This post has been in the oven for months. I’d perused every recent extension, both in terms of what players of Jimmy Butler’s ilk receive, and how likely it is that he would reach an extension by the Halloween deadline at all. There was also plenty to think about in terms of roster construction. What happens if the Bulls get Carmelo Anthony? Would the Bulls have to choose between Butler and Taj Gibson long-term? Do I care about the luxury tax considering it’s Jerry Reinsdorf’s money?

Well, the answer to that last question is always and forever a resounding “no,” but the new TV deal essentially blew everything to smithereens. No longer do the contracts signed by the likes of Gerald Henderson or Avery Bradley set any sort of precedent in regards to what an impending restricted free agent like Jimmy will earn in 2015 and beyond. While those comparisons are relevant no more, here are the factors that make this negotiation with the Bulls so complex and fascinating:

-Money to Blow

As mentioned, the new TV deal will cause the salary cap to rise, and its corresponding elements like the mid-level exception will rise along with it. The consensus with the extensions that have been reached so far with Orlando’s Nikola Vucevic and Charlotte’s Kemba Walker inking four year, $48 million deals, as well as Denver’s Kenneth Faried, who got just a smidge more, is that they’ll be a bit overpaid at first, and then underpaid following the influx of cap space. Butler is surely looking at those deals, as well as the massive paydays that fellow wings Chandler Parsons and Gordon Hayward fetched over the summer, as a barometer for not only what he could get now, but also what would await him next summer from another team, via an offer sheet the Bulls would have the option of matching.

-A Cautionary Tale

While his Class of 2011 contemporaries locked up deals through the 2018-2019 season, Butler may be wise to take a lesson from Luol Deng’s excursion into free agency. After turning down a take-it-or-leave-it deal from Chicago and finishing out the year in Cleveland, Deng surely expected to hit the jackpot considering the money teams like Dallas, Houston and Atlanta had to spend. He ended up settling for a two year deal with Miami at a touch under $20 million, which in retrospect shouldn’t be that shocking considering it was impossible to read a free agent profile of him that didn’t prominently feature the words “Thibs,” “tread on his tires,” or “heavy minutes.” Right or wrong, Deng’s workload the few years with the Bulls likely affected how teams project his performance for the rest of his career. It’s the only explanation for why a consummate professional and two-way player like Deng, who, believe it or not, isn’t even 30 yet, didn’t get a meatier deal.

Now, if Butler reaches an extension with the Bulls, he’ll hit unrestricted free agency earlier in his career than Deng did, since six year extensions like the one Luol got are a thing of the past, but Jimmy was also much older upon entry to the league. Deng left Duke after just one season, while Butler was 22 by the time his rookie campaign kicked off in 2011. So, if Butler signs a four year contract, that means hitting unrestricted free agency right before his 30th birthday, quite possibly with double the years under Thibs compared to Deng.

-The Upside Play

Butler might be better off copying Parsons, who signed an oddly short contract with Dallas, structured so Houston wouldn’t feel comfortable matching it. Rather than get the maximum four years, Parsons agreed to a three year contract in which he can hit the market again after just two seasons if he chooses. If Butler went that route, not only would he tap into the new TV money sooner, he’d be doing so before his 28th birthday as opposed to his 30th.

It’s obviously risky leaving a whole year’s salary on the table, as well as playing this year out risking injury or poor play, but it could pay off in a huge way. Butler’s value is in question (Grantland’s Zach Lowe stated on his podcast that he has a wager with an executive who is adamant Butler will not receive $10 million per year on his next contract), but as the saying goes, “it only takes one ***hole,” so he has little reason to accept a below-market offer as Taj Gibson did a couple years back. He won’t have any trouble finding a suitor willing to pony up, after which, he’ll be doing this:

-Management’s Side

That Parsons scenario is something the Bulls should be avoiding at all costs and one that gives Fegan leverage because teams crave certainty, and if Butler hits the weekend without putting pen to paper, GarPax will be starting the clock on a very volatile few years. They won’t have control of what Jimmy does next summer, short of the choice to match whatever contract he signs. Joakim Noah is the defending Defensive Player of the Year, but is being managed through a nagging knee injury and will hit free agency in 2016 at age 31. The following summer, Derrick Rose, Pau Gasol, Nikola Mirotic and Gibson can all test the market, as well as Butler if he opts for that shorter deal.

On top of that, it’s unclear how the league will attempt to massage the impending ballooning of the salary  cap. For a team that craves playing it safe, as they prove by bringing back Kirk Hinrich every two years, that’s about as uncertain as it gets and makes the ramifications of roster moves between now and then more difficult to discern.

-Bird Rights and Replacing Jimmy

Barring a turnaround for Tony Snell (not impossible,  but certainly not something to rely on at this point in time), the Bulls simply can’t afford to lose Butler. There were a litany of other factors, but it’s not a coincidence that the Spurs have had more success as Kawhi Leonard matured. In 2012 as a rookie, he wasn’t ready for Kevin Durant and the Spurs were blitzed by a more athletic team in the Western Conference Finals. The next year, Kawhi was intermittently brilliant, and they were a carom off the rim from the title. Last year, Leonard claimed Finals MVP as the Spurs topped Durant and LeBron in back-to-back series. Until further notice, any team that seeks to win the title will likely have to go through one or both of those two, and Butler is one of the very few defenders in the league capable of making life difficult for them.

Also, the Bulls have enough money on the books that they would only have the mid-level exception to replace Butler next summer, as teams are allowed to exceed the salary cap to keep their own players (via Bird Rights), but not to add players from other teams.

The situation is comparable to a stance ESPN’s Colin Cowherd likes to take. His claim is that, in the NFL, Houston’s J.J. Watt is severely overpaid because quarterbacks that make the type of money Watt does would never have 2-14 seasons like the Texans did in 2013. What Cowherd misses (or chooses to ignore for entertainment’s sake) is that Houston doesn’t have the option of acquiring one of those quarterbacks. Their choice isn’t Watt vs Star QB X, it’s Watt vs the players they would have to overpay in free agency.

So, sure, it may not make sense in the grand scheme of things to match a max deal for Butler, but the question becomes: What’s the alternative? In 2015, it would be paying a marginal player the mid-level exception to join a wing rotation of Doug McDermott, Hinrich and Snell (Mike Dunleavy is also a free agent next year). In the years to follow, going back to the inflated salary cap, every caliber of player will see a pay hike, so Butler in his prime in the $14-16 million range will be a better investment than the likes of a past-their-prime Jeff Green or Corey Brewer making eight figures.

-On the Court

All of this long-term talk does slightly obscure that this year really is the time for the Bulls. It will take time for LeBron James and coach David Blatt to instill defensive habits into Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, plus the pieces will simply take a while to gel. On offense, there is too much talent to not be extraordinary, especially by the time the playoffs roll around, however, for the LeBron super teams in Miami, it was defense that became their calling card early on, not offense. These Cavs don’t have anywhere close to the defensive personnel that those Heat did, as Dwyane Wade was a terror on that end when engaged, and Chris Bosh’s length on defense is something Love isn’t capable of matching regardless of how committed he becomes. If the Cavs become a good defensive team, it will come through chemistry and familiarity, which players themselves admit can take years.

As for the West, it’s hard to envision Oklahoma City, the Clippers, or even San Antonio themselves matching the blend of symphonic basketball and emotional investment of last year’s Spurs, still smarting from letting the 2013 title slip away in agonizing fashion.

The Bulls are by no means favorites, but this likely represents the best shot they’ll get to win it all. Sure, LeBron is about to turn 30, but so are Noah and Gibson. Signing Butler now prevents any sort of need for Butler to get his own stats to prove his offensive bonafides to teams, thus hurting the flow of the offense.

-Team Fit

I was certainly a vocal critic of the Bulls cashing in so may assets to acquire McDermott, but he appears to be the real deal, which is huge for Butler. Having Deng and Butler together was a mismatched pair, as they didn’t complement each other. With McDermott though, if Jimmy never develops his offensive game past being a below-average shooter and a good rebounder who can attack the basket and get to the line, that’s enough. The Bulls finally project to have a balanced lineup for the first time in the Rose Era. Hinrich remains a fly in the ointment, but Chicago should be able to finish games with Rose, Noah, Butler, McDermott and the power forward of their choosing for the foreseeable future.

That future hangs in the balance though, because there’s less than 48 hours left for the Bulls and the 48 Minute Man.

The post Pay the Man? The Many Factors of Jimmy Butler’s Contract Negotiations appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

From Flickr via Keith Allison

Since they traded Luol Deng away for essentially nothing but draft picks, Chicago Bulls fans have been clamoring about the possibility of Carmelo Anthony signing in the offseason. The story has been built up for months with reports of Joakim Noah recruiting Anthony, Anthony’s desire to win a ring, Anthony’s admiration of head coach Tom Thibodeau, and, in recent weeks, Anthony’s indecision about playing for a title with a pay cut in Chicago or taking the money and hope Phil Jackson is as good as he claims in New York.

Carmelo Anthony preferred the latter. Every major reporter is now confirming Frank Isola’s initial report from several days ago that Anthony will rejoin the New York Knicks. There are various reasons why Anthony’s decision may have come today instead of Thursday like Isola reported. The three most likely reasons are: 1) the Bulls’s late push had him second guessing his initial decision; 2) the Knicks refused to play ball on a sign and trade; 3) Anthony didn’t want his decision to clash with Lebron James.

It’s hard to fault Anthony for staying in New York. Though he wants to win a title it’s incredibly difficult to uproot your family and comfortability, leave your childhood favorite team, and turn down $129 million over 5 years for the unknown. Chicago may have provided the best shot at a title for him, but as we’ve seen anything can happen in the NBA and nothing is guaranteed… except the money.

The future for both the Knicks and Bulls look completely different at the moment.

At present the Knicks look like a fringe playoff team at best as Cleveland, Indiana, Chicago, Washington, Atlanta, Charlotte, Toronto, and Miami should all be better than them. But the future may look different for New York as many bad contracts come off the books next offseason. Despite his tenure with the Knicks started off rocky by failing to get Steve Kerr as a coach, Phil Jackson can use that open cap space to lure bigger name free agents to the Big Apple and point to the fact that a superstar has bought into his and Derek Fisher’s vision.

Meanwhile the Bulls seem to be closing in on a deal with Pau Gasol which gives Chicago arguably the best front court with Noah, Gasol, and Taj Gibson and easily the best passing front court duo in Noah and Gasol. With Nikola Mirotic on the horizon and Doug McDermott now on the roster, the Bulls should have some floor spacing as well. At present it isn’t known if the Bulls will sign Gasol outright or via a sign and trade. The means by which Chicago acquires him will affect their ability to add scoring on the wing, an major issue for Chicago for the past four years. In either case though the Bulls should be a top 3 team in the Eastern Conference, provided Derrick Rose can remain healthy.

The Bulls are still juggling a lot of free agent options at once so this offseason is far from done. At this point at least Chicago has some clarity and can make swift moves to set the team up to make a run to the NBA finals in a wide open Eastern Conference.

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As recently as a few days ago, I was just as perplexed as most Bulls fans at how hard Chicago pursued Pau Gasol. What changed my mind, oddly enough, was a conversation-slash-debate with a random guy on Twitter who argued Luol Deng couldn’t keep the Big 3 together in Miami, while Gasol would, as signing him would address a more pressing hole than Deng. My response was that no player on the market would single-handedly convince them to stay, and that, knowing Pau would sign elsewhere, Deng would be a much better addition than simply pursuing a big or a point guard just to fill a need. Amass as much talent as possible, worry about fit later.

Then it occurred to me that I was disregarding that very philosophy in regards to Pau and the Bulls. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that acquiring Pau made sense on multiple levels. First, as mentioned, adding talent is important. That sounds obvious, but Chicago’s playoff runs haven’t ended out of lack of will or being inexperienced. Simply put, they haven’t had enough good players, which has been the case independent of Derrick Rose’s injuries.

Also, it makes sense on a game theory level. One of the most rudimentary strategies, regardless of whether it’s a game, a business, or in the case of the NBA, both, is if all of your competitors are doing one thing, there’s likely market inefficiencies to  be exploited in doing the opposite. That, not sabermetrics, was the core idea behind Moneyball, and smart people in the NBA like Mark Cuban, who has overseen a retool of the Mavs around sub-star contracts in the $7-10 million range in lieu of a full-blown rebuild, are trying to capitalize in the same way.

We live in a world where Jodie Meeks just inked a deal with an average annual value that surpasses his entire career earnings and Avery Bradley fetched $32 million over four years despite constant injuries and lack of playmaking. That’s not to disparage them as players, but for all the talk of the Bulls needing to upgrade their firepower on the wing, so does nearly everyone else, and even the Chandler Parsons and Gordon Haywards who nabbed max offer sheets aren’t putting anybody over the hump. Circling back to Deng, he and Trevor Ariza are causing bidding wars among a handful of second-tier contenders, yet we saw the limitations of a Bulls team that depended on Lu to put up 15-20 points every night. So why not try something different?

With Pau in the fold, he joins a big man rotation alongside Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and Nikola Mirotic, as well as Greg Smith in the fold depending on his health. That makes them the deepest team in the league up front, which gives them all sorts of options. Of those top four, the only combination unlikely to see the court together is Gasol/Mirotic, given Pau’s decline on the defensive end. Other than that, the versatility of Noah and Gibson allows them to trot out any other duo.

Acquiring Gasol also means lighter workloads for the bigs, if Thibs can bring himself to let the pedal come off the floor a bit. He can now get through the regular season without wringing every minute out of Noah to win the average Tuesday night low-scoring nailbiter against the also-rans of the league. Even if Mirotic didn’t play a single minute, there’s 96 frontcourt minutes to divvy up, or just 32 minutes a night for each for the Jo/Pau/Taj trio. It also allows the Bulls to be more conservative with injuries in the first year of the post #FredClearedHim era, seeing as trainer Fred Tedeschi left for Oregon State. As much as the “2010 Plan” of adding depth after striking out on the stars seems less than palatable, it would present the Bulls with a chance at getting the top seed and home court advantage without having them be gassed by the time April comes around.

Speaking of the playoffs, being in the East requires being prepared to play LeBron James, regardless of where he plays, and while the supporting cast is now different, with youth and athleticism replacing maturity and playoff know-how, the strengths and weaknesses of his team will be similar. Of the lessons learned from watching the Triad Heat, none are more important than this: You will not beat a LeBron James team by out-smallballing them. The Heat didn’t reach their apex until after their bitter loss in the 2011 Finals to Dallas, when they added Shane Battier, and phased out small bigs (Udonis Haslem, Joel Anthony) for big wings (Battier, Mike Miller). They wagered that the gains in speed and spacing were worth the losses in rim protection and defensive toughness, which paid off with multiple titles.

Consider the teams that competed with Miami once they found that smallball gear. Boston’s ability to hang with them usually hinged on Kevin Garnett’s ability on a given night to battle down low with Chris Bosh. The Pacers did quite well against the Heat when David West and Roy Hibbert shared the court, but as soon as Miami could attack one-way bigs like Luis Scola or Tyler Hansbrough, Indiana got blown away. The Spurs lost the 2013 Finals after Miami forced Tiago Splitter off the floor and to go small. That scenario reversed last year for a number of reasons. Miller had been amnestied, Battier’s body paid the price for banging down low in previous years, and Boris Diaw’s unique skill set flipped the script.

The moral of the story: The fate of those opponents swayed on how well their bigs played and if they could make Miami pay for going small. LeBron’s Cavs are going to be small, even if they do trade for Kevin Love. They’re depending on Anderson Varejao to stay healthy, a dicey proposition considering he missed a quarter of the season last year, which is a huge improvement after not playing more than 31 games in any of the prior three years.

Gibson, in a weird way, is kind of like Diaw, as they both have perimeter elements to their game. Diaw passes and shoots like a guard on offense, but the Spurs also survived by having him guard Dwyane Wade at times. As for Taj, he’s mobile enough to hang on the perimeter on defense, which would give the Bulls a huge edge down low on offense. Varejao and a Mike Miller type would get eaten alive defensively by Pau and Taj.

Some are worried that Pau is just the next Carlos Boozer. He’s not, as first of all he’s half a foot taller, but he’s also an offensive hub the way Boozer never was in Chicago. Boozer would get his half dozen shots up in the first quarter, and it wouldn’t impact the offense at all. It didn’t change how the defense moved, it didn’t open up looks on the perimeter. Pau’s age is a concern, but it’s not like the Bulls were bidding against the Nets and Kings here. The Spurs are the smartest team in the league, Oklahoma City isn’t far behind, and they were both campaigning to add the Spaniard. It’s safe to say the league doesn’t think Pau is done.

His numbers admittedly don’t look great, though it’s hard to take anything from not only his stats last year, when he was L.A.’s only legit threat, but the year before as well. After adding Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, the Lakers never meshed, going through a litany of injuries. They changed coaches too, and Mike D’Antoni clashed with Gasol, playing the mind games that Phil Jackson would, without the cache to pull them off. Pau is an emotional guy, and seems to need to feel wanted and connected to his team to perform his best. On a team with Noah leading a mature and professional locker room, that won’t be a problem in Chicago.

Adding Pau doesn’t address Chicago’s lack of perimeter creators, but even if you can compartmentalize sports and want Lance Stephenson, signing him for big money is rather risky, as his market should heat up now that the stars have found homes. It’s definitely a letdown if the Bulls fail to add a star like Love or Carmelo Anthony, but as long as the deal is for reasonable money and short in length, Gasol could be a quality acquisition who is sufficient enough for the Bulls to make a real push at the Finals.

The post Why Pau Gasol Is Better For The Bulls Than You Think appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

It’s nearly 11 PM here on the West Coast and the weekend has just started in the rest of the country, but NBA Hot Stove news has no bedtime apparently. According to Spanish sports outlet Marca, and now Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Bulls are about to get Pau Gasol from the Los Angeles Lakers in a sign-and-trade.

From Marca’s Jesus Sanchez:

Acuerdo prácticamente cerrado a falta de un 'sign and trade’ con @Lakers. @paugasol jugará en los @chicagobulls. Info en @marca.

— Jesús Sánchez (@Sanchez__Jesus) July 12, 2014

Wojnarowski, who does not confirm the sign-and-trade portion of the transaction:

Pau Gasol, Chicago working to complete an agreement, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 12, 2014

As of now, the details are unclear. The Lakers could receive a package including Mike Dunleavy and the WaivaBulls (Mike James, Ronnie Brewer and Louis Amundson), or maybe the Bulls threw in a future first to save the amnesty money on Carlos Boozer. The Lakers used their cap space to absorb Jeremy Lin’s expiring deal from Houston, so it’s no longer easy for them to take on Boozer’s expiring, but again, without the specifics, NBA transactions have taught us not to rule anything out completely.

A couple things to remember:

-Google translator is an approximation, so it’s tough to gauge the specifics of the Marca article.

-Without knowing what the Bulls are giving up in the deal, it’s too early to judge what this means for their pursuit of Carmelo Anthony. It does, however, take Phil Jackson’s top target off the market. Jackson was hoping to get his former player at a discount, a move that may have clinched Anthony re-signing in New York.

-If Gasol is acquired in a sign-and-trade, the deal will be for at least three years. Though a scary proposition, seeing as Gasol just turned 34, it’s mitigated by the possibility of unguaranteed or partially guaranteed seasons.

We’ll update the situation once more details break.

The post Report: Bulls To Acquire Pau Gasol In Sign-And-Trade appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

Today’s free agency news has thus far been incredibly hectic. The news has broken Lebron James will be returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers, almost immediately after news broke that Chris Bosh and the Houston Rockets are working to get a deal done as soon as possible, Kevin Love is now intrigued by the Cavaliers and would welcome a trade there, and the Houston Rockets are now looking to trade Jeremy Lin. All of this chaos has put Carmelo Anthony’s decision on the back-burner.

However Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report tweeted out that the Los Angeles Lakers are eliminated from contention to land Carmelo Anthony’s service and the decision comes down to the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks. Stephen A Smith confirmed the report.

A source close to Melo: Down to NY & CHI. Was some thinking early on Melo & Bron could play together but now Melo decision could come today.

— Jared Zwerling (@JaredZwerling) July 11, 2014

1 exec on maybe CHI fit: “Noah is a great guy/teammate, as important to Melo as Rose. Also don’t forget CAA connection. Thib’s represented.”

— Jared Zwerling (@JaredZwerling) July 11, 2014

.@stephenasmith backed up what I tweeted this morning: down to New York & Chicago for Melo. If Melo to CHI, ESPN “Midwest Index” to come?

— Jared Zwerling (@JaredZwerling) July 11, 2014

Seeing the Lakers eliminated from contention is not shocking in the slightest. Though they could offer a maximum deal, Anthony’s annual salary would be less than it would have been in New York and he would have been entering a team with a worse chance to make the postseason than New York.

At this point there is no information known regarding which way Anthony is leaning, however a decision should be coming soon as free agency dominoes are starting to fall rapidly.

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UPDATE (6:15 PST)- Ken Berger of CBS Sports has just tweeted out confirmation that Carmelo Anthony is still giving the Chicago Bulls consideration. With how quickly the news has been coming out within the past 24 hours regarding Anthony’s decision, we could be approaching a final decision in the near future.

The Bulls are still under consideration for Carmelo Anthony, a person familiar with his thinking tells @CBSSports.

— Ken Berger (@KBergCBS) July 11, 2014

—-END UPDATE—-

Free agency is perhaps one of the most maddening things in all of sports, particularly when a superstar just can’t seem to make up his mind. Yesterday Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reported that Carmelo Anthony had made up his mind to return to the New York Knicks, barring a last second change of heart. In the past 24 hours no reporter was able to confirm that story with most indicating that front offices said they hadn’t been notified of anything. Today’s news indicates that change of heart may have indeed occurred. On a podcast, ESPN’s Stephen A Smith indicated that the Bulls were back in serious contention to land the services of Carmelo Anthony. Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald is now tweeting out confirmation of that report. In addition to confirmation, McGraw is also reporting that Tom Thibodeau is active in trying to recruit Carmelo Anthony.

Hearing the Stephen A. Smith report is accurate. Carmelo may have been leaning elsewhere, but regained interest in #Bulls. — Mike McGraw (@McGrawDHBulls) July 11, 2014

Hearing Tom Thibodeau is playing a major role in keeping Carmelo Anthony interested in Bulls. — Mike McGraw (@McGrawDHBulls) July 10, 2014

It’s a little shocking to see Thibodeau so actively recruiting in free agency. But if Thibodeau really is active in attempting to recruit Melo, a change of heart may not be too surprising. Anthony has been vocal in his admiration of Thibodeau and his desire to go into Thibodeau’s system. In addition to selling himself, Thibodeau is also able to sell Chicago’s ability to contend immediately which is something neither the Los Angeles Lakers nor New York Knicks can offer. These reports that Carmelo Anthony is giving the Bulls consideration again could end up leading nowhere and Isola’s original report that he’s heading back to New York may end up being right. But of course no decision has yet to be made and the story is every changing. We’ll keep you updated as more news and rumors become available.

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UPDATE (2:16 PST)- KC Johnson of the Chicago Tribune also tweeted out that the Chicago Bulls haven’t been told anything.

FWIW, and obviously a fluid story, but Bulls haven’t been told they’re not getting Carmelo Anthony as of yet.

— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) July 9, 2014

The door is still partially open but the scenario could very well be similar to Dwight Howard’s free agency situation last offseason in which he made a decision but teams were not informed at the time the news broke.

———-

UPDATE (1:16 PST)- Mark Medina of the LA Daily News is now tweeting sources say there is no decision made yet.

Source close to Carmelo Anthony insists “there is no decision yet.” Adds “still up in the air.” — Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) July 9, 2014

This remains a continuing trend of conflicting reports this offseason. While it is more than likely Isola is correct, it seems the door hasn’t completely closed just yet.

———-

After months of chatter and a quiet free agency, it seems we have the first real news of the NBA offseason- Carmelo Anthony plans to stay with the New York Knicks. The story was first reported by Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.

A person close to Anthony told The News on Wednesday that barring a last minute change of heart Anthony will re-sign with the Knicks after “agonizing over this” for the past week.

The news doesn’t come as too much of a shock. Though he stated a desire to play for a winning team and Chicago is widely considered the best fit for him, Carmelo Anthony has expressed that it would be difficult to uproot his family and leave New York. The addition of Phil Jackson certainly helped matters for New York as his addition gave the organization a sense of direction for the first time in years. Following the release of the report, Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted out the following:

Within Anthony’s circle, belief’s been this, sources tell Y: Get NY’s $129M now, figure out destination later. You can always get a trade. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 9, 2014

Assuming this is true, and given the source it likely is, it seems Anthony did not learn from forcing a trade from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks.

The writing isn’t in stone yet but given the two sources reporting the story it seems the Bulls have struck out on a superstar free agent once again. The Chicago front office will shift their attention to other options in the coming days and may possibly explore a trade for Kevin Love.

We’ll update you more on the story as more news becomes availableC

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The conference finals didn’t even get underway before the Kevin Love trade rumors heated up again.

In a post about Sam Mitchell being a candidate for their vacant head coaching position, Yahoo!’s Adrian Wojnarowski writes that the Wolves are having a tough time roping in flashier candidates with Love’s impending free agency clouding the direction of the franchise. He also cites a league executive who thinks the tide is beginning to turn on the willingness of team president Flip Saunders to at least listen to offers for Kevin Love. Wojnarowski lists the Celtics, Warriors, Lakers and Suns as teams interested in pursuing Love.

As for the other perspective in the story, a report from ESPN’s Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne cite sources who say that Golden State and Chicago pique the interest of Love due to the chance at a going to a winning situation, though they don’t rule out the big market destinations of Los Angeles or New York, nor asset-rich Phoenix. They also report that Love “has no interest in a contract extension this summer.” They note that Love may be willing to sacrifice a bit in market size due to the wear of six seasons that have all ended with Minnesota going to the lottery and not the postseason.

If Love wants the perfect match of winning now in a big market, Chicago is really the only market that offers him that. Let’s consider the various suitors:

Los Angeles Lakers: Thanks to the Dwight Howard and Steve Nash trades, as well as the Stepien Rule that forbids teams from dealing consecutive first round picks, the Lakers have no first rounders to deal for the foreseeable future. The loophole in the Stepien Rule would allow them to draft their lottery pick and then trade that player’s rights to Minnesota to headline a package for Love, but that’s about all they have. Even if that were enough return for the Wolves, that would leave Love with a broken down Kobe Bryant and not much else. Love may want to be back in Los Angeles, but the Lakers offer him little opportunity to win.

Golden State Warriors: They’d be a fantastic match for Love, as he’d get to play with Stephen Curry and not be too far from L.A. But this line in ESPN’s report essentially rules them out: “Golden State could assemble a trade package featuring the likes of forwards Harrison Barnes and David Lee.” I’m sure the Wolves would jump at the opportunity to trade their franchise player for Lee, 31 years old with two years and $30 million left on his deal, and Barnes, who pretty much had his confidence wrecked this season. The Warriors are also short two first round picks that they gave to Utah in return for clearing salary that enabled them to add Andre Iguodala last summer. Even if Golden State included Klay Thompson, there just isn’t enough here to make a deal.

Phoenix Suns: I’d say Phoenix is the biggest threat to Chicago because they have a solid, young team, a treasure chest’s worth of assets and are close to home for Love. I suppose this boils down to if Kevin Love wants to be The Man on a playoff team (that plays in the much tougher conference), or share the spotlight for a title contender.

New York Knicks: Unless the Wolves are enticed by Iman Shumpert and Amar’e Stoudemire, the Knicks would have to wait until Love becomes a free agent in 2015 to really get into the discussion.

Boston Celtics: They play in the weaker conference, rival Phoenix in terms of future draft picks, are a prestige franchise and have a star in Rajon Rondo who would help Love but not eclipse his status. They even have a high lottery pick that the Suns do not. If Love is willing to be the star on a team that would be in the middle of the pack of the East playoffs, with a decent shot of contending down the line, Boston could be a contender to once again trade for a Wolves superstar as they did with Kevin Garnett in 2007.

That brings us to the Bulls, who as I mentioned are really the best fit for all parties. That may sound homerish, but let’s look at a hypothetical trade:

Bulls get: Kevin Love and Kevin Martin

Wolves get: Carlos Boozer’s expiring contract, the rights to Nikola Mirotic, the 16th and 19th picks in this year’s draft, the Sacramento pick Chicago acquired from Cleveland in the Luol Deng deal, as well as Chicago’s 2016 first round pick (again, due to the Stepien Rule, Chicago would be unable to include their 2015 pick), and whatever combination is necessary of the unguaranteed contracts of Mike James, Ronnie Brewer and Louis Amundson

At first glance, not including Taj Gibson or Jimmy Butler seems like a pie in the sky idea. But in the absence of Derrick Rose, those players, while defensive studs, have proven that they are super role players on a contender, not rebuilding pieces, especially because Jimmy is due an extension soon and Taj turns 29 next month.

Meanwhile, Nikola Mirotic is a much bigger prospect than them, and he’s also expendable for Chicago because Taj could play with Love or Noah, while Mirotic and Love would be a very poor tandem defensively. Though he’ll cost more, getting Mirotic is like getting a lottery pick.

The money side works out for both teams. Chicago absorbs Minnesota’s worst contract in Martin, though his shooting would be a great add for the Bulls. His contract could cause problems down the line, but this team’s time to win is now. The Bulls get to save a ton of money in not amnestying Boozer, while his contract combined with J.J. Barea’s expiring will give Minnesota flexibility in 2015.

For Minnesota, there likely isn’t an elite asset in the deal, but neither Denver nor Utah got such a thing when they dealt Carmelo Anthony and Deron Williams. Regardless, this deal would have the Wolves head into 2015 with Pekovic/Rubio/Dieng/Brewer/Muhammad/3 2014 first rounders and another lottery pick that summer to rebuild around, plus a couple more picks from the Bulls in the future. That’s a lot better than letting Love walk for nothing.

The Bulls would end up with Rose, Love, Noah, Gibson, Butler, Martin, Dunleavy, Snell and Greg Smith, adding up to $69,663,319, which also includes another year’s portion of Rip Hamilton’s buyout, thanks to the stretch provision. The tax line is going to be approximately $77 million. This gives them ample room to add a backup point guard (I’d endorse Devin Harris or even Kirk Hinrich as opposed to D.J. Augustin in this scenario considering how Jimmy would be the only defensive stud on the wing) and round out the roster without crossing the tax. (The tax could be a problem in future years, but considering all the extra playoff revenue the trade could bring and that the Bulls basically print money, I couldn’t really care less about this consequence.)

Again, this might sound like a homer idea, but Minnesota lacks leverage, as the team that acquires Love has to be on Love’s list in the first place, plus they will need to know he’s willing to stay and sign an extension. That knocks out the majority of the league. Bulls fans might feel it’s a bit too much, while Wolves fans probably feel it’s not enough, which is usually the sign of a fair deal.

The post Reports: Bulls and Warriors “Intrigue” Kevin Love As Trade Rumors Resurface appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

When I started writing these a few months ago (though the Melo to Chicago talk feels like it started years ago), the Bulls were headed nowhere. Sure, they’d climbed back to the .500 range, but the Luol Deng trade was still fresh and with Derrick Rose’s injury having torpedoed their title chances, getting a jump on the team’s most important offseason in years seemed like the best thing to do. We all know what happened next, as Joakim Noah became #PointNoah, Jimmy shouldered playoff-style minutes loads and D.J. Augustin filled the shot creator role the team so desperately needed filled. As Miami and Indiana faltered, and Chicago continued to rise, these posts seemed a little more out of place, but I hope you the reader enjoyed them. The series wraps up today with a look at the Southeast Division, with links to every prior edition of the series at the bottom of the post.

Atlanta Hawks

Elton Brand: The former #1 overall pick by the Bulls has helped Atlanta stay afloat in the “race” for the last playoff spot in the East. Well, “avoid sinking to the bottom of the ocean” is probably more apt than “stay afloat,” but either way, Brand has, at times, played heavy minutes for a player his age to compensate for a ridiculously long collection of injuries suffered by Hawks players this season. He’s shooting a career-high percentage from the field, but that comes with a sharp drop in how often he shoots. His rebounding declined from his lone year in Dallas, though it’s higher than his last few years in Philly. Another thing to note is the uptick in his foul rate, suggesting he’s getting slower on defense. Brand wouldn’t be a bad add as a spot minute bench big, but the Bulls would be better off with someone bigger than Brand so a pairing with Taj Gibson wouldn’t leave them undersized.

Miami Heat

First, this would be my reaction to anyone who thinks LeBron James, Dwyane Wade or Chris Bosh could end up on the Bulls next year:

Most of Miami’s role players can also hit the market this year.

Mario Chalmers: He’s fun to laugh at, especially when his own teammates always  blame him for things, but for all his faults, he’s never, ever scared to take the big shot. That can get him in trouble, but the flipside of that coin is someone who tightens up like George Hill, which ends up affecting their whole offense. Even more than most players, Chalmers seems to have a sense of being better than he is. If he leaves Miami, it will surely be for more money and a bigger role, neither of which he’ll get in Chicago.

Shane Battier: Almost surely retiring after this season.

Ray Allen: Unlikely, but the Bulls are a contender and Allen has already shown he doesn’t mind jumping to the other side of a rivalry. The Bulls nearly dealt for him a few years ago and he has played for Thibs before. In the unlikely event Miami breaks up after this year and Allen wants to keep playing, it stands to reason that Chicago would be on his radar.

Milwaukee Bucks

Luke Ridnour: After a few decent seasons in Minnesota, Ridnour struggled in Milwaukee and is faring even worse in a reduced role with the Bobcats after being included in the Gary Neal deal. Not only is he shooting far below his normal percentages, but is hitting just 68.4% from the line after converting nearly 85% last year and at least 88% the three years before that. This could very well be a one year anomaly, but with Augustin and Kirk Hinrich already in house, there’s not enough upside here to gamble on that being the case.

Orlando Magic

All relevant players are under contract for next year, unless they eat $4 million to dump Jameer Nelson.

Washington Wizards

Trevor Ariza and Marcin Gortat: Both good players set to cash in on strong seasons, but their positions are already being filled quite capably already.

Well that’s all 30 teams. Once the offseason hits, I’ll have a thorough examination of one of the biggest tasks on Chicago’s radar, Jimmy’s extension, but that’s a topic for after the playoffs. As mentioned, here are all the other posts in the series.

Part 1: How the Bulls could get Carmelo and how he would fit

Part 2: Restricted bigs Greg Monroe and Ed Davis

Part 3: Restricted perimeter players, most notably Isaiah Thomas, Eric Bledsoe and Gordon Hayward

Part 4: Why the Bulls wouldn’t get rid of Taj Gibson to get Carmelo

Part 5: Why Nikola Mirotic won’t put the Bulls over the top

Part 6: The Thibs Mood Scale, Kevin Love, the Northwest Division

Part 7: Channing Frye, Pau Gasol, Rudy Gay and the Pacific Division

Part 8: The many useful role players of the Southwest Division

Part 9: Lance Stephenson, the prospects of Luol Deng returning highlight the Central Division

Part 10: Covering the Atlantic Division, while laughing at Kris Humpries, Keith Bogans and the Sixers

The post The 2014 Plan: The End appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

For years the Bulls have touted 2014 as the year the team would finally have spending flexibility. But with the summer approaching, management has thrown cold water on the possibility of bringing over long-awaited Real Madrid star Nikola Mirotic. With a franchise so well-versed in bracing its fans for disappointment, that got us at Bulls by the Horns thinking of exploring the other possibilities that await Chicago this summer. In this edition, we look at the Atlantic Division.

Boston Celtics

Kris Humphries

Even setting aside the whole “not wanting Kris Humphries on the Bulls” part of this, if he were on the Bulls, that would mean Taj Gibson doesn’t get to dunk on him anymore and that’s not OK. Every player has a place in the NBA ecosystem and getting dunked on is the role Kris Humphries was meant to fulfill.

Keith Bogans

One year of Keith Bogans was plenty.

Jerryd Bayless

Bayless is kind of a younger, bigger D.J. Augustin, but he’s shown he’s more of a bench scorer than an actual point guard. If the Bulls happen to lose Augustin this summer, I’d prefer to see them go after a more established guy like a Mo Williams to replace him. In the event they seek a heat check guy, there’s some available players like Nick Young who get hot a tad more frequently.

Brooklyn Nets

Paul Pierce

For that brief period of time where it looked like the Bulls were going to tank (the most foolish of notions, in retrospect), a Boozer-Pierce swap made a lot of sense for both sides. The floundering Nets were seeking frontcourt help after Brook Lopez went down for the year and the Bulls would have loved to get out of the last year of Boozer’s deal, especially when factoring in that Pierce likely would have negotiated a buyout to join a title contender.Then both teams turned it around and Brooklyn even became a little cap-conscious in regards to adding onto their gargantuan tax bill.

Unlike many Bulls fans, I root for Pierce, though he isn’t a great fit for the Bulls at this point in his career. He’s not washed up like Rip Hamilton was, but the Nets have thrived going small with Pierce, and that’s something the Bulls rarely ever do (nor should they). My guess is he’ll get something like two years, $12 million, with the second year partially guaranteed, or something close to the mid-level exception with a team over the tax, and that’s not a great price for a short-term asset who would push Jimmy Butler back to shooting guard and exacerbate his shooting woes.

Shaun Livingston

He’s been such a great story and looks to be getting to the point where he’s just a good basketball player and not “Shaun Livingston, Oh You Remember, That Guy Who Had The Most Gruesome Leg Injury You’ve Ever Seen.” Livingston could very well leave Brooklyn this offseason seeing as they don’t hold his Bird Rights, meaning the only way they can pay him more than the veteran’s minimum is to use part or all of their taxpayer mid-level exception. This is the part where I say Livingston doesn’t fit with the Bulls because he can’t shoot, but this time, it’s not because his three point numbers stink, it’s because he simply doesn’t take them. Out of his 461 attempts this year, he’s only taken a mere six shots from beyond the arc.

New York Knicks

Carmelo Anthony

Already covered in-depth here and here. Not much has changed since then, other than Phil Jackson joining the Knicks and more anonymous sources mentioning Chicago as an option, except we knew that already. To reiterate, the Bulls shouldn’t, nor do I think would they would, trade Taj Gibson and Mike Dunleavy for no immediate return, sign Carmelo outright for as much as they can, and have a skeleton bench behind Rose/Snell/Butler/Melo/Noah. The only way it makes any sense for the Bulls is to acquire him in a sign-and-trade involving Carlos Boozer. If the Knicks for some reason weren’t open to facilitating that and getting a pick or two for their help, then it’s much too damaging to Chicago in the long run. 

Raymond Felton

I only put him here to entertain the thought of Thibs coaching Felton.

Philadelphia 76ers

As one might expect, there aren’t any useful players to be found on the Sixers. Honestly, if I was playing 2K and saw their roster, I’d have assumed at least a couple of their players were computer-generated. Casper Ware? James Nunnally? Are we sure these are real people? And if not for an “Honor Code Violation,” there’s no way Brandon Davies wouldn’t have ended up in that group too. Wait, did I just pull off a triple negative?

Toronto Raptors

John Salmons

We’ll always have 2009.

Kyle Lowry

Lowry’s breakout year has come at just the right time financially. After a trade to the Knicks fell apart, Lowry has been one of the main factors in Toronto’s shocking resurgence that will have them not only making the playoffs, but holding homecourt in the first round. It seems likely he stays put in Toronto this summer, which shouldn’t impact the Bulls, as Lowry, a clear starting point guard and a moody player known for clashing with coaches, won’t be on their radar anyway.

The post The 2014 Plan #10: Old Faces appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.