Tag: Chicago Bulls (Page 20 of 26)

      The Top 10 Head Scratchers of the 2009 NBA Offseason

      July 16, 2009 /

      The NBA offseason is by no means over, but the lion’s share is behind us, so it’s a good time to take a look back at a few of the…um…let’s say “questionable” decisions of the summer. Here are my Top 10, in no particular order. Feel free to add to the list if I missed something.

      1. Trevor Ariza plays spiteful hardball…and loses.
      Let’s get this straight — the Lakers offered Ariza the same deal he was getting on the open market, and he refused since the Lakers could have offered more, but didn’t? Um, okay. David Lee (the agent, not the Knicks forward) says that Ariza wanted to go somewhere where he’d be “appreciated.” Lee overestimated the market for his client, and the Lakers quickly moved on to acquire Ron Artest. Now instead of playing for the world champs, Ariza is stuck in Houston on a team that faces a very uncertain future. Lee now says that Ariza turned down a deal worth $9 million more, but still picked Houston. It sounds to me like he’s just trying to save face.

      2. Grizzlies acquire Zach Randolph.
      Once the Clippers traded for Randolph (and his toxic contract) last season, I thought the bar for NBA general managers had hit a new low thanks to Mike Dunleavy and his wily ways. But Dunleavy proved that he wasn’t the dumbest GM in the league when he convinced the Memphis Grizzlies to take on the final two years Randolph’s contract at the tune of $33.3 million. Remember that $25 million or so of cap space that the Grizzlies were going to have next summer? Yeah, that’s down to about $8 million with this brilliant move. Just when it looked like Chris Wallace was going to rehab his image after the Pau Gasol trade — Marc Gasol panning out, trading for O.J. Mayo — he goes and does this. Sigh.

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      NBA, NBA Draft, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Blazers sign Millsap to offer sheet

      July 11, 2009 /

      Portland is making a push for Utah forward Paul Millsap.

      The Portland Trail Blazers elected Friday not to wait on trade possibilities, deciding instead to offer Utah Jazz restricted free agent Paul Millsap a four-year contract worth an estimated $32 million-to-$36 million, according to sources with knowledge of the Blazers’ plans.

      This is more compelling than your average, run-of-the-mill restricted free agent signing because a few days ago the Blazers were rumored to be involved in a three-way trade involving Chicago and Utah where the Bulls would have acquired Carlos Boozer, sending Kirk Hinrich to Portland and Tyrus Thomas to Utah.

      But those trade talks stalled in part because the Bulls were not prepared to surrender Hinrich and Tyrus Thomas (who would have been Utah-bound) without getting back promising Portland guard Jerryd Bayless in return in addition to Boozer.

      Since the Blazers didn’t want to give up Bayless, they’ve made the decision to extend an offer to Millsap, which puts the pressure on the Jazz to move Boozer. The contract is frontloaded, so if Utah were to have both players on the roster it would put the team deep into luxury tax territory.

      Another interesting thing about this move by the Blazers is that Millsap plays the same position as LaMarcus Aldridge, so either they (1) plan on playing Aldridge at center, (2) plan on bringing Millsap off the bench or (3) aren’t optimistic that they can keep Aldridge, who is eligible for an extension this summer. The bad news for the Blazers is that the Jazz have seven days to decide whether or not they’ll match the offer, and during that time Portland’s cap space is tied up, so they can’t make an offer to another free agent. But other than Lamar Odom, Allen Iverson and Andre Miller, there isn’t much out there in the way of unrestricted free agents, so it doesn’t make sense to hold onto the cap space if they aren’t going to use it elsewhere.

      If the Blazers can pry away Millsap for $8-$9 million per season, it will be a great move. That’s a good value for a young power forward has proven that he has a potential to be an All-Star-caliber player. But I’d expect that the Jazz will be able to trade Boozer and get a good young player (of Tyrus Thomas’s caliber) in return. There are a number of teams that are interested, including the Bulls, Pistons, Heat and Knicks.

      I’d also expect this deal to bring David Lee’s contract expectations back to Earth. I think he and Millsap are about on the same level value-wise, with Millsap having a small edge due to his ability to score in the post.

      NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Okur re-ups

      July 10, 2009 /

      The Utah Jazz have locked up at least one of their big men.

      The Utah Jazz and center Mehmet Okur have agreed in principle to a two-year contract extension worth just under $21 million, according to NBA front-office sources.

      Okur could have been a free agent this summer but elected on June 30 to complete the final season on his current contract with the Jazz at $9 million.

      Sources told ESPN.com that Okur and the Jazz have quickly reached terms to extend the contract by two more seasons at $20.8 million starting in 2010-11.

      I pegged Okur’s value at about $8-$9 million per season, but like most of my estimates, I bought into the idea that teams were going to be more frugal this offseason. Okur is a 6’11” face up center who averaged 17.0 points and 7.7 rebounds this season. He also has terrific range for a big man, nailing almost 45% of his three point attempts. He’s not a factor on help defense, but with his girth he’s pretty good one-on-one in the post.

      Paul Millsap is a restricted free agent, but hasn’t yet signed an offer sheet with another team. Carlos Boozer elected to play one more year in Utah, but there is talk that he may be headed to Chicago as part of a three-team trade involving Kirk Hinrich and Tyrus Thomas. If Utah pulls the trigger, they’d be building around a core of Deron Williams, Ronnie Brewer, Thomas, Millsap and Okur. It doesn’t make much sense to keep both Boozer and Millsap around, as they are very similar players. It seems the Jazz feel that Millsap is the better value, but would like to get something in return for Boozer. Thomas wouldn’t represent equal value, but it’s tough to get equal value these days.

      NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Boozer headed to Chicago?

      July 9, 2009 /

      There is a possible three-team trade brewing…

      Sources stressed to ESPN.com that no deal was imminent Thursday and that both Portland and Utah are still evaluating multiple trade scenarios. But two sources with knowledge of the three-team proposal confirmed that there have been substantive talks regarding a trade that would land Boozer in Chicago, Hinrich in Portland and Tyrus Thomas in Utah.

      A deal featuring those main components would deliver the elite low-post scorer that the Bulls have been chasing for years in Boozer and furnish Portland with a lead guard in Hinrich that the Blazers are known to rate highly as a potential backcourt mate for Brandon Roy. It’s possible that other players would be added to balance out the transaction from a salary-cap perspective if the three teams elect to take these talks further.

      It’s not clear whom the Blazers would have to give up to land Hinrich, but they have cap space so they have some flexibility with regard to how the salaries match up. For the Bulls, this looks like a decent deal depending on whether or not anyone comes over with Boozer. Hinrich and Thomas for Boozer sounds about right.

      The Jazz would like to move Boozer, but want to get something in return, and in this case that’s the up-and-coming Thomas. He’s more of a face up forward, so his game should compliment Paul Millsap’s pretty well.

      As for the Blazers, they’ve long been rumored to be interested in Hinrich, who can initiate the offense and is a good enough shooter to create space for Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. More importantly, he’s a pesky defender that can cover the other team’s best guard, allowing Roy to get a breather on defense. The Blazers need a point but they don’t really want to go too young at the position. They need veteran leadership and Hinrich fits the bill.

      NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      What does Ben Gordon’s departure mean for Derrick Rose?

      July 4, 2009 /

      Kevin Arnovitz of TrueHoop examines how Ben Gordon’s absence will affect Derrick Rose.

      Rose stands to improve his numbers — that’s usually what happens with a talent as impressive as Rose. But here’s the rub heading into his second year: It’s going to be much more challenging without Gordon. With no knockdown perimeter threat beside him and nobody else on his squad who demands a double-team, Rose’s path to the rim will be clogged with more traffic. Given the composition of his team, Rose might not improve much upon his 57.7 field goal percentage in the immediate basket area. He’s also more likely to be bothered in the backcourt more persistently by opposing guards, and trapped uniformally on the pick-and-roll.

      Rose is a transcendent talent with incredible court vision and sharp instincts. He can improvise with precision — a rare gift. But even a magician needs props, and Rose lost his best aide in Gordon. It’s possible Rose could endure a very rough sophomore campaign with the Bulls. If he does, it might say a lot more about his team’s roster than it does any lack of resolve on Rose’s part.

      The piece goes into great detail and is worth a read, especially for Bulls fans and NBA nuts.

      The luxury that the Bulls have is that they’re going to get Luol Deng back from injury, and that will help offset the loss of Gordon. John Salmons averaged 18.3 points per game for the Bulls and has really come into his own over the last three seasons. If he can keep up his accuracy from long range (42% in 2008-09, 36% in his career), and Deng returns to his 15/6 form, then there’s a chance that the Bulls won’t miss Gordon much at all. As good as he was offensively, he had as much trouble on the other end of the court and had a reputation for being a defensive liability. Maybe a Salmons/Deng combo won’t quite have the offensive punch that the Gordon/Salmons combo did, but they should more than make up for it on the defensive end.

      I also like the idea of playing Deng as a small power forward at time with Kirk Hinrich at the two and Salmons at the three. With Rose leading the way, the Bulls could be really effective pushing the ball and spreading the court, maybe running the pick-and-roll with Joakim Noah and allowing Rose to create with three shooters as outlets.

      If Rose can turn in an All-Star caliber performance next season, Chicago will be an attractive place for one of the free agent superstars of 2010 to land. It’s a big market, and with Rose, Deng, Noah and Hinrich locked up for the foreseeable future, the Bulls have a nice core to build around.

      NBA

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