because the young man played, he did things the right way. He didn’t sit out, he didn’t withhold, he could have done that sit-in during training camp, but he didn’t. And because he didn’t, now we’re in that position where we have to find a way to say, ‘thank you, OK, you’ve earned it.’”

Can the Bears find a top free agent on the D-Line?

It sounds like the Commanders are willing to pay the heavy price to keep Payne in Washington. That would be bad news for the Bears, who need elite help like Payne on their defensive line. The free agent market looks slim on defensive linemen for 2023. However, Rivera is not the general manager, and no contract has been signed. Let’s hope Payne thinks he’s worth more than the Commanders can give after a career-best season.

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