NBA Rumors: Latest on Bulls' Interest in Bradley Beal Trade, Nemanja Bjelica

Bradley Beal is having a career year with the Washington Wizards.

But as he continues to stuff stat sheets with career highs in scoring (34.9 points per game) and field-goal percentage (49.4 percent), he remains a top target in the trade market rumor mill because he's "pissed off" that the Wizards are losing and have the third-worst record in the NBA (3-8).

That's why the Miami Heat have a high interest level in making a deal for Beal should he become available.

There's also another team that might enter the fray to try to complete a trade for the two-time All-Star, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst on his Hoop Collective podcast:

"The other team that I would say would be a sleeper would be the [Chicago] Bulls. Zach LaVine's value has never been higher, they have their full complement of picks to trade from, they have a couple of other young pieces on their roster that maybe could interest people.

"And Arturas Karnisovas—their general manager [executive VP of basketball operations]—has really emphasized the importance to build around shooting. Bradley Beal is one of the best shooters in the league. The Bulls have attempted to build through the draft, and they just haven't been able to make contact on a star, so I think they are a sleeper team."

The Chicago Bulls aren't exactly one of the top teams in the league, but they are on the right track, improving as the season progresses, and they have a strong young core.

They need a star player to build around, and Beal definitely fits that bill.

Additionally, Beal played for Chicago head coach Billy Donovan as a freshman at the University of Florida. He was excited to see him land the job with the Bulls, so it's reasonable to assume that the two still have a good relationship.

At this point, it's just a matter a matter of Beal getting to the point that he demands a trade.

In October 2019, he agreed to a two-year, $72 million maximum contract extension, so he made the commitment to stay in Washington, but will he stay true to that if they continue to lose and fail at defending parked cars?

"My biggest thing is win now, you know? I wanna win," Beal told The Athletic's Fred Katz after the Wizards traded for Russell Westbrook in December. "I'm here under contract for this year, next year and a player option, too. So it's just a matter of we gotta win. And the organization knows that.

"It's up to me, too, so I can't just sit here and...look at [general manager Tommy Sheppard] like he's crazy. I have to go out and lead the team, put in the work and get better every day and bring the results."

Reduced Role for Sacramento's Nemanja Bjelica?

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

Sometimes, the writing is on the wall.

For recently benched Sacramento Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica, the ink is almost dry.

According to The Sacramento Bee's Jason Anderson, Bjelica's reduced role is a result of general manager Monte McNair's plan to rebuild around De'Aaron Fox.

The 32-year old Serb was pulled from the starting lineup after a discussion about his playing time, per Anderson's sources. Additionally, Bjelica's has been held out for six consecutive games for what the team and head coach Luke Walton have referred to as "personal reasons."

Despite all of that, Bjelica has traveled with the team and has been seen on the bench.

"Me and him have talked," Walton said, per Anderson. "Again, we're all on the same page as far as where we're at, but there's some—he's not [sitting out] due to a lack of trust with us—there's some personal stuff, and I'm just going to leave it at that. But we have been in communication, and we are very confident in the player he is still."

In November, the Kings put Bjelica on the trading block but didn't get any acceptable offers. Now that the team is focused on building around Fox, who signed a five-year, $163 million contract extension in the offseason, they will likely continue to field offers for him.

Bjelica signed a three-year, $20.5 million deal with Sacramento in 2018 as a free agent when Vlade Divac was still at the helm and will become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Last year, he put up his best numbers in a Kings uniform, averaging career highs in points (11.5), rebounds (6.4), assists (2.8) and field-goal percentage (48.1). He even connected on a career-best 41.9 percent of his three-pointers.

On the right team, it's likely that Bjelica can still be effective.

Maurice Bobb covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow Maurice on Twitter, @ReeseReport.