Bulls retain LaVine, match reported 4-year, $78M offer sheet from Kings

The Chicago Bulls officially retained guard Zach LaVine by matching the reported four-year, $78-million offer sheet from the Sacramento Kings, the Bulls announced Sunday.

LaVine signed the Kings' offer sheet on Friday and voiced his displeasure with the Bulls' front office for their inability to agree on a contract.

"I'm disappointed that I had to get an offer sheet from another team," LaVine said Friday, according to ESPN's Marc J. Spears. "But Sacramento stepped up and made a strong impression. It appears that Sacramento wants me more than Chicago."

There were initial rumblings that the Bulls may not have been so interested in matching a steep price for the two-time Slam Dunk contest winner, according to ESPN's Nick Friedell.

However, Chicago decided to move forward with a high-volume scorer in LaVine as its starting shooting guard for next season slotted beside point guard Kris Dunn. Both were acquired in a draft-day deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2017 - along with sharpshooting forward Lauri Markkanen - in exchange for All-Star Jimmy Butler.

"We were excited last summer when we got a dynamic athlete in Zach LaVine through the trade, and we're excited now that we get to keep him," Bulls executive VP John Paxson said in a statement. "Zach showed a relentless work ethic in rehabbing his ACL injury to return to the court, and he has a visible passion for the game of basketball. We know that those attributes, along with his honed skills, will make him an impact player in this league for years to come. We're thrilled to keep Zach on this Bulls team moving forward."

LaVine averaged 16.7 points and 3.9 rebounds in 24 contests last season as he came back from an ACL tear suffered in February 2017.