“The Bulls haven’t won a game in two weeks, but they scored a victory of sorts Tuesday when Derrick Rose was named the winner of Victoria Secret’s sexiest Chicago athlete contest. ‘I’m thankful for my fans that voted,’ Rose said following practice at the Berto Center. ‘It was a fun thing to be apart of.’ Besides the title, Rose will get to hang out with another supermodel — Allesandro Ambrosio — at an event Tuesday night at Underground. Rose, though, said he was bringing his ‘girl’ to the event. Probably a smart move on his part.”

Yeah, definitely a smart move.

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According to John Jackson of the Chicago Sun-Times: “The Bulls suffered their first significant injury of training camp Tuesday as backup center Aaron Gray went down with a stress fracture of the lower left leg. He is expected to be sidelined for six to eight weeks, which means he’ll miss the first month of the regular season.”

I’m not too worried about Gray’s injury, considering that he wasn’t going to play very often anyway. However, it could become a problem if Brad Miller or (God forbid) Joakim Noah suffer an injury too. I don’t think Tyrus or the rookies are up to banging bodies with the big boys.

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Still a Bull. For one more season anyway.

According to John Jackson of the Chicago Sun-Times: “The Bulls completed their offseason moves on Tuesday by re-signing backup center Aaron Gray to a one-year contract for roughly $1 million. Gray, who had been a restricted free agent, is entering his third season in the NBA after averaging 3.9 points and 3.3 rebounds in 117 games during his first two seasons.”

Wow. I haven’t felt this much nothing since The Love Guru was released on DVD. When a team signs its 12th man to a one-year contract, that’s the same as saying, “You really aren’t part of our future. In fact, you’re barely part of our today.” Don’t get me wrong. Gray’s a good kid who works hard and all that. But with the additions of rookies James Johnson and Taj Gibson, Gray is now buried so far down the depth chart you’d need Indiana Jones to find him.

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Here’s the ideal gift for a Bulls fan who wants any and every conceivable piece of Bulls-related merchandise: a vintage Bill Wennington jersey! It’s only $79.99 and the shipping is free. This jersey could help you relive that amazing 8-point, 3-rebound, 6-foul game Bill had against the Indiana Pacers in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals. And yes, those were his playoff highs that season.

I’m sure you’ll agree that’s a fantastic bargain. After all, Bill is a three-time NBA champion. But for an even more perfect gift-giving experience, the jersey should be paired up with this Exquisite Aaron Gray Jersey Patch.

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Whoa! Both are moving rapidlytoward deals with the Pistons?! That sounds awfully set-in-stone-ish to me. I thought BG wanted to remain a Bull? Of course, money could very well rule the day. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune reported that Dumars is expected to make Gordon an offer “in the neighborhood of $50 million over five years.” I can’t see the Jerry Reinsdorf matching that offer. But hey, here’s some good news: The Bulls extended a qualifying offer to retain or match on Aaron Gray. (The offer is worth just over $1 million, fully guaranteed.) So you can go ahead and erase that entry off your Worry Board.

Even if the Bulls do end up losing Gordon to the Pistons, it’s okay. After all, Ben just gave Dime Magazine the blueprint for his step-back jumper. Vinny Del Negro can just have Derrick Rose, John Salmons, Kirk Hinrich and whoever else you want to name (except Tyrus Thomas) copy that, and the team will be good to go. Go ahead and wipe another entry off your Worry Board.

Update! According to David Kaplan of Chicago Now: “Outstanding NBA sources that I just spoke to with direct knowledge of the negotiations tell me that Ben Gordon is still in Detroit as of 3:31 p.m. CST. In addition, he has told friends that he will call John Paxson and Gar Forman to offer the Bulls a chance to match Detroit’s offer which I am being told will be for roughly 50 million over 5 years but could creep a little higher if that is what it takes to keep the Bulls from matching. Stay tuned…”

Stay tuned indeed.

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Big Sexy. The White Panther. The White Flag. Theose are just a few…okay, they’re the only nicknames for Chicago’s favorite human victory cigar, Mr. Aaron Michael Gray. In tribute to this giant of a man (7’0″, 270 pounds), I have chronicled his best five games of the recently deceased season.

1. December 26, 2008:Santa must have left something extra special in Aaron’s stocking, because the big fella had his best game of the season on the day after Christmas: 12 points (5-for-7), 11 rebounds and an assist in 25 minutes. In fact, when that line is compared to the output of Derrick Rose (10 points, 3-for-14, 3 assists), Ben Gordon (15 points, 6-for-16, 1 assist) and Luol Deng (8 points, 4-for-10, 8 boards), it sure seems like Aaron was the Bulls’ player of the game. Which probably explains why they dropped a 90-77 decision to the Miami Heat. This was the second and last time Aaron would have a double-digit rebounding game.

2. January 3, 2009:Aaron played a season-high 32 minutes in a home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves and responded with 10 points (4-for-9), 9 rebounds, an assist and a steal. Unfortunately, the Bulls lost 102-92 to a Minnesota team that came into the game 7-25 on the season. Note that this was the third and last time this season Aaron would reach double figures in points.

3. November 28, 2008:On the road against the Los Angeles Lakers, Aaron got 21 minutes of daylight and managed to put up 11 points (5-for-9) to go along with 5 rebounds and a steal. Only two other Bulls players (Ben Gordon and Derrick Rose) scored in double figures. Sadly, the Lakers made a mess in Aaron’s Wheaties by winning 116-109.

4. January 20, 2009: Aaron had an extremely effective 12-minute stint against the Atlanta Hawks, with 9 points (4-for-4), 5 boards, an assist, a block and 4 fouls. However — and I’m sure you’ve probably noticed a pattern forming here — the Bulls still lost 105-102 to the Hawks in Chicago.

5. November 11, 2008: Another home game against the Hawks, and another loss, this time by the score of 113-108. Aaron logged 17 minutes and finished with 6 points (3-for-6), 10 rebounds (5 offensive), a block and 5 fouls. His 5 offensive boards tied him (with Derrick Rose) for a team-high.

Bonus Game! The absolute best game of Aaron’s career came during the 2007-08 season. It was an April 16, 2008 home game against the Toronto Raptors. Aaron set career-highs in minutes played (35), scoring (19), rebounds (22), shot attempts (13), free throws made (9) and attempted (9). His virtuoso performance led the Bulls to a 107-97 win over the playoff-bound Raptors.

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I’m a basketball-obsessed kook, I know that, so obviously I’m going to know more about the city’s NBA team than the Average Joe or Joanne. But still. I mean, I can’t stand baseball, but I still keep track of the Cubs and Sox, their rosters, their records, recent trades, etc. Part of embracing your city is embracing it’s professional sports teams, right?

Anyway, that experience inspired me to start a new series: Fan on the street. I’m basically going to wander the streets of the Windy City and ask its citizens some question about the Bulls…and publish their unedited reponse. Here’s the first installment.

Question: Derrick Rose…Rookie of the Year?

Answer: “If people don’t think he’s the Rookie of the Year, then they obviously haven’t been watching Bulls basketball. His ability to be the streaking, slashing, scoring player all teams need has allowed other players on the team to better exert their skills.” ~Mark Clark, Business Development

On the cutting room floor: After answering the proffered question, Mr. Clark continued on: “Why not ask me about Ben [Gordon] instead of Derek. I mean, then I could say all the stuff that I want to, like why don’t we trade him to some team. I know he’s not a fit for most teams, but he could be an asset to someone like the Lakers or something. Maybe we can get something, like a big man, for him. At least if we had another big man then Aaron Gray wouldn’t be able to play as many minutes as he gets, which should in turn slow down the other team’s offense. All Gray does is make other teams better.”

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