Fans despise the concept of the Chicago Bulls acquiring Kawhi Leonard in a trade, despite the fact that they must find a means to ascend to the top of the NBA as quickly as possible.
The idea of sending Zach LaVine, Patrick Williams, and two first-round pick swaps to the Clippers in order to obtain Leonard was not well received by the crowd. When a supporter brought up Kawhi’s history of injuries, they asked, “Why on gods green earth would you bring in a habitually injured player?”
One more supporter remarked, “Just to have him play five games? I’m ok.
More people were against the transaction, saying, “This is absurd for Chicago.”
DeMar DeRozan should be used in place of LaVine, according to a joke from a fan: “Make it DeRozan so we win like Toronto did.”
Another supporter brought up Kawhi’s history of injuries, saying, “The Bulls don’t need a player who only plays 35 games a season.”
Mock Trade Idea 🚨#Bulls Receive: Kawhi Leonard#Clippers Receive: Zach LaVine, Patrick Williams, 2027/2029 1st rounds. Pick swaps. pic.twitter.com/d7cIexnvRm
— Die-Hard Chicago Bulls Fans (@DieHardCBfans) August 16, 2023
For a perpetually injured Kawhi, who will be a free agent after this season, Chicago would lose one of its most productive players in recent memory (LaVine). It seems absurd to include picks and Patrick Williams’ potential upside in addition to him. Fans had every reason to dislike this agreement.
In 52 games last season, Leonard averaged 23.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.9 assists. Sadly, his body gave out during the playoffs because he was only able to participate in two games of the Clippers’ five-game defeat to the Suns.
What moves are possible for the Bulls to compete?
In 2021, the Chicago Bulls gambled heavily on their roster, initially acquiring Nikola Vucevic through a trade that also included Wendell Carter Jr., Franz Wagner, and two valuable first-round picks.
That summer, they made a significant investment to acquire DeMar DeRozan, Lonzo Ball, and Alex Caruso, building a squad that topped the rankings to begin the 21–22 season.
Injury decimated that core, as Lonzo hasn’t played since January 2021 and is also out for the upcoming season, and Caruso missed a significant amount of time. The squad has virtually little quality to help them compete with teams like the Celtics and Bucks, despite DeMar and Zach’s great numbers.
In order to obtain the most money for LaVine and DeRozan while they are still valuable assets, they should blow it up. If so, deals ought to be lose-now rather than win-now so that they might be rebuilt afterwards.