Looks like Chicago is getting closer to signing Tracy McGrady.
The Bulls are prepared to sign Tracy McGrady if he proves to be sufficiently healthy in a workout Monday and can convince the team he is willing to accept a bench role, one source familiar with Chicago’s thinking said Sunday.
“Nothing is done until it’s done, but I expect the Bulls to sign McGrady later this week,” the source said.
Although he has expressed interest in snagging one of the spots on Miami’s bench in support of the LeBron James-Dwyane Wade-Chris Bosh triumvirate and he auditioned for the Los Angeles Clippers last week, Chicago is undeniably where McGrady has been hoping to wind up.
McGrady made his desires evident in several recent messages on his Twitter feed, including his pronouncements Saturday that he has “unfinished business” with the Bulls and that it “could be fate this time round” with Chicago after drawing serious interest from the Bulls in the 1997 draft and again during free agency in 2000.
It obviously doesn’t hurt McGrady’s chances that Bulls star Derrick Rose told ESPNChicago.com’s Nick Friedell on Friday that the idea of signing McGrady — Rose’s favorite player as a kid — has his full support.
“That would be good,” Rose said. “I think that if he comes along, he could help our team.
“A player like him, with his experience and how he plays, I think it would help us.”
McGrady is/was a great player, when healthy. But ‘health’ has always been his biggest problem. He has missed a ton of games in his career, so his mileage maybe isn’t as bad as a typical 31-year-old. (Remember though, he came to the NBA straight out of high school, so he has played 852 games in his career.)
It sounds like the Bulls want him to anchor the bench, but it’s crowded on the wing with Luol Deng, Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer and now possibly T-Mac in the fold. As long as the Bulls aren’t investing too much money in McGrady, it (probably) can’t hurt to roll the dice and see how much he has left.
