This season, for LaVine, is simply a mixed bag.
The team scored 51 points and lost, and was called the "empty cut group leader". Later, because of injury, the team won, so that fans found out that LaVine was the ghost in the team
Since LaVine was injured on November 29, the Bulls have won all of their games against the Bucks, Pelicans, Hornets and Spurs, winning four straight games ......
Unexpectedly, LaVine's absence directly verified the sentence that who is missing is embarrassed. Four games without a team core, a top-paid player, the Bulls actually played vigorously. Koby White and Caruso can replace LaVine and arrange the opponent clearly, whether it is a strong team like the Bucks or a weak team like the Spurs, the Bulls can have the last laugh. Moreover, the Bucks and Pelicans are both teams at the semi-final level of the midseason tournament. Now the Bulls have won four in a row and will not be able to straighten LaVine. Embarrassment is a trivial matter, the problem is that Laven has been raised for half a month, and he has not raised it well at all. Moreover, the Bulls officially announced that LaVine is expected to miss another 3-4 weeks and continue his current right foot inflammation.
In this way, Laven will be reimbursed in 2023. However, the Bulls are in good spirits at the moment, and it doesn't seem like a bad thing for LaVine to continue to be absent. But Shams doesn't care about this, and seems to directly say the Bulls' "careful thinking" on the show, he said: "The Bulls plan to let LaVine return in mid-January next year, which is the time when the Lakers' Russell and Hachimura become eligible to be traded." To put it bluntly, the outside world thinks that the timing of LaVine's comeback is more coincidental, and it coincides with the time when the two players change their qualifications. It can be understood, then, that the Bulls are trying to make sure LaVine remains healthy and stable in value before the trade.
However, since LaVine's injury, his trade value has started to decline, and ESPN broke the news that no team is interested in LaVine at the moment. But Lowe said the Lakers are still interested in him, albeit cautiously. Because the Lakers management also knows that the team's current defensive system and salary cap may not be able to cope with the pressure brought by LaVine's arrival. In other words, LaVine's role on the offensive end may not make up for his shortcomings on the defensive end and salary. Moreover, to trade LaVine, Hachimura and Russell are most likely to be sent away. Although the latter is almost meaningless in a tough game, the ability to hold the ball in the regular season can reduce the burden on James. Not to mention the former, in last year's playoffs, Hachimura's role was reflected.
And this season, it is even more cost-effective, ranking 26th in the league in defensive efficiency, and averaging 97 points 31 rebound and 1 assist, shooting 50% from the field and 45% from three-point range. Most importantly, he is the forward player that the Lakers need most.
If LaVine is replaced, then the defensive pressure of thick eyebrows and James's ball-holding pressure will definitely increase.
Pelinka, who has been full of operations in the offseason, probably won't agree to such a deal, right?