Chicago Bulls: Can Zach LaVine become a star in the NBA?

In his first full season as “the guy”, Zach LaVine is putting the rest of the league on notice with incredible production for the Chicago Bulls.

Taken 13th overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves back in 2014, Zach LaVine had always proven to be a gifted player in the league, a problem in transition with hops on par with the likes of Michael Jordan and Vince Carter who could work as a combo guard in spurts at a time.

Unfortunately, as the third option next to Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, the opportunities available for the former UCLA product weren’t always there, limiting his ability to show off what he could do.

A draft-day trade in the summer of 2017 looked to change his role for the better, but after having suffered a torn ACL the February prior, there were questions about not only his ability to function as the leader of a team but also whether or not the injury had robbed LaVine of what had come to mostly define him during his short tenure in the NBA.

Last season was more of a chance for LaVine to reacclimate himself back into the game with just 24 appearances, but this year, the 23-year-old has blossomed as the headliner for the Chicago Bulls, with statistical production that has grouped him with All-Stars such as DeMar DeRozan and Kyrie Irving.

In 34.5 minutes a night, LaVine is averaging 23.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. While those numbers may be shocking given the relative inexperience he has leading a team, they’re to be expected for a guy with the 10th highest usage rate in the entire league at 30.5.

What is noteworthy, though, is that most players tasked with taking on more responsibilities at the offensive end tend to see at least a slight dip in their efficiency, but not LaVine. Despite taking the most shots per game of his career, he’s actually shooting a career-best mark from the field at 46.8 to go along with converting 36.8 percent of his looks from downtown and 83.3 from the free-throw line.

Unfortunately, whatever LaVine brings to the table with his scoring prowess is negated with his turnstile-like defense at the other end. Granted, he’s never been known as much of a defender, but those deficiencies are magnified under the microscope that is NBA stardom or anything close to it.

According to NBA Math, LaVine has added 79.59 points on the offensive end for the Bulls so far this season, inside the top 40 across the league and ahead of the elite young duo of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. However, when you subtract what he gives up defensively, his total points added comes out to a measly 8.38, behind the likes of Ekpe Udoh and Khem Birch.

Nobody’s asking LaVine to become the go-to stopper for the Bulls moving forward, but when your defensive inefficiencies nearly cancel out some very productive offensive talents, it might be time to shuffle around your priorities on the basketball court, exerting less energy to get buckets and more towards preventing an opponent from doing so.

There is a narrative that LaVine is simply another case of a guy putting up good numbers on a bad team, with little to no impact on the actual outcome of the game. Given his value at both ends, such an idea isn’t crazy to suggest, but it’s also not all that fair.

Yes, the Bulls are closer to the worst record than they are the eighth seed with a record of just 19-48, but with an inexperienced core, a coaching change in early December and injuries to their young frontcourt among other things, the ceiling for this team wasn’t much higher than the present situation.

Since acquiring forward Otto Porter Jr. at the deadline, Chicago has actually gone a respectable 7-6, a possible sign of what may be to come with the versatile Porter taking the place of the ball dominant Jabari Parker.

Given the somewhat one-sided nature of trades surrounding a player of Jimmy Butler’a caliber have been known to be, LaVine’s turned out to be nearly as good a return as one could get for the four-time All-Star.

Not every player can put up those types of numbers on a nightly basis with defenses geared to stop them, and while there will come a time when it’s fair to question LaVine’s leadership abilities, his first full season back from injury isn’t it.

Now is simply the time to watch in amazement as the guy so desperate to show off the full range of his powers just a few years ago is serving as a focal point with numbers that scream of a bright future moving forward.