The Utah Jazz and Chicago Bulls are in fairly similar situations. They both had 2021-22 NBA championship aspirations that they fell well short of this season. In fact, they were both eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

Both teams rostered a star off-guard who may be in a new uniform next season.

Still, there are differences as well. The Jazz appear to be set on a course for combustion that they won’t be able to turn back from. The Bulls’ situation is a little more difficult to anticipate.

They’ve got every reason to run it back. The 2021-22 season was the very first in which Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic played together.

LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: 2 Dark-Horse Contenders For Jazz Star Donovan Mitchell

With a little tinkering, they could build on their success from this year and improve next season. It feels egregiously early to call this off, but if that’s what LaVine chooses, he’ll be well within his rights as an unrestricted free agent.

What if the Chicago Bulls capitalized on Utah’s misfortune and poached Donovan Mitchell from them? Here are two trade scenarios that see that happen.