It’s an easy rumor to run through the NBA trade machines these days.
Golden State comes to town on Friday and not only drives off with the 140-131 win, but also with a Zach LaVine on the bus ride up to Milwaukee, while leaving behind four-time NBA Champion Klay Thompson.
Big salary for big salary.
Headache of a contract for fading star on an expiring deal.
Unfortunately, the on-line trade machines are the only place that deal works because reality says otherwise for LaVine’s services.
Especially on a night in which Thompson outplayed LaVine, scoring 30 points, including 7-of-15 from three-point range.
The Warriors, Kings, Hawks, and of course the Lakers, all rumored to be places where LaVine could end up before the Feb. 8 trade deadline comes and goes. Sources, however, continue to say that the market is still yet to have an uptick for the two-time All-Star.
But the clock is ticking.
The Bulls only play 12 more games before that deadline hits and are still holding out hope that a dance partner emerges.
What Billy Donovan would say on the matter was while he hasn’t had an in-depth conversation with executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas about the latest discussions the exec could be having with teams, it’s very unlikely that the next 12 games will change the opinions of what the front office will try and do with the roster.
“Having all of last year, having what’s going to end up being close to 50 games (this season), there’s a pretty big sample size of our group that I feel like they’ve evaluated,” Donovan said. “They haven’t told me, ‘Hey listen, we’re going to really keep a close eye on these next 10 or 12 games.’ I’m totally speculating, but I’m sure they have looked at the group and the way it’s grown and evolved.”
An evolution that now has Coby White playing at a high level, while integrating LaVine back into the mix for a fourth game since the right foot injury.
“Different guys have kind of flowered, Coby has improved, Ayo (Dosunmu) has gotten better, Patrick (Williams) has kind of played better,” Donovan continued. “I think they are looking at the information that they’ve gathered over a period of time. And then I think at that time, they’re always great communicators, but I think there will be a time where they’ll come to me and say, ‘Listen, we’re getting close to this.’ Or ‘This is what we’re looking at.’
“I always kind of envision that this is going to be our team the rest of the year. That’s how I approach it.”
That’s what Bulls fans should also fear.
Between now and the deadline, it’s not like this team will be playing a juggernaut of a schedule. The Bulls (18-22) will play Toronto and a short-handed Memphis team twice, as well as the likes of San Antonio, Portland, and Charlotte.
Winnable games, which also means fool’s gold to possibly chase for a front office that’s been chasing it for more than a year with the stale idea of “continuity.”
Karnisovas steered the ship in that direction before last season, and then kept it going at last year’s trade deadline.
There’s much more at stake now, however.
If they can’t move LaVine, they would have to try and revisit that in the offseason. So what happens to DeMar DeRozan and his expiring deal between now and then? It will be a PR nightmare for Karnisovas if he stays pat next month, and then still tries and beat the “continuity” drum into next season by extending DeRozan rather than letting him walk for nothing.
So while LaVine for Thompson pops up as “This Trade is Successful” on the machine, if only it was that easy for Karnisovas & Co. in real life.