Zach LaVine Rumors

K.C. Johnson: You ever golf with Caruso? He's pretty good. Matas Buzelis: No, I haven’t. I was supposed to golf with Zach LaVine. Interviewer: Also good. Matas Buzelis: Yeah, he’s also— He’s not better than me, though. K.C. Johnson: You hear that, Zach? Zach, you're not better than me. I saw him play. He’s all right. He’s not better than me.

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"The Trae Young thing was fascinating, because there were some people who, around the edges, were hoping that a Trae Young for Zach LaVine-type trade might happen with Atlanta. And the Kings had no interest in that, largely because they're not looking to have the head of the snake be that weak defensively."

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Zach LaVine ($96.4 million combined, including a player option in the 2026-27 season) is chief among them. While the 30-year-old, two-time All-Star is extension-eligible this summer, team and league sources say there are no plans for the Kings to prioritize a new deal for LaVine.

New York Times

Matt George: Sacramento Kings legend Peja Stojakovic appeared on the NBA Out of Bounds Podcast and had a lot to say about Rich Paul & the De'Aaron Fox trade: "It seems there was a directive from his agent, Rich Paul, who played a key role and blackmailed the teams on which player was supposed to get traded where. He brought Fox to the Spurs, and Zach LaVine, who is his player, brought him to Sacramento. By doing this, he limited Sacramento from a business standpoint, stating that they get a bit more from this trade with Fox if they had the same discussion with some other teams in the NBA." pic.x.com/3ZT4CKdTqC

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Looking ahead to the offseason, rival NBA executives are monitoring the trio of Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and DeMar DeRozan with the belief that Sacramento will explore the possibility of trading at least one of those players either this offseason or before the trade deadline in February. Yet, rival executives are monitoring whether Sabonis will eventually request a trade if Sacramento continues to sputter and not show improvement as anything more than a Play-In Team. Sacramento is expected to explore the trade and free agent market for point guard help, league sources told HoopsHype.

HoopsHype

Sam Amick on player feedback regarding Doug Christie: “Some, not all, for sure. I think Zach LaVine has made some public comments. I actually talked to Zach after the play-in loss and just didn't end up using the interview, but it was an on-the-record conversation, and he had said very positive things about Doug. Throughout the course of the back end of the season, there was this kind of hilarious story arc where you had the players being a big reason they were down on Mike Brown was too many practices, too intense, never taking a breath. And then with Doug in the early days, it was a breath of fresh air because he was more of a players' coach and wasn't pushing as hard. But then by the end of the season, it was, 'Ah, we don't practice enough.'"

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Chicago made LaVine available for the better part of two seasons until Sacramento lasered in on the former All-Star to headline the Kings' return for De'Aaron Fox. Yet it didn't take long after Sacramento hired Scott Perry as its new general manager for Perry's appearance on The Hoops Genius podcast last season — when, as an ESPN analyst, he noted that LaVine "to this point has not impacted winning to the level that his money says he should" — to resurface quickly:

marcstein.substack.com

Kevin Garnett: I walk into the locker room at halftime— I’m used to being in there like: “What are we doing on pick and roll?” “Let’s talk about the game.” “Pass the Gatorade.” “Get that leg wrapped.” Now? I walk in and—nobody's in the locker room. I go to the training room—everyone's chilling, leg up, on the phone. “Hey babe, hey girl”—this is halftime. So I’m like: “Aight. I’m OG—let me get everybody back in the locker room for a second.” I call everyone in, like: “Yo, what is this?” And Ricky Rubio goes: “Yeah man, nobody wants to talk. Everyone’s on their phones. We need to figure out the pick and roll.” Rubio had an old-school spirit. That was the first time I saw this “new era” of locker room behavior. So I went to Rubio, Zach LaVine, and Andrew Wiggins. Wiggins wasn’t vocal, but he was a little leader. I pulled them aside: “Listen, I respect y’all. You’re the future. But I’m the OG—and I gotta bring some traditional stuff in here.” I told them: “Y’all can have your phones, but we’re gonna talk for five minutes about the game before the coaches come in.” And they respected that.

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James Ham: "Anything I say, I'm not worrying about it haunting me." -Scott Perry on his comments on Zach LaVine. He said his job is now to build the roster around LaVine to support him. Perry said he has also spoken to LaVine already.

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James Ham: Zach LaVine said that despite the final outcome, he would welcome staying in Sacramento. He's said repeatedly that this is a place that wanted him and that has value to him.

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James Ham: Zach LaVine said he's looking forward to the offseason and training camp to build chemistry with Domantas Sabonis. "This isn't 2K."

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Many counted Chicago out after LaVine’s exit. But White and the Bulls had other plans. “When Zach went to Sacramento, I think a lot of people counted us out… I think it helped us as a team to come together… and especially when adversity hits, we come together and fight together.” Now, entering the Play-In, the Bulls have one focus. “We’re playing really good basketball at the right time.”

ScoopB.com

Vinny Benedetto: Nuggets win it 124-116. Got a little dicey late, but the Nuggets win a massive one. Christian Braun leads Denver with 25 points. Michael Porter and Aaron Gordon score 21 apiece. Nikola Jokic with 20-12-11 and 4 steals. Jalen Pickett with 18 points on 5-7 3PT. Zach LaVine 27 and 11 assists for the Kings.

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Jorge Sierra: Zach LaVine has passed one-time MVP Dave Cowens in scoring for 213th in NBA history.

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