Zach LaVine May Be Heading To Lakers, Says Eastern Conference Executive

The 2022-23 NBA season is steadily chugging along as both fans, and franchises are preparing for the excitement that comes with the trade deadline which is set for February 9, 2023.

One team that desperately needs to make moves to compete is the Chicago Bulls, but they do have a couple of options on how to improve the team, both in the short term and in the long term.

Speaking with Heavy.com's Sean Deveney, an Eastern Conference executive revealed that Zach LaVine could be going to the Los Angeles Lakers in the offseason, but they may opt to trade DeMar DeRozan instead.

"They're not going to trade away Zach LaVine during the season. They will have an easier time with moving on from DeMar DeRozan if that is where they go but even that, it is something they would wait until the summer to do, rather than try to pull off a move at the deadline," the executive mentioned.

"LaVine wants to go to the Lakers, that has been pretty clear for a while now. The agents (from Klutch Sports) want him to be in Los Angeles, he is a UCLA guy and they did some rattling about his contract last offseason, to kind of lay the groundwork if things blew up. Which they seem to be doing."

Every big-name player in recent years has been linked to the Lakers at one point in their careers and it is not surprising that LaVine is the latest on that list.

The exec took note of LaVine's connection to Los Angeles, but later admitted that it would be a major problem for the Lakers financially as they do not have the assets to engage Chicago in a trade.

Deciding to move DeRozan over LaVine could be a slightly easier task as the former's $81.9 million contract expires after next summer and it will likely net them a decent return for a proven scorer.

LaVine had just signed a five-year, $215 million max deal in the offseason and will necessitate the Lakers to give up someone like Anthony Davis in order to make the financials work.

Chicago is currently treading water with a 13-18 record and the hope of a glistening future from last season suddenly appears bleak after their current struggles.

A trade would spice things up for the Bulls, though it could be a case of Alex Caruso being dealt as noted by the same executive.

All in all, something has to give in the Windy City and only time will tell what the front office led by executive vice president Artūras Karnišovas and Marc Eversley will do to improve the team.