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DeMar DeRozan Rumors: Clippers Meeting Planned; Sign-And-Trade to Bulls Among Options
August 3, 2021
Free-agent wing DeMar DeRozan will meet with the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday, according to Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes.
The Chicago Bulls could be in play for DeRozan as well, according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
Stein reported the Bulls could look to add DeRozan in a sign-and-trade with the San Antonio Spurs, and that Lauri Markkanen, who's a restricted free agent, could be attractive for San Antonio.
Given his track record, DeRozan is generating a lot of interest this offseason.
Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer reported Tuesday he was on the radar for the New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons. Jordan Schultz of ESPN included the Clippers in the mix, too.
Assuming he re-signs, Los Angeles is potentially looking at an upcoming season in which Kawhi Leonard could miss some if not all of the games after undergoing surgery for a partial ACL tear.
DeRozan wouldn't be a perfect replacement for Leonard but could help steady the ship in his absence.
However, Haynes explained how L.A. can only offer him the $5.3 million taxpayer midlevel exception and doesn't have much in the way of assets for a sign-and-trade.
That might put Chicago in the lead.
The Bulls are clearly looking to end their four-year playoff drought in 2021-22. They have reportedly agreed to deals with Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso in free agency, per Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic.
Doug McDermott and Zach Collins are reportedly on their way to San Antonio, per ESPN's Tim MacMahon, so Markkanen's fit with the Spurs isn't quite as straightforward as it would've been heading into free agency. But the team was last in made threes (9.9) per game last season, so the Finnish 7-footer would help in that regard.
DeRozan's arrival in Chicago would allow for Patrick Williams to spent most of his time at the 4, which is likely to be his most natural position. The 31-year-old, who's averaging 20.1 points per game over his career, would give the Bulls another scorer on the wing to ease some of the burden on Zach LaVine.
A starting lineup of Ball, LaVine, DeRozan, Williams and Vucevic looks good enough to catapult the Bulls into the top eight in the Eastern Conference.