Bulls' Zach LaVine Out 1 Week with Foot Injury amid NBA Trade Rumors
The Chicago Bulls announced Friday that two-time All-Star shooting guard Zach LaVine will miss one week of action with right foot soreness.
LaVine has been the recent subject of trade rumors, as Shams Charania and Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic reported last month that the Bulls have "increased openness" regarding a possible LaVine trade.
Charania and Mayberry added that the Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat are expected to have interest in LaVine if he is officially made available.
Chicago signed LaVine to a five-year, $215.16 million contract extension last year, but team success has eluded the Bulls since then.
After going 46-36 in 2021-22 and reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2017, the Bulls went just 40-42 last season and failed to make it to the postseason.
This season has been a major struggle thus far as well, as they have the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference at 6-14.
With 21.0 points per game, LaVine is second on the team in scoring behind DeMar DeRozan, but his production is down compared to recent years.
LaVine averaged a career-high 27.4 points per game in 2020-21 en route to his first All-Star selection, and he was named an All-Star again the following season with 24.4 points per game.
Although he fell short of an All-Star nod last season, he averaged 24.8 points per contest.
A lack of efficiency is a big reason why LaVine's scoring is down this season, as he is shooting just 44.3 percent from the field, which is his lowest since 2017-18, and 33.6 percent from beyond the arc, which is the worst mark of his career.
In a 27-point loss to the Boston Celtics on Tuesday, LaVine was limited to two points on 1-of-9 shooting, and he subsequently sat out the Bulls' upset win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
The timeline provided by the Bulls suggests LaVine will miss at least the next two games against the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday and the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday, and possibly next Friday's game against the San Antonio Spurs as well.
If DeRozan can return from an ankle injury that caused him to miss Thursday's game, he will be the go-to guy until LaVine returns, while Nikola Vučević, Coby White and Alex Caruso will play sizable roles as well.
