Trade market for Bulls’ Zach LaVine described as ‘murky’

In order to dance, you need a partner. The same is true if you’re contemplating making a trade in the NBA.

And right now, the Bulls may not have any takers for Zach LaVine, as we relayed here. They may not until the middle of next month when those who signed offseason deals will become trade-eligible. More players will become trade-eligible in January.

But for now, it’s not eligibility that could thwart a potential LaVine deal. Instead, it could be the size of his massive contract, per one report. It’s something that was addressed by Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated in his latest mailbag.

“The market for LaVine, who has three years and $138 million remaining on his contract after this season, is murky,” Mannix wrote. “There are places he kinda, sorta makes sense. Philadelphia could probably lose another ball handler … but not at the cost of next summer’s cap space.

“The Lakers could probably use another scorer but how much would LA have to give up to get one? Same for Miami. The Knicks could get antsy but New York has its eyes on bigger prizes.”

Ah, yes. The Lakers. Given that they’re at the absolute center of every trade and free agency rumor over the last 20-plus years, they have indeed been linked to LaVine. But for now, it seems, they are not interested in pursuing such a deal.

Where does all of the above leave LaVine and the Bulls? Well, no place great, that’s for sure.

“But the more the Bulls sink in the standings, the more motivated ownership will be to rip this team apart and start over,” Mannix wrote.