NBA Free Agency, Trade and Rumours Roundup: 6th July - Melo and OKC to part ways, Tony Parker will no longer be a Spur and more

San Antonio Spurs v New York Knicks
San Antonio Spurs v New York Knicks

#3 Zach LaVine offered 4-year deal by Kings, Bulls to match

Verizon Slam Dunk Contest 2016
Verizon Slam Dunk Contest 2016

Restricted free agent Zach LaVine was offered a 4-year, $78 million deal by the Sacramento Kings, as reported by Shams Chirania of Yahoo Sports. Barely an hour later, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that the Bulls would match the offer sheet and retain his services for the next 4 years.

LaVine is one of the finest athletes the game has ever seen. Most of his struggles this past season were due to him not getting a full offseason and a training camp alongside his teammates. In addition the Bulls are currently at a severe talent disadvantage at all positions, and the rebuilding process will take a couple more years before all of their young pieces like Kris Dunn and Lauri Markkanen mature into elite talents.

In his last 2 seasons at Minnesota, LaVine scored on 38.7% or more of his 3-point shots, which means that he's already made the transition into a scoring role. He has the potential to be a real franchise piece for the Bulls in the years to come, and they were wise to invest in it, considering they are in no hurry to contend.

Quick Links