Tag: Chicago Bulls (Page 16 of 26)

      Teams that could take Evan Turner over John Wall

      March 23, 2010 /

      For most of the collegiate season, it looked like John Wall was the only player deserving of the #1 pick — like a franchise would be crazy not to take him if it won the lottery. But as Evan Turner has come on — 20-9-6 with 52% shooting — and is pushing Wall for the Naismith award, it has become a reasonable possibility that a team that already has a good point guard might pass on Wall and take Turner (who projects to play off guard or small forward in the NBA) instead.

      David Thorpe lists the Timberwolves (Jonny Flynn, Ricky Rubio), Warriors (Monta Elllis, Stephen Curry), Kings (Tyreke Evans), Sixers (Jrue Holiday), Jazz (Deron Williams) and the Bulls (Derrick Rose) as teams with lottery picks that could potentially go with Turner over Wall.

      Wall is two years younger and doesn’t have Turner’s injury history. (Turner broke his back earlier in the season. Yeah. Broke his back.) The two shoot about the same from three-point range and are both good playmakers. To me, they both resemble Dwyane Wade, though Turner is longer and Wall is more athletic (of the two).

      This is no indictment of Wall. Turner has played himself into this position with a brilliant season. Wall is two years younger so he has more upside, but they both project to be great NBA players, so if a franchise is already sitting on a very good point guard, it makes some sense to go with Turner.

      College Basketball, Fantasy Basketball, March Madness, NBA, NBA Draft

      Could Kobe end up with the Bulls?

      February 23, 2010 /

      In a chat yesterday, Chris Sheridan says he could…

      If Kobe Bryant continues to say no to the extension the Lakers are offering him, and if Phil Jackson starts to talk as though he’s leaving, Chicago comes onto the rdar [sic] in a big, big way. Remember, when Kobe was trying to force a trade two and a half years ago, the Bulls were the team working most diligently to get him — right up until two days before the season-opener.

      Kobe is probably just saying no to keep his options open, because I think he wants to retire a Laker. There are a couple of problems with a Kobe-to-Chicago move: 1) Both Bryant and Derrick Rose are ball-dominating guards (though, like Dwyane Wade, Kobe is smart enough to find a way to make this work), and 2) if Jackson retires, would Kobe want to play for Vinny Del Negro?

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, Rumors & Gossip

      Did Miami just blow its chance to re-sign Wade?

      February 18, 2010 /

      With their two biggest competitors for Dwyane Wade’s services — the Knicks and the Bulls — both successfully pulling off deadline deals to clear additional cap space, the Miami Heat scrambled to add Amare Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer to the mix to keep Wade happy (and in town). We don’t know what they offered, but whatever it was, it apparently wasn’t enough, because the Heat will try to make the playoffs with the same lineup that has the team at 28-27 and in the #7 spot in the East. To make matters worse, Wade heard a “pop” in his calf on Wednesday night and could miss some time, further hindering Miami’s postseason hopes.

      Like the Heat, the Knicks now have enough cap space to sign two “max” free agents, and if LeBron is unavailable, they could go to Wade and ask him who he wants to play with — Chris Bosh? Amare Stoudemire? Carlos Boozer? — and sign both. Wade could get the same deal (and a little more money) from the Heat, but will he hold Miami’s inability to bring help this season against them? Meanwhile, the Bulls (Wade’s hometown team) unloaded John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas, clearing the way for a max offer this summer. Wade would look nice in a lineup with Derrick Rose, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah.

      I give the Heat credit — they sure tried to acquire a big name. But they failed, and the fact that they were scrambling up until the deadline indicates that they think that losing Wade this summer is a real possibility. And they’re right.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Tyrus Thomas headed to Charlotte

      February 18, 2010 /

      Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports that the Bobcats have acquired Tyrus Thomas.

      The Charlotte Bobcats have reached an agreement in principle to acquire Chicago Bulls forward Tyrus Thomas for Acie Law, Flip Murray and a future first-round pick, sources said.

      Law and Murray have expiring deals, so the prize for the Bulls is the Bobcats’ pick, which will probably be in the late teens or 20s for the next couple of seasons.

      For Charlotte, this is a low-risk move with some nice upside. Boris Diaw hasn’t been great at power forward, and Thomas should have plenty of opportunity to prove himself along the Bobcats’ front line. It will be interesting to see how his personality meshes with Larry Brown’s. Thomas has the talent to be a very good power forward, so if he can keep his head on straight, the Bobcats may very well re-sign him.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Here’s the problem with the Salmons deal…

      February 18, 2010 /

      As a long-time (and sometimes-proud) Bucks fan, my NBA objectivity goes out the window whenever my favorite team makes a big transaction. I start to look at it from the perspective of “my Bucks” and don’t really care what kind of an effect the move has on the other team.

      But in this John Salmons-for-Elson/Thomas (or Warrick/Alexander) deal, the Bulls’ new-found financial freedom might come back to haunt the Bucks. Without Salmons’ salary ($5.8 million) on the books for next season, the Bulls would project to have more than $18 million in cap space heading into this summer’s free agency. That’s enough to sign LeBron James, Dwyane Wade or Chris Bosh. Without this trade, the Bulls would have a tough time signing a “max” player.

      So by taking on Salmons and his contract, the Bucks may have increased their chances of becoming first round fodder in the postseason, but they also increased the chances of a top 5 player joining their bitter rival. They already have LeBron in the division — now they may have to deal with D-Wade, too?

      While I can understand the deal that includes Kurt Thomas and Francisco Elson, I don’t get why the Bucks would include Warrick in the trade, seeing as how he has been a valuable rotation player — 10-4 in 21 minutes per game — throughout the season. In other words, I’m not sure how a Salmons-for-Warrick swap gets the Bucks that much closer to the postseason that it would justify the added expense next season and the increased likelihood that Dwyane Wade will land in Chicago.

      After a shaky start — trading for Richard Jefferson, drafting Joe Alexander, trading away Mo Williams — GM John Hammond has had a nice year, unloading Jefferson’s huge contact, acquiring Ersan Ilyasova and Carlos Delfino, and most importantly, drafting Brandon Jennings. Unlike most teams, the Bucks are stockpiling cap space for the summer of 2011, when they currently project to have $25 million (or more) in cap space and only seven players under contract. He has the Bucks in position to bounce back over the next couple of seasons, but it won’t matter if Cleveland and Chicago are dominating the division.

      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

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