(670 The Score) Bulls star DeMar DeRozan makes it a habit to refrain from opining to the front office about potential moves and additions in the offseason, but he does have a key piece of advice as the franchise now looks ahead to a pivotal summer after being eliminated from the playoffs Wednesday evening.
Keep star guard Zach LaVine in Chicago on a max contract.
"Max player, max talent, max everything," DeRozan said of LaVine. "He's one of those players in this league that you don't see too often. I tell him all the time how envious I am of the things he's able to do. So he deserves everything that's coming to him for sure."
DeRozan shared his comments after the Bulls were sent home with a 116-100 loss against the Bucks in Game 5 of their first-round series at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. DeRozan and the already undermanned Bulls were further overmatched as LaVine missed the game while in the health and safety protocols, the fourth known time in 13 months that he encountered a COVID-19 problem.
It was a bummer of an ending to LaVine's season, which was also notably plagued by chronic left knee soreness that will likely force him to have a procedure this offseason. It's that knee ailment that has cast a new layer of uncertainty over LaVine's future as he hits unrestricted free agency this summer.
LaVine wasn't his usual explosive self after hurting the knee in mid-January. He averaged 24.4 points on 47.6% shooting overall in 67 games. Prior to exiting a game early with knee soreness on Jan. 14, LaVine averaged 25.6 points on 49.1% shooting in 37 games. He averaged 23.7 points on 45.5% shooting in 29 games after that date, was less active defensively and noticeably limped at times in games late in the season. His knee remains structurally sound, an outside specialist and team doctors determined.
LaVine is eligible to sign a five-year deal worth up to $212 million with the Bulls. The biggest contract he could receive by signing outright with another team would be a four-year deal worth around $160 million.
Bulls leadership has emphasized that retaining LaVine is a top priority, and DeRozan offered insight on why.
"Just the ultimate competitor, just the ultimate competitor," DeRozan said. "That's the best way I can sum it up. No matter what is, we played tic-tac-toe on the plane and I kept beating him and he wouldn't stop and leave me alone until he beat me. And that's just him – on the court as well, everything he wants. Just him being the ultimate competitor outside of just being a helluva individual outside the basketball. But on the court, just one of the most fierce competitors I've ever played with."
Whether DeRozan and LaVine could coexist efficiently and at a high level was a question mark when DeRozan was acquired by Chicago last offseason, but they put those doubts to rest – at least on the offensive end – by both earning All-Star honors. There's much more to accomplish and improve upon – the Bulls need to cover for the duo's defensive limitations and surround them with more consistent shooting – but DeRozan was pleased with how it played out in their first season together.
"It developed great, it was quick," DeRozan said of his chemistry with LaVine. "It was something that developed in the summer before we even got to training camp. We spent a lot of time together working out. We flew from L.A.
to Chicago a few times, just me and him having conversations on the plane. Flew home from Chicago to L.A., had conversations. So we had a lot of dialogue before we even stepped out there on the court. And that kind of set the foundation for there. And everything else just carried over once we got on the court."
Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for 670TheScore.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.
