‘I just want my respect’: Zach LaVine talks contract extension and Chicago Bulls free agency ahead of Team USA’s quarterfinal matchup against Spain

When the negotiation period for NBA free agency “officially” begins Monday, it’ll be 7 a.m. Tuesday in Tokyo. And even though he’ll be getting ready for Team USA’s quarterfinal matchup against Spain, expect Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine to be plugged in closely to his team back home.

“I should have a good idea what’s going on,” LaVine said on a zoom call Monday from Tokyo. “I take that very seriously, keep up to date with what’s going on back home. One way or another I’ll find out.”

The Bulls are poised for what should be an intriguing and active offseason, hoping to improve the team and make the postseason with LaVine for the first time in his career.

Among that lengthy to-do list is a potential contract extension for LaVine, who is eligible for a new deal before he enters his final year next season.

“I just want my respect,” LaVine said. “I outplayed my contract. I’ve been very loyal to Chicago. I like Chicago. I just want my respect. If that’s now or later, it’s something we got to work out internally.”

LaVine, 26, is coming off the best year of his career and is set for a substantial raise from the $19.5 million he will earn next season. And although both the Bulls and LaVine have expressed interest in getting a long-term extension done, the timing is complicated this offseason.

Due to LaVine’s previous salary, the Bulls are limited in what they can offer him in an extension this summer. A deal that would end up around four years, $105 million is still well below LaVine’s value on the open market if he hits free agency in 2022.

There is another path toward an extension, a rarely used provision that would allow the Bulls to renegotiate LaVine’s contract. The Bulls can use their cap space to increase LaVine’s salary for the upcoming season and then build an extension off that number, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Only eight players have seen their contracts renegotiated, the last of which was Robert Covington with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2017.

Exercising this provision to extend LaVine, however, means the Bulls would use up their cap space for the offseason and limit the ways they can improve this roster.

Aside from giving the Bulls peace of mind and avoiding the risk that LaVine walks for nothing as an unrestricted free agent in 2022, it’s unclear why they would choose that path. Although LaVine has echoed the same sentiment about getting paid what he’s due since the end of the season, it’s also clear that winning is one of his top priorities. The Bulls made a trade for Nikola Vucevic at the trade deadline to improve the team and could use this offseason to continue building a strong roster that gives LaVine a taste of the postseason for the first time.

Then next summer, even though LaVine will hit unrestricted free agency, the Bulls would be able to offer him a full max contract.

“We’ll have some conversations going forward,” LaVine said. “I think free agency is going to play a big part in that with other players and constructing a roster. But for me, (vice president Arturas Karni ovas) and (general manager Marc Eversley), we’ll all talk and we’ll get to the bottom of it.”

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