In light of missing out on Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday and Bradley Beal in the offseason, the Miami Heat are listed as the favorites to land Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine if he is dealt prior to the 2024 trade deadline with +260 odds, according to Bovada.
The Brooklyn Nets own the second-best odds of acquiring LaVine at +300, while the New York Knicks own the third-best odds at +400.
LaVine became the first player to score 50-plus points in a game this season when he dropped 51 against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 28. The guard made 19 of his 33 shots from the floor, grabbed four rebounds and came up with one steal, but the Bulls still lost to the Pistons by 16 points.
Pistons guard Cade Cunningham scored a team-high 25 points in the victory, and big man Jalen Duren chipped in 23 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.
Outside of his 51-point outburst against the Pistons, LaVine has struggled a bit to start the season. He’s averaging 24.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 40.0 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from outside the 3-point arc in four appearances with the Bulls so far.
The 28-year-old is in his seventh season as a member of the Bulls after the Minnesota Timberwolves — who drafted LaVine with the No. 13 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft — traded him to Chicago in 2017 as part of the trade package that landed Minnesota Jimmy Butler.
During the 2022-23 regular season, his sixth season with the Bulls, LaVine averaged 24.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game across 77 appearances with Chicago. Interestingly, he didn’t earn an All-Star nod a season ago after being named an All-Star in each of the previous two seasons.
Only time will tell if the Heat will look to trade for LaVine before the 2024 trade deadline. But don’t be surprised if LaVine’s name gets thrown around in trade rumors in the coming months, and his elite scoring chops would make him an interesting third star to pair with Bam Adebayo and Butler in Miami.
