Zach LaVine’s Upcoming Knee Surgery Shouldn’t Impact Chicago Bulls’ Stance In Free Agency

It was long speculated that Chicago Bulls All-Star Zach LaVine would need surgery for his ailing left knee after playing through an injury during the 2021-22 season. Sure enough, a Chicago Sun-Times report from right before the Bulls’ playoff elimination at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks suggested LaVine would wind up getting a scope “almost immediately after the playoffs.”

Now, Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium is reporting LaVine will indeed “undergo a scope procedure on his left in the coming weeks.” The Bulls star will make a full recovery:

This isn’t ideal right as LaVine is about to hit unrestricted free agency for the first time in his career. However, assuming everything goes as planned with the scope, this shouldn’t have much of an impact on his free agency and what the Bulls are willing to offer.

LaVine is in line for a five-year max contract that would pay him over $212 million. Again, as long as there are no long-term issues with the knee, that offer should be on the table for the two-time All-Star.

The Bulls star made it clear during his exit interview that he views himself as a max player and wants to get paid as such. His comments about enjoying free agency were a warning to the Bulls that they shouldn’t mess around, and there have already been rumblings from around the league about the possibility of him leaving. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst even specifically mentioned the Portland Trail Blazers as a possible destination. While LaVine could very well want to explore his options in free agency, this is also Klutch Sports playing the leverage game to make sure Chicago pays up.

While it’s understandable to have some concerns about the knee given LaVine also tore his left ACL in 2017, the Sun-Times report said the issue isn’t degenerative and shouldn’t be a long-term problem. An MRI back in mid-January “revealed no significant structural damage,” according to the team. Maybe something new pops up when this procedure is done, which could lead to negotiations about injury protections in a new contract, but the current expectation is this should be a routine cleanup and won’t be a lingering problem.

LaVine showed his toughness and dedication to the team by playing through the injury over the latter half of the season, and this came after he played through a torn thumb ligament at the start of the campaign. He clearly wasn’t at his best after playing at an All-NBA level immediately prior to the knee injury, but he still put up solid numbers as he helped the Bulls return to the playoffs for the first time since 2017. It was also the first-ever playoff appearance of his career. While the 27-year-old struggled against the Bucks in four games, it’s not some massive surprise this happened given the circumstances.

A healthy Zach LaVine still has flaws, but he’s also one of the best scorers in the NBA and a dynamic shooter the Bulls need in the lineup. Losing him in his prime would be a major setback for the franchise unless they somehow got an upgrade or something close in return. Needing knee surgery is never a good thing, but this still shouldn’t stop Chicago from investing big money in its star shooting guard this summer.