NBA: Kings give LaVine 78 million – Bulls probably want to follow suit

Sacramento Kings and Restricted Free Agent Zach LaVine have signed a four-year contract for $78 million. According to ESPN, however, the Chicago Bulls want to match the offer.

Chicago has 48 hours after the agreement to inform the Kings that they will go along with the offer. According to the report, they intend to do so by the deadline before Sunday.

According to the report, the contract also contains a clause protecting the team should LaVine again seriously injure his operated left knee during the contract period. The Shooting Guard only managed 24 games last season, his first in the Bulls (16.7 points).

That’s probably why Chicago hesitated to make the 23-year-old an offer himself. In a difficult market for restricted free agents, however, LaVine has now received a better offer thanks to Sacramento than almost all other summer 2018 free agents, except the maximum contracts of players like LeBron James or Paul George.

However, LaVine didn’t like the idea of Sacramento, as he told The Undefeated: “I’m disappointed that I had to get an offer from another team first,” LaVine said. “Sacramento made a strong impression. It seems they’d rather have me than Chicago.”