The Chicago Bulls are trying to get Kevin Love, in the latest NBA trade rumor.
Love, the hottest name on the market, has been pursued by the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, and Boston Celtics, among other teams.
The Cavs jumped to the front when the team acquired LeBron James. The team offered the Minnesota Timberwolves No. 1 draft pick Andrew Wiggins as well as some other pieces but that wasn’t enough for the T-Wolves, according to ESPN (some reports contradict these rumors).
Now the Bulls have jumped in, trying to acquire Love, according to ESPN.
Soures said that the Cavs believe that the two sides are close but the Bulls are now the biggest threat to the deal not going through.
The full extent of the Bulls offer isn’t yet known but it’s believed to include forward Taj Gibson, a scoring machine who came off the bench last year, as well as defensive standout and starting shooting guard Jimmy Butler, in addition to other assets such as trade picks.
The Bulls had not pursued Love for a while, while trying to get Carmelo Anthony, but have no re-emerged as contenders, the sources said.
The Bulls ended up not getting Anthony but did snag Pau Gasol to be their starting big man.
It’s unclear who would start if the Bulls did acquire Love, although it’s likely that Gasol would come off the bench as opposed to Love or Joakim Noah.
Love might be able to spend time at small forward with a big lineup but lacks the mobility to stay there for long.
