Chicago Bulls Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Celtics Eyeing Omer Asik

June 18th, 2012 at 12:44pm CST by Luke Adams

We're still not entirely sure whether the Celtics will look to re-sign most of their own free agents this summer or whether more significant changes are in store, but Sam Smith of Bulls.com suggests one potential target for Boston. According to Smith, the Celtics are considering making a "strong offer" to restricted free agent Omer Asik.

Odds & Ends: Crawford, Warriors, Seattle, Bulls

June 15th, 2012 at 10:18pm CST by Daniel Seco

The Lakers made history on this day 11 years ago when they beat the Sixers 108-96 to claim the NBA championship with the highest playoff winning percentage of all time at 93.8%, according to Hoopedia. Led by Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles went 15-1 in the playoffs by sweeping the Trail Blazers, Kings and Spurs before losing just once to Philadelphia. Let's take a look around the league to catch up on the latest news and stories making headlines…

Amico On Bulls, Sloan, Blazers, Crawford

June 15th, 2012 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Within the last week, both Sam Smith of Bulls.com and Bradford Doolittle of ESPN.com concocted trade scenarios in which the Bulls acquire Tyreke Evans from the Kings, increasing speculation about such a deal. But Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio hears from multiple sources that there's nothing to the idea, and that it's not something that's being discussed by the two teams. That tidbit comes from Amico's Thursday column, and he's back with another piece today, so let's take a look at the highlights:

Offseason Outlook: Chicago Bulls

June 15th, 2012 at 2:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Guaranteed Contracts

Derrick Rose ($15,506,632)
Carlos Boozer ($15,000,000)
Luol Deng ($13,305,000)
Joakim Noah ($11,300,000)
Richard Hamilton ($5,000,000)
Taj Gibson ($2,155,811)
Jimmy Butler ($1,066,920)

Options

None

Non-Guaranteed Contracts

Kyle Korver ($5,000,000; partially guaranteed for $500,000)
Ronnie Brewer ($4,370,000; partially guaranteed for $333,333)
C.J. Watson ($3,200,000)

Free Agents (Cap Holds)

Omer Asik ($2,414,750)
Mike James ($854,389)
John Lucas ($854,389)
Brian Scalabrine ($854,389)

Draft Picks

1st Round (29th overall)

Cap Outlook

Guaranteed Salary: $64,167,696
Non-Guaranteed Salary, Cap Holds: $16,714,584
Total (not including draft picks): $80,882,280

2011/12 was a "What if?" season for the Chicago Bulls, who very well could be playing for the NBA title right now if it weren't for injuries to Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah early in the playoffs. Rose is expected to miss a good chunk of next season as well, but there's enough talent on the roster that the team should stay afloat without him, and could make a second-half run when he returns.

Before the Bulls take the floor in the fall though, a number of roster decisions face the team. Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer, and C.J. Watson all have non-guaranteed contracts for next season — Korver and Brewer have modest partial guarantees, but cutting all three players would still save the Bulls nearly $12MM.

I expect the Bulls to release at least one or two of the guys on non-guaranteed deals, but there's no real urgency to cut that salary. Chicago isn't in position to create room under the cap, and re-signing restricted free agent Omer Asik and filling out the roster will probably take the club into the luxury tax anyway. Replacing someone like Watson or Brewer with a lower-cost alternative, either through the draft or free agency, could be prudent, but that decision shouldn't affect the team's ability to spend elsewhere.

If they're a taxpaying team, the Bulls will only have the $3MM mini mid-level exception, along with minimum-salary exceptions, to spend in free agency. Steve Nash and Jason Kidd are rumored targets for Chicago, but I'm not sure how realistic that is. Nash, in particular, seems unlikely to choose a destination where he could only earn $3MM annually and a franchise point guard is already in place. Kidd might be a stronger fit though, and the Bulls could also kick the tires on guys like Raymond Felton, Chauncey Billups, and Kirk Hinrich.

Of course, Chicago doesn't necessarily have to allocate that mini mid-level to a point guard acquisition, but it seems like the most logical choice. Assuming the team re-signs Asik, which GM Gar Forman has suggested will happen, the Bulls are in good shape with Noah, Asik, Taj Gibson, and Carlos Boozer up front. With Luol Deng on the wing and Richard Hamilton at the two, the Bulls' biggest hole is at the point. The team will be targeting a player that can carry a heavy load early in the season, then settle into a smaller role when Rose gets healthy.

The Bulls also hold the 29th pick in a deep draft, and while they probably won't find their point guard answer at that spot, there should be plenty of intriguing two guards available. Given Hamilton's health issues this year, adding a scorer to back him up makes some sense. John Jenkins, Doron Lamb, and Jared Cunningham could be among the Bulls' possibilities at No. 29.

While some Bulls fans may be expecting the team to use its amnesty provision on Boozer or to explore a blockbuster trade involving Noah or Deng, I think it's unlikely Chicago does anything too drastic this summer. The Bulls finished the regular season tied for the NBA's best record in a year when Rose never seemed completely healthy. There's no reason to believe the team as constructed, with perhaps a few small tweaks, can't be a title contender with better luck on the injury front.

Rose's ACL surgery was certainly bad news in the short term, but as Forman has said before, it shouldn't affect Chicago's long-term plans. I expect the Bulls to exercise patience this offseason, rather than desperately looking for any quick fixes.

Storytellers Contracts and Sham Sports were used in the creation of this post.

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Bulls GM Talks Draft, Rose, Asik, Mirotic

June 15th, 2012 at 9:36am CST by Luke Adams

Despite an early and disappointing end to this year's season, Bulls GM Gar Forman remains optimistic about his team's long-term future. Forman appeared on BullsTV this week to answer fans' questions, and opened up a little on a few topics, including his plans for the draft, Derrick Rose's rehab, and the futures of a couple young big men. Here are some of the highlights from the GM, courtesy of Adam Fluck at Bulls.com….

On the draft and the Bulls' lone pick at No. 29:

"We feel pretty good about where we’re at with No. 29. It’s a deep draft and we’ll be able to address a need with our pick and get a player that’s going to fit into our team, both from a culture standpoint and from a strategic standpoint…. As always, we’re not looking at specific needs. We’ll draft who we feel is the best player available."

On Rose's recovery from ACL surgery:

"He’s been diligent in his rehab, he’s made tremendous progress, and the surgery, obviously, was a huge success. The biggest thing that’s been encouraging about Derrick has been his mentality towards the rehab. He’s working each and every day, putting a lot of effort into it, and we’re optimistic that if he continues to make the type of progress that he has, that we’ll see Derrick back on the floor at some point next season."

On restricted free agent Omer Asik:

"Omer is very, very important to us. We see him as a key piece of our team moving forward. We think he’s shown the potential to continue to improve. We’re looking forward to getting a chance to sit down with him on July 1st. But it’s certainly our intention to have Omer Asik in a Chicago Bulls uniform long term."

On 21-year-old Nikola Mirotic, whose NBA rights the Bulls hold:

"He’ll remain under contract with [Euroleague's] Real Madrid for the next couple years. But it’s certainly our goal and our expectation that Nikola will be in a Chicago Bulls uniform somewhere down the line. We’ll continue to monitor his progress and feel really good about the development that’s taking place…. He’s seeing major minutes for Real Madrid. When he does come over, we think he’s really got a chance to be a key piece to what we’re trying to put together."

On the team's long-term outlook:

"We’ve hit a bump in the road. We’re going to take a step back short term. But long term, we’re in as good of position as we feel we’ve ever been in. We’ve got some quality young players and we’ve got some assets on the horizon. We don’t have a lot of financial flexibility right now, but we will in the future."

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Draft Updates: Thursday

June 14th, 2012 at 8:46pm CST by Luke Adams

The countdown until the 2012 draft is down to two weeks, and this week has been heavy on workouts and trade speculation. We'll track the latest news and rumors on both fronts, along with a handful of other draft-related items, right here. New updates will be added to the top of the page throughout the day….

According to their official website, the Pacers will work out Evan Fournier, Ashton Gibbs, Travis Hyman, John Jenkins, Josh Owens, and Tony Wroten Jr. on Friday.

Earlier updates:

Charles F. Gardner Journal Sentinel reported that the Bucks hosted a pre-draft workout today which featured Tyler Zeller, Meyers Leonard, Fab Melo, and Kyle O'Quinn.
Aside from Anthony Davis, ESPN's Ric Bucher thinks that this year's draft still contains big men with star potential, focusing specifically on Andre Drummond, Meyers Leonard, and Thomas Robinson (Insiders only).
Sean Meagher of The Oregonian presents the video interview of Perry Jones III after his workout for the Trail Blazers.
Nate Mulberg of CSN Philly discusses the mutual interest between the 76ers and Terrence Ross.
Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld quoted an NBA executive who thinks that the lottery is loaded with impact rotation players, but not impact starters. Pincus also offered highlights from interviews with JaMychal Green and Kevin Jones.
Tomorrow's workout schedule for the Wizards includes Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Austin Rivers, Terrence Ross, and Tomas Satoransky, according to Michael Lee of The Washington Post (Twitter link). Gene Wang, also of The Washington Post, wrote about today's workout with Hollis Thompson.
Stephen Hewitt of WEEI.com provided a breakdown of Mitchell Watt, a 6'10'' forward out of Buffalo who could be a realistic target for the Celtics' second round pick (51st overall).
Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com wrote an interesting piece on the mental toughness of 27-year-old draft hopeful Bernard James, a 6'10'' power forward who served in the Air Force and did tours in Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq before starring at Florida State. Howard-Cooper also tweeted an update on John Henson, saying that he has no plans to rest his injured ankle in the midst of upcoming workouts with the Suns, Rockets, Bucks, Cavaliers, Raptors, Pistons, and 76ers.
Darren Heitner of Sports Agent Blog briefly documents the separation of Renardo Sidney and his agent, Johnny Foster.
Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld believes John Jenkins and the Bulls could be a perfect fit at pick No. 29.
Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com published the second version of his mock draft today.
Thomas Robinson will work out for the Bobcats on June 22nd, according to SI.com's Sam Amick (Sulia link). Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com calls Robinson the "clear frontrunner" to be picked second overall (Twitter link).
Jeremy Lamb turned an ankle at his Raptors workout this morning, but it's not serious, tweets Sam Amick of SI. According to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (via Twitter), the ankle is sprained, and Lamb will cancel at least his workout with the Blazers.
The Sixers announced in a press release today that they'll work out Moe Harkless and Hollis Thompson tomorrow.
Arnett Moultrie is the biggest name among the six players working out for the Trail Blazers today, tweets Joe Freeman of the Oregonian.
Harrison Barnes and Bradley Beal will work out against one another for the Cavaliers on Saturday, according to Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). The two players are the most likely candidates to be picked at No. 4 by Cleveland, so that will be an intriguing workout.
Discussing potential targets for the Bobcats if they trade their No. 2 pick, Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com names James Harden as a possibility. It's not clear of Goodman's source, who says Harden "could be in play," means the Bobcats will pursue Harden or the Thunder could make him available. Either way, I'm skeptical about how realistic that scenario is. Even with the long-term cap restraints facing the Thunder, overhauling the roster mere days after making the Finals seems unlikely.
SI.com's Sam Amick examines the question marks surrounding John Henson and the rising stock of Miles Plumlee in his latest draft piece.
Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld compares Perry Jones III to Jordan Hamilton, who slipped to 26th overall last year because most teams thought the risk outweighed the upside. Within the same piece, Kyler also says the odds the Bobcats keep a player the select at No. 2 overall are "extremely slim."
The Raptors have a big day of workouts scheduled, with Jeremy Lamb highlighting the first session, Austin Rivers in the second, and Harrison Barnes in an individual workout. Jay Satur of Raptors.com has the details. Unfortunately, Eric Koreen of the National Post passes along a bit of bad news from the first session, tweeting that Lamb left the workout with an apparent injury.
Chad Ford tries his hand at predicting where the players on the first-round bubble will land in an Insider piece for ESPN.com.
Will Barton and five other prospects will work out for the Pacers today, according to Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star.
The Pistons' workouts so far suggest they're eyeing big men not just with their first-round pick but in the second round as well, says Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News.
Bucks.com profiles the prospects that Milwaukee will be working out today.
Damian Lillard thinks he's ready to be an NBA starter, but he probably won't be a fit for the Kings at No. 5, writes Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee.

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Draft Rumors: Monday

June 11th, 2012 at 8:12pm CST by Luke Adams

With the NBA draft just 17 days away, we're guaranteed to be following daily rumors and rumblings for the next two and a half weeks. We'll try to make it as easy as possible to follow the latest updates by including most of our draft-related items in a single daily post. Consider this Monday's post, and check back throughout the day for more draft notes, with the newest additions up top:

In a tweet, AZCentral.com's Paul Coro has wrangled up some news from CBSSports.com's Jeff Goodman and SI.com's Sam Amick. North Carolina teammates Kendall Marshall and John Henson will reportedly work out for the Suns this week.

Earlier updates:

On Tuesday, the Wizards will hold a workout to help decide what direction they want to go with their two second round picks (as of today, the team holds both the 32nd and 46th picks in the draft), tweets Michael Lee of the Washington Post. Some notable names Washington plans to workout are Syracuse's Scoop Jardine, and Duke's Miles Plumlee.
The Trail Blazers will work out North Carolina's John Henson on Tuesday, tweets SI.com's Sam Amick.
Also from Amick, the Kings will work out several players, including North Carolina's Tyler Zeller, on Tuesday. Sacramento currently holds picks 5 and 36.
The Hornets plan on bringing in several point guards and shooting guards when they resume workouts next week, writes Nola.com's John Reid.
After predicting the top 15 picks in the draft last week, TNT's David Aldridge takes a crack at the rest of the first round in this week's NBA.com column.
Royce White and Jordan Taylor are among the six prospects scheduled to work out for the Timberwolves on Tuesday, says Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
The Pistons are eyeing potential fits for the second round, working out Miles Plumlee and Kyle O'Quinn, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News.
Perry Jones III tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com that he'd love to play on the Trail Blazers alongside LaMarcus Aldridge.
The Magic will be prepared for the draft no matter how long it takes to hire a GM, but a lengthy GM search could have other negative effects, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
If the Hornets decide to deal their tenth overall pick, gaining future draft assets is more important to them than ditching bad contracts, says Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. Kyler doesn't expect the Hornets to include players like Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza with the pick in a deal that merely creates cap space. According to Kyler, New Orleans could seeking a 2012 second-rounder along with a future first-rounder in any deal.
Within the same piece, Kyler adds that the Warriors and Knicks have expressed some interest in Alabama's Tony Mitchell.
In a pair of tweets, Kyler says Harrison Barnes did not officially meet with the Bulls, and that a brief chat with coach Tom Thibodeau was blown out of proportion.
The Sixers met with Andre Drummond at the draft combine and could be trying to trade up, since Drummond will be long gone at No. 15, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.
Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com makes some changes in his latest post-combine mock draft.
The Kings will need some help if they want a shot to land Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, writes Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee.

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Central Rumors: Bulls, Barnes, Bucks, Cavs

June 8th, 2012 at 9:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls, who hold the 29th pick, met with small forward Harrison Barnes on Thursday at the draft combine in Chicago, leading K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune to allude to the possibility that the team is thinking of trading up in the draft. That doesn't mean the team is interested in such a deal, of course — the Bulls could simply be trying to get a feel for as many players as they can — but as Johnson notes, Barnes would come in handy as a replacement for Luol Deng if he misses time next season because of his wrist injury. There's been plenty of other draft news from the rest of the Central as well.

The Bulls are focusing on the backcourt as they look toward the draft, according to several players who've worked out for the team, as Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Earlier updates:

Bulls Notes: Taj Gibson, Draft, Derrick Rose

June 7th, 2012 at 9:25pm CST by Daniel Seco

The Bulls seemed poised to make a playoff run this spring when they finished the regular season tied with the Spurs for the best record in the NBA. Derrick Rose, who had missed 27 games over the course of the season, was finally healthy when the team drew a Sixers team that had collapsed in the second half of the season. What ensued continues to give the entire city of Chicago nightmares as the Bulls faithful remains hopeful Rose can regain the form that netted him MVP during the 2010/2011 season. Let's catch up on the latest news and headlines out of Chicago as the franchise's future going forward remains unclear…

Warriors Rumors: Howard, Watson, Malone

June 7th, 2012 at 8:26am CST by Luke Adams

The next few weeks figure to be eventful for the Warriors, who have four picks in this year's draft and should be active in exploring deals. Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle writes in his latest piece that Golden State may face some trade competition from the Raptors, who pick one spot after the Warriors in the draft and are seeking the same thing in a potential trade — an athletic veteran small forward. Here are a few more notes from Simmons' article for the Chronicle….