Getty Head coach Billy Donovan of the Chicago Bulls.
The Chicago Bulls will likely have to pivot off their previously held stance of trading Zach LaVine, with the two-time All-Star out for the season.
But a different two-time All-Star could be on the move with the trade deadline just days away.
“With Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine set to undergo season-ending surgery on his right foot, trade talks with the Pistons have stalled with Detroit no longer interested,” HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto wrote on February 5. “One Bulls player who could be dealt, however, is center Andre Drummond.”
Drummond, 29, has “drawn trade interest” from the Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, and Phoenix Suns.
BULLY BALL.
Scotto also notes the Houston Rockets’ previous interest before trading for Steven Adams.
Andre Drummond Trade Interested Has Been Brewing
Boston and Phoenix are the only new links for Drummond, who has noted he still believes he is a starter.
The Lakers’ interest in the four-time rebounding champion is also not new, with ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reporting on January 23 that they considered trading for him in preparation for a playoff series against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.
He – along with Bulls guard Alex Caruso – spent the 2021 season with the Lakers.
Drummond was also expected to opt out of the second year of his two-year, $6.6 million contract to join the Mavericks this past offseason
“Andre Drummond defied expectations Thursday and exercised his $3.4 million player option to stay with Chicago,” The Stein Line’s Marc Stein wrote on June 30. “The problem for Drummond: His projected preferred landing spot in Dallas does not currently have an opening at center.”
Drummond is averaging 7.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.1 steals this season. He’s averaging 14.0 points and 17.4 rebounds in seven starts this season. The Bulls risk losing him for nothing this offseason if they do not find a trade.
Bulls Chose Their Path Last Offseason
The Bulls signed starter Nikola Vucevic to a three-year, $60 million contract ahead of free agency this past offseason.
“When the Bulls re-signed Nikola Vučević … the decision was not popular even if most understood the team’s logic,” The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry wrote on February 4. “With the team’s record and the way Vučević, 33, has performed, that decision also looks suspect.
“His passing and defensive rebounding continue to be skills the Bulls rely on, but things get wonky when comparing value [to Drummond].”
It doesn’t sound like they will have many takers for Vucevic ahead of the deadline either.
“I haven’t heard much of a market for Nikola Vucevic,” NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson wrote on February 1. “Nor, after the Bulls re-signed him, have I heard of any indications of the Bulls wanting to part with him.”
Johnson went on to note that Drummond could be on the move. He also set a potential price tag at “perhaps a young player out of a team’s rotation or some minor draft capital” by the deadline.
The Bulls have not entertained calls for guard Caruso. They also want to bring DeMar DeRozan back next season. That leaves their future murky. They are clinging to ninth place in the Eastern Conference but standing pat with their roster for the third straight trade deadline.