Bulls Being Inactive Would Be Inexcusable amid Lonzo Ball, Vučević NBA Trade Rumors

The Chicago Bulls might be doing it again.

And by doing it, we mean doing nothing—or at least nothing else ahead of Thursday's NBA trade deadline beyond the already completed Zach LaVine trade.

After years of treading water, the Bulls finally seemed to have a future focus. Last summer, they traded away Alex Caruso and let DeMar DeRozan walk in free agency. Throw in the LaVine trade, and it seemed as if Chicago's front office, which has been prone to problematic inactivity in recent years, was finally ready to usher in an overdue youth movement.

So much for that, apparently. Veteran center Nikola Vučević, who seems like one of the league's most logical trade candidates, might wind up staying put, per Chicago Sports Network's K.C. Johnson:

Lonzo Ball, who's a less awkward fit for the timeline but still far more valuable on a win-now team than a Chicago club hovering on the fringes of the play-in tournament, might wind up sticking around, too, per Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line:

Granted, nothing is cemented here, and these things are always subject to change. However, given the history of these decision-makers, it seems there's a distinct possibility this is really it.

Maybe the Bulls still deserve some golf-clap recognition for finding a taker for LaVine, but even then, no more than muted praise feels necessary. His contract cost and injury history worked against him, but the return still reads as uninspiring.

LaVine, a two-time All-Star, exited Chicago with per-game averages of 24 points, 4.5 assists and 3.2 three-pointers. He was shooting a blistering 51.1 percent from the field and 44.6 percent from the perimeter. Those are objectively good numbers no matter how their sliced.

Know what the Bulls turned those numbers into? Tre Jones, Kevin Huerter, Zach Collins and a 2025 first-round pick. Tempted to talk yourself into that being a decent-ish return? Don't be. The pick was their own (though held by the San Antonio Spurs) and may not have escaped the Windy City since it had top-10 protection on it.

For those unfamiliar with the rest of the return, Jones is a pass-first (i.e., non-shooting) point guard and adequate reserve. Huerter is a shooting specialist whose shooting rates (and floor time) have plummeted over the past two seasons. Collins is a one-time lottery pick (No. 10 in 2017) who was no longer guaranteed to see regular rotation minutes.

That's not exactly a haul, folks, and it will only look worse if it constitutes Chicago's total takeaway from this iteration of trade season.

There is no rational argument for holding onto Vučević. Setting aside the amount of years likely sitting between this team and competing for anything of significance, there's also the fact his market value might be as high as it's been in recent memory. His shooting efficiency wasn't where it needed to be to offset his defensive deficiencies in recent seasons, but he's suddenly converting a career-high 55.1 percent of his field goals while posting a personal-best 40.1 three-point percentage (on 4.6 attempts per outing).

Whatever teams are willing to give for him now has to be better than the Bulls have heard the past few seasons. Chicago needs to capitalize on his trade value now, especially when doing so should include the added bonus of worsening this roster and presumably increasing the lottery odds ahead of the loaded 2025 draft.

There are more defensible arguments to make for keeping Ball, who's younger and a better two-way contributor. But again, the Bulls aren't competitive enough to take full advantage of what he has to offer. Plus, penciling him into the future plans—he needs a new contract this summer—feels somewhere between incredibly optimistic and outright reckless given his myriad medical woes in recent years.

Fingers-crossed for the Chicago faithful that this is all part of a leverage play intended to squeeze out every last dollar ahead of the deadline. Given the history of this front office, though, it's impossible to extend the courtesy of assuming that's what's happening.

The Bulls could be in real danger of letting another asset-collecting possibility pass them by. At least the fanbase knows how to process this by now.