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Bulls Trade Rumors: Gary Trent Jr. Deal Being Discussed with Trail Blazers
March 25, 2021
The Chicago Bulls appear to be pushing all of their chips in to make the playoffs this season, with Gary Trent Jr. emerging as a player on their radar leading up to the trade deadline.
Per ESPN's Brian Windhorst (h/t Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago), the Bulls and Portland Trail Blazers have had discussions about Trent in the past 24 hours.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported earlier in the day that Chicago will acquire Nikola Vucevic and Al-Farouq Aminu from the Orlando Magic for Otto Porter, Wendell Carter Jr. and first-round picks in 2021 and 2023.
The Bulls are taking big swings in hopes of making the playoffs, though it's unclear if it will work for this season.
Chicago is currently the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 19-24 record. Zach LaVine is a force on the offensive end and was named to his first All-Star team this season. Vucevic made the All-Star team for the second time in his career.
The Blazers are in an interesting spot with Trent right now. He played an instrumental role in keeping them afloat in the Western Conference standings during the 24 games that CJ McCollum missed with a foot fracture.
McCollum is signed for three more seasons, and there's been no indication that Portland is looking to move on from him at this point.
Trent, who filled in as the starter at shooting guard while McCollum was out, is eligible for restricted free agency this offseason. The 29-year-old has put himself in line to receive a lucrative contract, as he's averaging a career-high 15 points per game on 39.7 percent three-point shooting in 41 games.