NBA pre-season bold predictions: Bulls’ Zach LaVine will demand a trade

It’s win or bust for the Chicago Bulls

The only problem with the Chicago Bulls going all-in last offseason with the signings of Ball and DeRozan is the fact that if they don’t win soon, there’s really not much upside for the Bulls. Chicago has a couple of nice young pieces (Patrick Williams, Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu) but with the build centered around Zach LaVine, there’s not much time the team has to wait around for development.

If the Bulls can’t turn their late-season fortunes from last year around, it could be time for another retooling of the roster around LaVine. And, quite frankly, there won’t be easy moves for the Bulls to do. Ball is probably an untradable asset at the moment and while DeRozan could probably be moved, it’s unlikely Chicago will be able to get much value in exchange.

Does LaVine want to go through another couple of years of waiting for the front office to build another quality team around him? I wouldn’t think so. LaVine is going to be 28 this season and he will be pushing to win. If that can’t happen with Ball and DeRozan, you’d have to imagine if he can do it in Chicago at all.