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With the NBA free agency period kicking off on Thursday, all eyes are on some of the biggest players in the league to see whether they stay put or find new homes. For Chicago Bulls fans, the spotlight is shining squarely on Zach LaVine, who will become an unrestricted free agent when the market opens.
The Bulls are optimistic they can lock down the All-Star guard.
“We hope Zach is here for a long time, and nothing changed,” Arturas Karnisovas, the Bulls’ executive vice president of basketball operations, said Monday, via ESPN.
LaVine, 27, said at the end of the Bulls’ 2022 campaign that he is interested in exploring the market when his current four-year, $78 million contract expires. He also didn’t rule out staying in Chicago, and ESPN points out that can happen if the Bulls sign him to a max offer, which could be worth upward of $212 million.
Karnisovas said on Monday that he is “confident in approaching this free agency the next couple days, sitting down with our group, looking at a lot of things.” Whether that means the team is willing to offer LaVine the max offer is anyone’s guess at this point.
It’s no surprise that Chicago wants to keep LaVine on its roster. Despite an injury-plagued season, the two-time All-Star was a pivotal player in the Bulls making the playoffs for the first time in five years. LaVine averaged 24.4 points during the regular season.
LaVine was in and out of the lineup late in the year with a lingering knee injury, one of many injuries that befell the Bulls late in the season. He underwent arthroscopic surgery last month and is expected to be ready to play when the 2022-23 season gets underway.
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