Getty Matisse Thybulle #22 of the Philadelphia 76ers tries to steal the ball from Zach LaVine #8 of the Chicago Bulls during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center on November 03, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
It has not been the smoothest start to the season for the Philadelphia 76ers, but there are plenty of teams that would love to be in their shows. Near the top of this list is the Chicago Bulls. The franchise sits at 12-18 on the season and in 11th place in the Eastern Conference. They have limited assets to trade and are already strapped against the salary cap. Lonzo Ball remains out with his knee injury with no target return date and concern the issue could keep him off the court the entire season. Most notably, a recent report surfaced of unhappiness within the organization from their stars who don’t appear to be clicking on or off the court.
A recent report from Shams Charania and Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic detailed how Zach LaVine and the organization are not seeing eye-to-eye. While the Bulls seem determined to avoid a full rebuild, the report came from a LaVine-centric point of view which further led to the speculation he desires out. Nikola Vucevic is also in the final year of his contract and will be able to walk for free at the conclusion of the summer while DeMar DeRozan will head into the final year of his deal next season. Their outlook has shifted from an intriguing team to one that could be sellers at the deadline and plenty of teams are keeping an eye on them.
LaVine to the Sixers?
A popular rumor amongst Sixers’ Twitter for several years has been trading for LaVine. This dates back to before the James Harden era and at times made more sense than it currently does. The springy 27-year-old guard is averaging 21.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists on the season. He also is at the center of Chicago’s issues with teams notably taking issue with his defensive effort on the court and reports of even more anger leaking into the locker room.
Can confirm @JCowleyHoops Tweet that players had strong exchange at halftime of Timberwolves loss, which drew coaches’ attention. Sources said multiple teammates directed frustration at Zach LaVine, and the situation intensified.
Whether it will be enough in the postseason is still to be determined, but the Sixers have made every effort to optimize the Joel Embiid and Harden duo. LaVine’s ball-dominant nature and poor shot selection would further muck up the Sixers’ offense and his $37.1 million cap hit is nothing to take lightly. The Bulls would almost certainly demand Tyrese Maxey back in the trade and this is a hurdle the Sixers have been unwilling to clear in the past and should continue to be the outlook moving forward. Sacrificing the 22-year-old guard who continues to improve at a rapid rate for LaVine would further tighten the Sixers’ window to win and he is not the missing piece that would be worth doing this for.
Where Sixers Could Benefit:
While they may lack the assets to trade for any of their big pieces, the Sixers should continue to be in the market for upgrading their bench rotation. The biggest storyline to note in this is Chicago seems to be among the teams most interested in Matisse Thybulle. Bulls’ General Manager Marc Eversley is credited with playing a key role in the selection of Thybulle when he worked in the Sixers’ front office from 2016-2020. It was reported by Heavy Sports Sean Deveney this summer that Chicago still had an interest in the defensive ace who is one of Philadelphia’s few trade chips they could look to use.
As great as Thybulle is defensively, the holes in his offensive ability have driven the Sixers to seek more two-way balance. This has been the motivation for adding players like De’Anthony Melton and Danuel House Jr this offseason. Thybulle also is playing a career-low 12.2 minutes per game this season.
While the top-end talent looks to be what is failing the Bulls, they have some intriguing complementary players who could make an impact on the Sixers’ roster. Alex Caruso is a name that jumps out who has proven to be capable of contributing as a role player from the Lakers championship during the 2019-20 season where he averaged 24.3 minutes per game in the postseason.
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Former Sixers backup centers Andre Drummond and Tony Bradley also are on the Chicago roster and on tradeable contracts. Guys like Goran Dragic, Coby White, Javonte Green, and Derrick Jones Jr are also names to watch.
There is still plenty of time before the February 9th trade deadline, and things may need to get worse before the Bulls act on this. However, if there is a firesale of the Bulls roster the Sixers will be a team to watch. Daryl Morey is sure to be wise with the remaining assets the team still has, and Chicago turning into a disaster could be exactly what the Sixers need to find their missing pieces.