Chicago Bulls have an exciting young core of players in Lauri Markkanen, Zach LaVine, and Wendell Carter Jr. but the consensus is that they lack a quality point guard that can orchestrate their offense.
The Bulls hoped that they will address that need in the draft, but after falling to No.7 pick in the lottery, the team reportedly shifted their attention to exploring trade options. The name that came up: Los Angeles Lakers’ Lonzo Ball.
According to Chicago Tribune’s K.C. Johnson, Bulls consider Ball to be an “intriguing” point guard who is team-oriented, defensive-minded and has a pass-first instinct.
Joe Cowley of Chicago Sun-Times confirms Chicago’s interest in the 21-year-old, reporting that Bulls and Lakers already had initial conversations about the player in the past.
Bulls are encouraged by the fact that Los Angeles Lakers intend to pursue New Orleans Pelicans’ superstar Anthony Davis and would be interested in acquiring the assets to push the deal through. Since Lonzo Ball would also be available in the trade with Pelicans, Chicago is considering swooping in and offering Lakers a package that could intrigue New Orleans more than Ball.
Although Ball struggled in his first two years in the league, he is still viewed as a significant talent with exciting upside. He played 47 games in 2018/19 NBA season and averaged 9.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.5 steals per game.
