From Flickr via Eszter Hargittai

1. Deja Vu

Right now as I’m sitting here typing away on my keyboard I’m listening to OK Go’s “Here We Go Again.” Not just because it’s a good and catchy song, but because I occasionally enjoy listening to music that fits the situation and/or my train of thought. And right now “Here we go again” is just about all I can think of.

As per usual the NBA season comes chock full of intriguing plots and narratives that dominate the headlines. This year we’re lucky to get the return of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James’s return home to Cleveland, the rise of the Unibrow (Anthony Davis), and many others. But while these exciting and new stories circulate around the league, the Chicago Bulls are stuck having to deal with the same old stories- Derrick Rose returns, how will he perform in his return, and how will Chicago, as a team perform with their leader back.

This isn’t to imply I don’t find the story or Rose’s return exciting. I’m ecstatic that we all get to see him on the court again. It is completely unfair to see such an explosive and exciting player forced off the court for what can only be described as freak injuries. And after seeing his steady improvement from the World Championships through the offseason, it’s becoming harder to contain the excitement.

But despite my enthusiasm for his return, I remain fearful… and perhaps that is what is most exhausting. Rose’s return right now brings forth a sense of deja vu. Both a year and a half ago and at this exact point last year everyone discussed Rose’s return and how he would propel them back into the discussion of title favorites and both instances ended with some sort of obstacle getting in the way of Rose’s comeback. Given his now shaky health history (keep in mind the entire 2011-2012 season was filled with various injuries that he played through), it is a little nerve-racking to think about Rose’s and Chicago future since he is such a question mark now.

2. Exit Carlos Boozer, Enter Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic

The Bulls made some minor tweaks to the roster, most notably letting DJ Augustin walk and bringing in Aaron Brooks. The move makes sense really. The Bulls brought on Augustin as a cheap replacement for their former cheap bench player (Nate Robinson) and now they feel they can replace Augustin’s production. Given that Tom Thibodeau’s system heavily features point guards that can create the offense and the excess of point guards in the league now, it’s likely the wise move. Brooks is a very intriguing replacement. In addition to playing better defense than Augustin, Brooks has shown that he can be a much better offensive player. In recent years Brooks has bounced from team to team, but like Robinson and Augustin before him he now has a chance to resurrect his career.

But most importantly the moment all Bulls fans were waiting for for years has finally come… Carlos Boozer is no longer with the the team. The front office finally exercised their amnesty provision and cut Boozer and his salary from the books (they still have to pay him). With the move the team opened up cap space for a potential run at Carmelo Anthony. While it may have been great to land Anthony, the Bulls did end up in a better position than they started off in as they put the newly available money to Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic.

Though sour Lakers fans may say otherwise, Gasol is an upgrade for Chicago at power forward. Not only is Gasol likely going to be able to produce just as much offense as Boozer did in his best years with the Bulls, but Gasol will also actually play defense. Think about it… a power forward not named Taj Gibson who can defend. Crazy concept… right? But the upgrade will be most evident when Gasol flexes his passing abilities out of the high post. By adding him, the Bulls have now created one of the most potent passing front courts in the league. The lineup and production possibilities are astounding… which brings us to…

3. Lineup Flexibility

If by now you haven’t realized Tom Thibodeau is a coach that likes to stick with his lineups, well… Tom Thibodeau likes to stick with his lineups. In previous years he has been incredibly inflexible with who he plays, when they play, and the minutes distribution. And though he is likely to remain rigid this season, adding Gasol gives him room to work with. Gasol can play both center and power forward. This, coupled with his ability to pass out of the low and high post, will give the Bulls a little wiggle room to rest Joakim Noah and his oft-injured feet without sacrificing production.

Like Noah, Gasol will be able to run the pick and roll in the high post with a guard while one player cuts and another spots up. Furthermore most everyone on the team has a similar play style to at least one other person on the team which allows Thibodeau to swap the moving parts of the plays at will.

Admittedly there are some roster issues (where does Mirotic get his minutes with the logjam in the front court and small forward?), but there is nothing that the team can figure out.

4. It’s A Marathon, Not a Sprint

Each year we all hope Thibodeau and the Bulls realize that there are 82 games (plus playoffs). But every season we all see the Bulls exhaust themselves on a daily basis. While an admirable mentality, there is a lot wrong with it when the ultimate goal is to win a title. I get that Chicago wasn’t going to win a title without Rose the past few years anyways, but excessive wear and tear have been added onto the team’s body. Though I don’t expect the “We have enough to win” mentality to go away at all, ideally the aforementioned lineup flexibility will let the Bulls rest up their major players (Rose, Noah, Butler, Gasol) even more. In the most ideal situation, the Bulls would take a page out of Gregg Popovich’s notebook and simply rest the studs against the lesser teams.

5. Avi’s Prediction

It’s hard to make a prediction for the season since there are just so many possible variables. But assuming health it’s hard to imagine the Bulls won’t be up there with the best of them. My guess is that Chicago lands the second seed in the East playoffs.

The post 2014-2015 Chicago Bulls Season Preview appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

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.

In trading to acquire Creighton star Doug McDermott, the Bulls fell victim to something much more common in the NFL: They got attached to a particular player in the draft.

Every year, smart teams like San Francisco and New England fleece the teams that prioritize the short-term (think Tennessee or Carolina) by taking advantage of the fact that such a team “covets” a specific player. Despite the draft being somewhat of a crapshoot, and the plethora of talent available, teams convince themselves that they just have to have that precious prospect who will fill a glaring need. However, the price for that desperation ends up costing a premium in draft capital. The basic framework of such a trade might see a team acquire a third rounder immediately, but at the high price of next year’s second and a sixth in the current draft.

It doesn’t happen much in basketball both because the NBA Draft is so much shorter and teams don’t deal first rounders to acquire second rounders, leaving just one round for franchises to borrow against their future. Under the current CBA, the only transaction that closely resembles what the Bulls did is Utah packaging #14 and #21 to Minnesota to move up to #9 for Trey Burke last year. The Jazz got much better value in that deal though, as they desperately needed a point guard, and Burke was the last consensus top-level player remaining in that woeful draft.

While they moved up the exact same amount of spots the Bulls did, typically the better the pick, the steeper the cost. And yet the Jazz surrendered far less than GarPax did last night. Gorgui Dieng, the player the Wolves nabbed at #21, looks like a legit asset, but that’s judging the deal with information unavailable at the time. In addition to the extra first rounder, #19, the Bulls surrendered a second rounder (they were two in the black thanks to the Luol Deng deal, but still) and took on the final year of failed project Anthony Randolph’s contract.

This happened because the normally uber-secretive Bulls were terribly obvious about the object of their affection. Multiple reports mentioned how often Chicago had scouted McDermott at Creighton and practically every major media outlet reported at some point that the Bulls were shopping their picks with reckless abandon, making it painfully apparent that, barring the selection of a draft-and-stash guy, there was no chance they’d use both, with the ultimate goal to package them and move up for a shooter.

So, in the same manner that the Bulls forced the desperate Cavs to cough extra assets in the Deng deal, the Nuggets were able to leverage not just the 19th selection, but swiped another pick and dumped a contract on the Bulls, who’ve worked so diligently to avoid taking on any sort of money. Randolph may end up being used as salary fodder in a grander move, but CBA rules make re-dealing a player rather complicated, and according to K.C. Johnson, Gar Forman admitted that Randolph’s inclusion was Denver’s impetus, not Chicago’s.

What really puts this over the top is that the Bulls may not have needed to trade up at all, and that, even independent of Randolph, it cost them potential cap room to do so. Unless another team would have swapped with Denver for McDermott, they likely just take Jusuf Nurkic at 11, instead of with Chicago’s pick. Orlando was widely assumed to select Dario Saric, enabling their acquisition of tenth pick Elfrid Payton from Philly (speaking of Orlando, they too got swindled out of a first rounder to ensure the delivery of Payton.) The only team that kept their target less of a secret than the Bulls was Minnesota, who took Zach LaVine at 13. Maybe Phoenix was a threat at 14, but Atlanta was surely choosing Adreian Payne at 15 over McDermott.

It looks like McDermott may very well have still been on the board at 16 for Chicago, and staying there would have saved the Bulls a few hundred thousand roughly in cap space due to the difference in salaries attached to the picks involved. In the event he had been gone by their pick, Chicago’s worst case scenario was getting “stuck” with Gary Harris at 16. Lack of size may have hurt Harris, but consider that he notched 15 blocks as a sophomore, trumping the paltry 14 McDermott had over his entire four year college career.

The last couple years, the Bulls have been engulfed by two enormous question marks. The first is obviously if Derrick Rose can get, and stay, healthy. The second is how they can pave a path and execute a plan to add another star. We’ve learned that role players are nice, and crucial on the margins as this year’s Finals showed, but when push came to shove, GarPax dipped into their precious flexibility and collection of assets just to add one rookie role player over another. We’re not talking about trading up to grab a boom-or-bust type like LaVine, who could change a franchise if he happens to pan out, as McDermott is pretty defined in his potential, a 22-year-old whose lack of variance provides security but considerably less upside.

The Bulls can say they wanted to add shooting, but that’s not what this is, at least not yet, because the chatter seems to suggest this frees them up to lop Mike Dunleavy’s salary off the books. That’s not adding a shooter, that’s replacing a shooter, and in doing so, relying on a rookie to suitably fill the role of a guy who’s been in the league for a dozen years and qualifies as the only above average deep shooter on the roster.

As for the idea that consolidating two first rounders into one created more cap room for the Bulls, well, that’s misguided. If they wanted to do that, they could have stayed at 16, as mentioned, and easily traded 19 for a future first round pick from somebody. There, that was easy, and now you have a shooter without wasting cap room to trade up, plus a future first (or a stashed prospect) that could grease the wheel in trade talks for Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Love or somebody else entirely.

Overall, McDermott’s actually a good fit. The Bulls probably weren’t retaining Dunleavy after this year anyway, so they secured a long-term shooting threat, and just as importantly, someone who opponents absolutely know is a threat and will bend their defense as such. Within two minutes of watching NBATV, they’d already praised him with the phrases we’ll hear about him his entire career: “coach’s son” and ” high basketball IQ,” so basically he’s the perfect heir to Kirk Hinrich’s throne. In all seriousness though, McDermott does seem to be the high-quality teammate he’s lauded as, so for both his sake and Chicago’s, hopefully he fills the role they have slotted for him, but the Bulls sure tapped into the resources they’ve spent years accumulating for what amounts to an ancillary piece of the puzzle.

The post Doug McDermott And The Trouble With Love appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.

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.

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. This week, we move over to the Eastern Conference.

Simply put, the Central Division has stunk this season, and in 2014, it’s been a complete dumpster fire. Once a juggernaut, Indiana has faltered badly against good teams. Cleveland failed to climb into the playoff picture even though Atlanta was struck by a comically sad collection of injuries, and now Kyrie Irving is out yet again. Milwaukee amazingly still has pole position on the worst record despite Philly dropping 25 games in a row, and yet they probably aren’t even the most hopeless team in the division so long as Detroit is anchored down by the albatrocities of Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings. The Bulls, who aren’t a title contender and have four players they can count for solid production night to night, have been the bright light in the starless sky for the Central.

Even worse, the three bad teams in this division were honest-to-God trying to win this year, and as a result, there aren’t many expiring deals to found here. Let’s get through them speed-round style:

Spencer Hawes and Charlie Villanueva

The correct answers are “laughs so hard milk comes out your nose” or “don’t even joke about Spencer Hawes on the Bulls.” Either is acceptable.

Lance Stephenson

The fine folks over at Blog a Bull made the argument for Stephenson a couple months ago. Not much has changed, except that some of his flaws and bad habits have stuck out a bit more now that Paul George is no longer the Human Torch from midrange and Roy Hibbert has gone dormant. The chatter concerning Stephenson’s free agency has revolved around the idea that he might take a little less to stay with a tight-knit title contender, as well as to pay back Larry Bird for cultivating his once rocky prospects of even lasting on an NBA roster, let alone becoming a borderline All-Star.

If that’s true, then even if they can’t make a deal work, it’s hard to envision him turning around and signing with one of their chief rivals. In the event that’s not how he feels, he can find the money the Bulls could offer him with other teams that will make him the star of the show that he’ll never be in Indiana or Chicago.

Ramon Sessions

Now in Milwaukee, Sessions is about to finish his two year, $10 million deal that he got from Charlotte after catching fire upon being traded to the Lakers. (Related: Earl Clark got the requisite ex-Laker free agent bonus last summer. Who will be it this year? My money’s on Jodie Meeks.) Shockingly, his numbers in Los Angeles, 47.9 FG% and 48.6% from three, did not hold, as he fell back to 40.8%/30.8% and 43.1%/28.0% since, the latter of which is displayed here:

Don’t call us, Ramon. We’ll call you.

Rodney Stuckey

Stuckey managed to right the ship on his reputation just as his contract is expiring. That often represents a bad sign on whether teams should pursue such a player, but the Pistons roster was put together about well as an AI-controlled team in 2K, and I can’t fault a guy for getting a little pep in his step after seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

He’s actually taken a rather precipitous fall since the end of November. Over the first month of the season, he scored 16.9 PPG, on 49.5%/37.5% shooting. Since December though, he’s put up just 12.4 PPG on 41.9%/25.0%. Still, he’s bigger than guys like Sessions, and has yet to play for a functional franchise. Maybe it’s just because he’s from my hometown, but I think Stuckey could play a nice role off the bench if he finds the right fit.

Luol Deng

After Chicago’s “take it or leave it” offer for three years, $30 million, or, you know, anything in this post-trade reaction piece from K.C. Johnson, I can’t imagine Deng would ever come back, no matter how much he loves his former teammates. In many ways, I’d prefer he didn’t. Lu, go to a place like Dallas, or Phoenix, where where management appreciates you and you never have to deal with #FredClearedHim ever again.

The post The 2014 Plan, #9, Rapid Fire Edition 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. This week concludes our look at the Western Conference.

Unlike the other Western divisions, the Southwest isn’t hurting for available rotation players. The most interesting player in the Northwest is Nate Robinson (related: Nate tore his ACL in January), and while there isn’t a talent comparable to Rudy Gay, the depth of players in the Southwest blows away the options in the Pacific Division. To account for that depth, the players this week will be sorted by categories rather than by team.

The Lifers: Tim Duncan (Spurs), Dirk Nowitzki (Mavericks)

The Hall of Fame awaits the former MVPs (and Finals MVPs), but somehow both are still playing a central role on Western playoff teams deep into their 30s. They’ve spent their entire respective careers with just one team, and San Antonio and Dallas are also model franchises, so neither has any reason to play out the last year or two of their careers in different uniforms. (Note: Duncan will probably just exercise his $10 million player option anyway.)

The Shooters: Mike Miller (Grizzlies), Anthony Morrow (Pelicans), Matt Bonner (Spurs)

The Bulls could always use more shooting so both Miller and Morrow should be on their radar. After injuries plagued his Heat career, he’s managed to stay on the court for Memphis this year and be the floor stretcher they lacked in years past. At this point in his career, he surely wants to stick with contenders, but I also can’t imagine he wants to shuffle his family around the country on one year deals either. My guess is he stays in Memphis for another year or two.

Morrow, who Don Nelson, talking with the Dallas Morning News, once called the second greatest shooter he ever coached, only behind Chris Mullin, is a great shooter in his own right. The concern would be that a specialist like Morrow might end up riding the pine just like Jimmer Fredette, especially if the Bulls draft a wing or two.

As for Bonner, he’s hit some big shots for the Spurs over the years, but ends up stapled to the bench come playoff time because other teams can expose his lack of strength down low, as well as his lack of athleticism on the perimeter. It’s simply harder to hide an offense-first big.

The Bigs: DeJuan Blair (Mavs), Boris Diaw (Spurs), Greg Stiemsma (Pelicans)

Each has their strong suit: Offensive rebounding (Blair), passing/spacing the floor/insert obligatory weight joke here (Diaw) and tall/knows Thibs system from playing in Boston alongside Kevin Garnett and company (Stiemsma).

Diaw would be nice because his passing skills would fit with the Bulls and he’s such a unique player that it can throw teams off a bit. Stiemsma could be a low-cost fill-in, playing 12ish minutes a game behind Joakim Noah while a rookie learns the system on the bench. Blair has his uses, but the Bulls can probably make better use of the roster spot he would occupy.

The Breakouts James Johnson (Grizzlies), Patty Mills (Spurs)

Originally a Bulls draft pick, Johnson never quite figured out how to utilize his athletic talent. He didn’t even last two years with Chicago before getting dealt to Toronto, and failed to latch on there or in subsequent stops with the Kings and Hawks. In December, Memphis gave him a shot and he’s made the most of it. A reunion with the Bulls is highly unlikely if nothing else because he still can’t shoot. Like, at all:

Mills fits the bill as a good candidate for Thibodeau’s annual “Extreme Makeover: Backup Point Guard Edition,” except the Spurs already built him back up. He didn’t crack their playoff rotation in either of the last two years, but with Gary Neal and Nando De Colo gone, Mills figures to get a chance to prove himself on the biggest stage before hitting the market. He’s cooled off since, but in February, he helped the injury-ravaged Spurs keep the machine going, averaging 16.3 points per game in just 23.1 minutes per game on 48.7% shooting. If he has a playoff moment or two, a mediocre team might pursue him to add a winner who can provide some offense, as Milwaukee did with Neal and Minnesota did with J.J. Barea.

Young Wings: Al-Farouq Aminu (Pelicans), Jordan Hamilton (Rockets)

Aminu is a poor man’s Jimmy Butler. Jimmy can’t shoot this year, but Aminu barely even attempts three pointers, and Butler is a superior defender. After struggling to distinguish himself in Denver, Hamilton’s gotten a fresh start with the Rockets, who love taking lottery tickets on recent first-round talents. If he continues to carve out a niche with Houston, he’s best off staying there and solidifying his career than gambling on fitting in with another team.

Dallas is old: Shawn Marion, Vince Carter and Devin Harris

Other than Dirk, Marion is the last player remaining from that 2011 team that beat Kobe, Durant and LeBron to win the title. He might get forced out of Dallas if the Mavs are able to entice a younger player to take his role. They look like a nice landing spot for Luol Deng, and at that point, Marion will need to find a home elsewhere. He’s not really a fit for the Bulls though, nor is the soon-to-be 36-year-old the wisest investment for a chunk of cap space.

In his return to Dallas, Harris is posting similar counting numbers in fewer minutes, but isn’t the prototype backup for Chicago’s offense.

Carter is the best fit of the trio if the Bulls were to pursue one of them. He’s rebuilt his reputation in three years with the Mavs. Once the me-first star who forced his way out of Toronto, he’s now the willing role-player on a winning team. His 41% shooting isn’t ideal, but he was never a high percentage shooter, so he’s not in massive decline there, and he’s still an above-average shooter from distance. If the Bulls end up with a quiet non-Melo or non-Mirotic offseason, a summer that consists of re-signing D.J. Augustin, not trading Mike Dunleavy, adding Carter and say, Channing Frye, while drafting a project big like Willie Cauley-Stein and one of the cadre of wings available would set them up very well to contend in 2015.

The post The 2014 Plan #8: Role Players R Us 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, our division-by-division look at unrestricted free agents continues.

There’s simply not much to get excited about in terms of unrestricted free agents in the Pacific Division. It makes sense when considering the state of the teams that comprise it. The Lakers and Kings are two of the three real bottom-feeders in the West and Phoenix had planned on joining them at the bottom, using this year to develop young guys who are years away from free agency. The pickings are slim, but let’s take a look anyway:

Golden State Warriors

The Dubs have a couple useful aging vets set to expire. Jermaine O’Neal has shocked the world by helping keep Golden State afloat when their frontcourt has been hit by injuries. He’ll be 36 next year, but if the Bulls acquired him, they’d actually be making the team younger, seeing as he’s Nazr Mohammed’s junior by a year. He’d be a good fit as a backup to Joakim Noah for a year while a rookie sits and learns Chicago’s defensive system.

Meanwhile, they also acquired Steve Blake from the Lakers to take some of the load off of Stephen Curry. The 34-year-old is a career 39% three-point shooter, and is one of the most respected veterans in the league. On offense, he’s basically what commentators think Kirk Hinrich is, because he can actually shoot. Also, because he’s a veteran, Thibs would be a lot more likely to play him than a younger guy like Jimmer Fredette.

With both players in the twilight of their careers, it’s fair to assume they’ll only go to playoff contenders, which cuts out at least half the league. There’s no way of knowing if either is a match for the Bulls, but both would be welcome additions.

On the other hand, they also have Jordan Crawford, who Golden State traded for but quickly replaced with Blake. Golden State figures to bump up right on the tax line next year, so every dollar will be important to them. That means they’re nearly a lock to decline Crawford’s $3.2 million qualifying offer. For the Bulls, it doesn’t really matter though because Crawford, a shaky teammate over the years who doesn’t bring consistency directing an offense, doesn’t fit Chicago’s profile at all.

Los Angeles Clippers

Just one free agent of note here, Darren Collison. He signed a two year deal with the Clips, but can opt out of his nearly $2 million figure for next year. He’d be looking for his fifth team in six years, but he’s in the massive pool of acceptable backup point guards. The fact there are so many of them also means none are worth paying a significant amount. As mentioned with prior candidates like Portland’s Mo Williams, if Collison opts out, he’s looking for at least that much on a longer deal, which means the Bulls should pass.

Los Angeles Lakers

Usually it’s a figure of speech when saying a team has Star X and a bunch of guys, except that’s exactly what the Lakers have locked up on next year’s roster. Pretty much everyone expires here, as the Lakers planned on being big players this summer, only to realize they have no shot at LeBron James and thus are forced to wait for the next crop of stars. Sound familiar Bulls fans?

The big name is Pau Gasol obviously, and he’s been linked to the Bulls in the past. Chris Sheridan once wrote Chicago should go get Gasol for something like Taj Gibson, a couple picks, including the Charlotte pick, Nikola Mirotic, Tom Thibodeau, their lunch money for the next month and their Netflix password. OK, that’s exaggerating (though only a bit) but regardless of if the Bulls ever did have eyes for Pau, that was before Taj turned into a absolute beast. Gasol would have to be the third big in Chicago, and judging by his quarterly complaints to the media that Mike D’Antoni’s offense doesn’t get him enough looks, methinks he’s not ready to be a bench player just yet.

As for their other expirings, we’re looking at Jordan Hill, Chris Kaman, Jordan Farmar, Jodie Meeks, Xavier Henry, Wesley Johnson, MarShon Brooks and, if he opts out, Nick Young. My reaction to the Bulls signing any of them?

“Cool, great…who’s next?” Jordan Hill would be a nice third big and I’ve always found Jordan Farmar a bit undervalued, but for the most part, this Island of Misfit Toys is last in the West for a reason: they’re mostly replacement level parts.

Phoenix Suns

After fetching a first-rounder for Marcin Gortat from Washington, they were left taking back Emeka Okafor, whose season-ending neck injury necessitated the Wizards pursuit of Gortat in the first place. There’s just no way of knowing Okafor’s standing in the league at this moment. Either way, he’s probably not the guy you want to depend on for 12-15 minutes behind Noah for the time being.

They also have Channing Frye, whose strong bounceback season has him poised to opt out of his deal. Frye missed last season with a heart condition, but he’s making up for lost time. The lethal combo of Frye and Goran Dragic is terrorizing defenses, and if the Bulls are too cheap to can’t bring over Nikola Mirotic, Frye is the next best thing for that mold of a stretch four. He’s shooting nearly 40% from 3, and at 6-11, he’d be able to play with Gibson or Noah. Of the players out there this summer, Frye is among my favorites.

Sacramento Kings

First, there’s veteran big man Aaron Gray, who spent his first couple seasons with the Bulls. I always recall this whenever he gets traded or signs with a new team, and yet I don’t recollect a single thing he did in Chicago.

Gray ended up in Sacramento as salary cap filler for the trade built around his near-namesake, Rudy Gay. Infamous for not allowing stats in the locker room, as well as continuing to shoot bricks even after Lasik surgery, Gay became the butt of many a joke from NBA Twitter. That has mostly subsided though, partly because he’s playing better, and more likely because no one watches the Kings. Gay was shooting a saboteur-esque 38.8% for the Raptors (who have shot up to the 3 seed in the East since dealing him), but has shot a robust 49.4% in Sactown, a number that obliterates every one of his yearly figures. This uptick comes right as Gay can opt out of his $19.3 million option, which now seems like a good bet. He won’t get that much again, but should be able to pull a Monta Ellis and parlay one massive year into multiple years of security at a slightly lower annual price.

Gay represents the kind of big name Bulls fans have been clamoring for years, and his play in Sacramento suggests he might finally be living up to the hype…except for one fatal flaw. His overall shooting percentage has skyrocket since the trade, but his shooting from distance has actually declined. After shooting 37.3% from deep in Toronto, he’s back down to 33.0% with the Kings. Combine the two sample sizes and he’s 34.5% for the entire season, which marks the third straight year he’s been below average. In fact, his 39.6% in 2010-2011 looks anomalous compared to the rest of his body of work. Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler are already below average floor spacers, so Chicago would be wise to not pursue Gay should he test the market.

-GIF from CJ Fogler (@cjzero)

The post The 2014 Plan, Part Seven: Pacific Grim 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. Our look at unrestricted free agents starts this week.

For the next few weeks, we’ll examine players by division, starting with the Northwest Division, which captures the geographical layout of its teams about as accurately as the Big 10 and Big 12 monikers reflect the number of schools in their respective conferences.

The Big Fish(es)

Last offseason, rumors were rampant that Blazers star LaMarcus Aldridge was prepared to force his way to somewhere like Chicago, Houston or Dallas, either that summer or the next. What a difference a season makes. Portland is now an offensive juggernaut and instead of using his expiring contract as leverage to get out of Rip City, he’s a good bet to do as the CBA incentivizes stars to do, and let his contract play out before re-signing with them in 2015.

As for Kevin Love, he’s now in a similar position as Aldridge, except he’ll have the leverage Aldridge lacked last year. He’ll hit free agency in 2015 as well and doesn’t have much reason to stay in Minnesota. The Wolves are a good team, but good doesn’t cut it in the West, and it’s highly unlikely they’ll be able to acquire a true second star to put next to Love. As for Chicago’s prospects of netting him (which they would only do if they were confident he would stay long-term), they’re talented, highly respected around the league, and they have legitimate assets to deal. Also, for whatever it’s worth, Love was teammates with Derrick Rose on the 2010 World Championships group that won gold, and they’ve worked out together in the past with trainer Rob McClanaghan. He’s long been rumored to end up with the Lakers, so Chicago’s chances of acquiring him are very, very, very slim, but that’s more than 20-some other teams can say.

Denver Nuggets

For such a young team, Denver has one of the clunkiest cap sheets in the league. Their roster looks a lot like Chicago’s in the Hinrich-Gordon-Deng-Scott Skiles Era. They have a lot of good players, but only Ty Lawson is a serious difference maker, and yet most of their rotation guys have midsized veteran deals. JaVale McGee and Danilo Gallinari, both question marks with season-ending injuries, are due eight figures each through 2016. As for their free agents, they only have a couple. The first is Darrell Arthur, who made an impact in Memphis before an Achilles injury and getting traded to Denver. At this point, he’s unfortunately just a guy, but they do have one other player who could come off the books…

Nate Robinson. The ultimate fallback plan for the Bulls this summer to me was always to sign a third big man to replace Carlos Boozer, bring back Nate, who can opt-out of his $2.1 million deal for next year, and rely on the draft for long-term upgrades. Robinson loved Chicago, and for once, his team loved him back. Few players in the league resonate with fans like he does, but his frantic energy has worn out multiple locker rooms in the past. He fit right in with Joakim Noah and the Bulls though, providing a couple playoff performances fans will never forget. It seemed quite plausible that he could get a deal with the Bulls for the same amount of money he was due next year from Denver. However, once Nate tore his ACL at the end of January, that went out the window. Now he’d likely only get the veteran’s minimum on the open market, making him a lock to opt-in for next season, get healthy, and hope to restore his value in 2014-2015 with the Nuggets.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Their key contributors are all under contract as well. The only player who even slightly impacts them that expires this year is Dante Cunningham. He’s a rotation big, but the last thing the Bulls need is a big who only shoots from midrange. If Carlos Boozer taking nearly half his attempts from there is annoying, imagine how agonizing it would be to watch Cunningham, who takes two-thirds of his attempts from no man’s land.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Two minor cogs from OKC will hit the market this offseason. First is Thabo Sefolosha, who Bulls fans may remember from his first couple years in Chicago. The Bulls dealt him for a first round pick that ended up being used to select Taj Gibson. Sefolosha’s been a fine player for years, but it’s safe to say Chicago doesn’t regret doing that deal one bit.

Sefolosha falls under the Avery Bradley category in that he’s not the type of player Gar Forman and John Paxson should be spending money on. With Thibs at the helm, and the Noah/Gibson/Butler trio on the floor to execute his schemes, there’s no need to pay for a cog that the Bulls don’t need. He turns 30 in a couple months, isn’t a shot creator, and after a couple scalding-hot shooting seasons, has fallen back to just 33.8% from three.

The other OKC role player who may be available is Derek Fisher. He’s aggravating to watch as an objective fan of the league, because he’s a Kirk Hinrich All-Star. Announcers, analysts and coaches laud these players for scrap, leadership and intangibles, usually right as they brick a jumper or get blown by on defense. Yet Fisher still comes up with those random games where he hits all his open threes, leaving the opposing team’s fans to do the “You’ve got to be kidding me!” gesticulations. He’ll be 40 next season, but there’s far worse players to stash at the end of the bench. I mean, check out his shot chart. 45% on above the break triples!

Portland Trail Blazers

Mo Williams is the only Blazer of consequence here. He can pass up a $2.77 option to search for a long-term home after playing for four teams in the last four seasons. He’d seem like a candidate for the Bulls considering all the score-first guards who’ve been revived by Thibodeau’s pixie dust , except if he opts out, he’ll be looking for more than what he makes now, and since Thibs can work with minimum-salaried castoffs, there’s no sense in handing out a decent chunk of change to fill the role.

Utah Jazz

The Jazz have four notable free agents coming off the books. Let’s evaluate them using the Thibs Mood Scale:

Brandon Rush:

Thibs Mood: Contemplative. Rush is a career 41% three-point shooter except he’s averaging just 2.2 points per game after an ACL tear cost him all but two games last season in Golden State. He might never be the player he once was, but he also may be a good buy low option with a full year under his belt post-surgery.

Richard Jefferson:

Thibs Mood: Perplexed, as in “Do we get 2008 Richard Jefferson? No? Then why are you asking?”

Marvin Williams:

Thibs Mood: No. Just…no.

Andris Biedrins:

Thibs Mood: Defcon 1. GarPax are never seen again after entering the Witness Protection Program.

-GIFs via Buzzfeed Sports and CJ Fogler (@cjzero)

The post The 2014 Plan, Part Six: Introducing the Thibs Mood Scale appeared first on Bulls By The Horns.