If you’re a Bulls fan, you might be feeling a bit nauseous this season.  It has been a roller coaster of hot and cold streaks that has us pining for some sense of consistency.  I know we are in a “playoff race” right now (I use the term loosely considering we can’t beat the lowly Nets and even if by some miracle we make it, the Cavs will eat us alive), but something happened after last night’s catastrophe of a game that should make us step back and take a look at some bigger picture issues regarding the Bulls front office and how they deal with personnel.

Just to provide a little background, the Bulls lost a double overtime game to the Nets last night.  Noah, who is on a strict minutes count due to his plantar fasciitis, was only allowed to play 35 minutes.  This game was the second of a back-to-back in which Noah played 33 minutes the night before.  Also, back on February 26, Vinny took a lot of heat for playing Noah 27 minutes when he was told to keep him to 20 minutes or below.  Last night, in double overtime, Noah was pulled after playing a little over 35 minutes.  The Bulls got smoked in the Noah-less OT period and went on to lose the game.  And the controversy begins:

“He has a 35-minute limit, so I had to get him out of the game,” Del Negro said.

But general manager Gar Forman said that Del Negro could have played Noah more.

According to Forman, who was at the game, player development assistant Lindsey Hunter, who sits behind the bench, approached him after regulation and asked if Noah could play additional minutes.

Forman said he called executive vice president John Paxson (who was home) and was given clearance for Noah to exceed the limit. Forman also said that message was relayed to Del Negro on the bench.

So what’s the big deal?  It was a simple miscommunication, right?  Maybe.  But why would Gar go to the media with this before even talking to Vinny about it?  Here’s why.  This is part of a pattern of management strategy the Bulls (and many teams, frankly) employ when they are trying to cut ties with a member of the organization. 

Before I give the list, I want to make clear that I’m not saying any of these guys were in the right or that the Bulls should have made stronger efforts to keep them.  I’m just saying that management has used a very shady and backstabbing strategy in recent years to justify sending people out of town.  Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas, and to a lesser extent, Tyson Chandler.  What do those names have in common?  Most likely it’s that Bulls fans were relieved to finally get rid of them after drama/injuries that surrounded them.  But ask yourself: Who created that drama?

In Ben Gordon’s case, it was well-known that both him and Deng would be negotiating new contracts at the same time and that the Bulls would unlikely be able to afford both of them.  This became especially true after all that money was thrown at Ben Wallace and the Bulls cap flexibility was strained.  Reinsdorf always preferred Deng and Bulls management did everything in its power to hang Ben out to dry and make him look bad.  He was riding the bench for years while far inferior players were starting (see: Chris Duhon).  And then when he essentially told the Bulls he would not accept a certain amount, they offered it to him anyways.  He of course rejected it, but even after he tried to reconsider, the Bulls didn’t give him a chance (presumably because the offer was a ploy in the first place to make him look bad).

Tyrus Thomas was a similar situation.  Sure he was a head case in his own right, but the Bulls knew the kind of person he was when they drafted him.  Instead of giving him guidance and support, they hung him out to dry at every turn.  The Bulls management continually splashed quotes all over the local media about how immature and unfocused he was.  Why not keep that internal?

Here’s why:  The Bulls were building a case to justify moving these people out of town.  If you are a Bulls fan, you are sitting there thinking “I didn’t need to be convinced, those guys sucked”.  Maybe you are right, but that didn’t stop the Bulls from making sure to vilify these people so that they could avoid any sort of fan backlash.

Which brings us back to Vinny.  Sure he should be fired, and I’m the first one who will tell you that.  But there are some around the league and even in Chicago who feel he has not only improved significantly this year, but that he has done a good job with an injured and depleted Bulls team whose front office is essentially trying to tank this season for summer of 2010 free agent frenzy.  Doesn’t it seem strange that Gar would make those comments to the media?  Why not keep something like that internal?  Because Vinny is on his way out, and apparently the Bulls front office believes they must build their case once again by disparaging its own personnel while they are still employed with the team.

I wouldn’t want to work for an organization like that.  Would you?

This interview from ESPN is the first time I have ever heard Derrick Rose say anything.  I mean sure he has been interviewed in the past, but usually his responses are all cliche “We gave 110% tonight” type answers.  He actually discusses how Vinny’s job instability is affecting the team, Ben Gordon, and a host of other things.  It’s a must-watch for any Bulls fan. Enjoy!

h/t: Docksquad Sports

Before I answer the question about Chicago moving on from Ben Gordon, let me throw some numbers at you:

2008-2009 (w/Ben Gordon):

FG%: .457 (16th)
PPG: 105.1 (8th)
Opponents FG%: .458 (15th)

2009-2010 (w/o Ben Gordon):

FG%: .433 (27th)
PPG: 91.4 (27th)
Opponents FG%: .457 (18th)

The obvious answer to the question posed is that this city was over him about 6 months after he won 6th Man of the Year.  I will never understand why.  After all that hater talk about how bad his defense was and how all his turnovers were killing the Bulls on offense, it sure looks to me like the Bulls are missing Gordon, wouldn’t you say?  Sure he took some bad shots, but he hit a lot more of those than the “good” shots that Vinny and the Bulls have been creating for themselves lately.  And its not like the team defense has improved all that much without him, as opponents’ fg% has dropped only 1/100th of a percent this season.

Okay, I am not going to rehash my defense of Ben Gordon here.  The bottom line is that a poor shooting Bulls team right now looks in desperate need of him.  Remember how frustrating it was that Vinny couldn’t seem to draw up plays at the end of games (or ever really) that involved BG dribbling around like a chicken with his head cut off, and then jacking up a terrible shot?  Sure it went in a good amount of the time, since we all know he hit some big shots in his career, but it was difficult to watch.  Well guess what?  Now we don’t even have that.  Rose refuses to pull the trigger, Salmons and Hinrich might as well be shooting blindfolded, and Brad Miller is, well, Brad Miller.

So as Gordon returns to town with claims of having “moved on”, and I believe he has since this team and city basically took a shit on him for most of his career here (Skiles bringing him off the bench for 3 years, Paxson not giving him an extension, Paxson not giving him an extension, etc), the question is, have the Bulls REALLY moved on?  Perhaps psychologically the break with Gordon was occurring since his first day here, but in terms of what the Bulls really need to succeed this season, the people that truly understand basketball know what he meant to the team and we miss him.  Bad.

The Bulls have started 1-2, which in all honesty is a miracle considering they played San Antonio at home and Boston and Miami on the road.  The Bears on the other hand, have now moved to 4-3 after a solid pummeling of the lowly Browns.  It was a very busy sports weekend here in Chicago, but truth be told, there were really only a couple big things we learned from our two teams (and some little things on the side).

Chicago Bears: The Browns offense and run defense is completely inept.  Like so inept that I guarantee we will see Chicago sportswriters praising the Bears defense and run game as “back on track” over the next week.

Chicago Bulls: We need Ben Gordon.  The haters were completely right about BG.  The team looks way more cohesive and focused on the defensive end without him.  Unfortunately its not quite enough to offset the team’s 33% field goal percentage so far this season.  That’s good for 27th in the league and is just embarrassingly low.  Wait wait, that’s not all.  The Bulls are shooting a crisp 16% from behind the arc, good for dead last in the NBA.

So things aren’t all that rosy around here this week.  That being said, the Bears did prove that they weren’t quite as bad as the shellacking they took from the Bengals last week, although I don’t know that they have shown they can get the 11 necessary wins to secure a playoff spot.  For the Bulls, it is way too early to panic, but the shooting woes need to get fixed quickly or its going to be a long winter.

Whether you are happy, sad, or indifferent about Gordon leaving the Bulls, it will be weird to see him in a Pistons jersey this season.  Well I had my “Gordon as a Piston” cherry popped today when I saw this on BDL.  Enjoy the picture and have a great weekend.

There are a few truths that anyone who has ever read this site knows I believe in: Milton Bradley was screwed by the Chicago baseball establishment, I would consider going gay for Michael Jordan, Derrick Rose and Jay Cutler are the best things since sliced bread, the NBA is more interesting than the NHL, Cubs fans are racist, and most pertinent to this post, I will defend Ben Gordon’s value to the Bulls 10 times more than he has ever defended anyone on the court.

Well folks, it looks like someone finally agrees with me on that last one.  And not just anyone, mind you, but Wayne Winston, the official statistics expert of the Dallas Mavericks (Hollinger and others have echoed this sentiment to some extent as well).  Ben Gordon is in fact extremely effective, even with his lack of defense:

On Truehoop.com I was (correctly) quoted as saying the Bulls should not have let Ben Gordon go, especially to a bitter divisional rival (Detroit). Gordon’s performance has been erratic but last year was 18th in the league in our Adjusted +/- and he was 4th in Impact, which measure how you change the chance that your team wins. If you saw the Celtics-Bulls series you saw how his clutch shooting can change a game. In 2007-2008 Gordon had a negative impact, but this could be because the team was poor and  many players mail it in when the games have no meaning.  His offense held up in 2007-2008 but his defense was very poor, leading me to believe he might have mailed it in near the end of the season, In 2004-2005 Gordon had the the league’s 2nd best impact!. He plays over 30 minutes a game.   While below average on defense, he is always an above average offensive player.  The Bulls were at their best against the Celtics with Miller, Gordon, Hinrich and Rose on the court. They won by around a point a minute with these guys on the court. This 4 man combo cannot be used anymore. Is Ben a bad influence off the court? I have no idea. But on the court he will be missed.

The Truehoop post can be found here for anyone who is interested.  Winston acknowledges, as do I, that Gordon’s defense is poor, but his offensive efficiency more than makes up for it.  I do not agree with him that the Bulls will necessarily be a terrible team this year because of the loss of Gordon, however.  As I explained in an earlier post, the combination of Kirk, Deng and Salmons taking his minutes on defense, coupled with Rose’s expected improvement, should make up for it to a certain extent.  All that being said, can everyone please stop telling me how terrible Gordon was for the Bulls and how much of a retard I am for thinking that?  Thanks.

We haven’t heard much about the Bulls in the news lately, but with the preseason right around the corner, it’s as good a time as any to start thinking about the season.  Most people feel that the Bulls could be as high as a top 4 seed in the East, or as low as 10th.  With the departure of Ben Gordon, most people are focused on replacing his points on the offensive end.  Other big factors being thrown out there are Rose taking the next step, Deng coming back strong from injury, and even Noah and Thomas refining and developing their post game.

But what about defense?  If the Bulls all play the exact same as they did last year, minus Gordon’s defensive deficiencies (which were overblown, but did exist…we don’t have to go over this again), then its safe to say Rose, Salmons and a rejuvenated Deng will replace his offense and the Bulls will be a similar team in terms of wins and losses.  The biggest difference we could see which could catapult us up the Eastern ladder, or down into the cellar, is defense.  The organization seems to agree with that:

“We’re all on the same page that we must get better defensively,” Forman said.

“We’ll emphasize defense. We’ll emphasize rebounding,” added second-year coach Vinny Del Negro. “Offense usually takes care of itself.”

Defense.  That’s the key.  While many fans are looking forward to the big free agent summer of 2010, the Bulls’ heads are in the right place for the upcoming season.  Defense is the key to this team taking a step forward.  If Kirk, Salmons and a healthy Deng are taking most or all of Gordon’s minutes, the defense will have to improve, but how much?  Skiles may have been a dick, but everyone who ever played for him played defense with more intensity.  That has been missing the last couple years from Hinrich especially.

Oh, and Vinny?  I wouldn’t plan on the offense “tak[ing] care of itself”.  You already tried that last year and it did not work at all.  Sounds like he doesn’t really have a strategy (again).  Rose covers up the weaknesses of that with his great ability to score in transition and improvise in the halfcourt, but at some point there will need to be some structure on the offensive end.

We have covered this from every different angle here, but the issue of whether Ben Gordon was the kind of player Bulls fans want on their team won’t truly be answered until we see how they look this fall without him.  In the meantime, for all you doubters, here’s a little farewell video montage to Ben Gordon.

Trust me Bulls fans, you will miss him.

h/t: BDL

The NBA came out with its new salary cap numbers yesterday.  Basically the cap is set at $57.7 million (down a bit from last year) and the luxury tax number is $69.92 million.  That means for every dollar a team goes over the luxury tax number, they must pay a dollar for dollar penalty.  As we know, the Bulls will not go over that tax, even though they have one of the top revenues in the league year-after-year.  Why, you ask?  Because Reinsdorf needs to make sure his great-great-great-great grandkids get the most expensive yacht on the market.  Yeah I went there.

Anyways, the new tax numbers, while not unexpected, are bad news for Bulls fans hoping to make any kind of splash in free agency.  Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald summarized the problem, I mean Bulls salary situation:

Bulls 2009-10 payroll
Brad Miller $12.25 million
Luol Deng $10.37 million
Kirk Hinrich $9.5 million
Jerome James $6.6 million
Tim Thomas $6.47 million
John Salmons $6.35 million
Derrick Rose $5.18 million
Tyrus Thomas $4.74 million
Joakim Noah $2.46 million
Aaron Gray $1.0 million
James Johnson $1.59 million
Taj Gibson $1.04 million

Total, including Gray: $67.544
Luxury tax threshold: $69.92 million

So there you have it.  With less than $3 million left under the cap, the Bulls options are pretty limited.  Pargo may be willing to sign for that much, but that would put an end to the Bulls spending.  Its possible a trade could free up a few million, but under the current CBA all trades have to include substantially similar salaries changing sides.  Ben Gordon’s $11 million a year was clearly out of reach.  Besides a few minor tweaks, you can probably expect that list to be your 2009-2010 Chicago Bulls.

Sidenote: Why did they offer Aaron Gray the $1 million qualifying offer?  Just curious…

With the departure of Ben Gordon, the Bulls are trying to appease frustrated fans who feel that the Bulls let Gordon walk for nothing without any backup plan in place.  Even fans who hate Gordon (and there’s a lot of you), Gordon leaving obviously hurts the team without anyone to really replace him.  In general, most people feel like the 2009-2010 season is kind of a wash and it doesn’t matter what happens in 2009.  The most important thing is not to lock the team into any huge long-term deals that would handicap their ability to pursue the big 2010 free agents.  It would be nice, however, to get some help in the backcourt for Rose in the interim, and possibly try to solve the neverending problem of getting a legitimate post scorer.

Unfortunately, the Bulls seem to be a little lost on what they are doing.  If Gar Paxdorf just did nothing and waited for 2010, that would be better than some of these rumors we are hearing.  Let’s look at the three main ones and discuss exactly why they are retarded:

Allen Iverson: Supposedly, with Gordon about to sign on to the Pistons, the Bulls are looking at possibly sign and trading for AI.  Don’t get me wrong, I love AI.  No one plays with more heart, every single game.  The problem with AI is that he needs to have the ball in his hands, and he needs to be the focal point of an offense.  Although he will probably be looking for a multi-year deal, it won’t be too expensive, but that’s not the problem.  The problem is our one most important goal this upcoming season is the development and growth of Derrick Rose.  How will bringing in essentially a ballhog help the Bulls towards that goal?  It won’t.

Jannero Pargo: Seriously?  I mean Rose needs some backcourt help, but Ben Gordon lite?  He is like the really really poor man’s Gordon.  Why not bring in a young cheap guy that has something to prove, instead of a 30 year old defensive liability?  We already had this guy and I remember calling him a garbage-time all-star.  Just because he had one mediocre season in New Orleans two years ago doesn’t mean that nickname doesn’t still apply.

Carlos Boozer: Most of you are probably saying, “I understand why you don’t want the other guys, but come on, Boozer is a legit post presence that we’ve been looking for since, well, since forever”.  While this is the best rumor that I’ve heard out there, there are a number of problems with it.  First off, the character issues are rampant with Boozer.  It’s tough to forget how badly he screwed the Cleveland organization a few summers ago, when they let him out of his deal (which they didn’t have to do) to resign him to a bigger deal and essentially give him a raise, but instead he took the “opportunity” to sign a huge deal with the Jazz.  Loyalty means nothing to a guy like this.  What about talent, you say?  No one will argue that Boozer can score and rebound, but the guy is a terrible defender.  Not only that, but more importantly, anyone we bring in must be compatible with Rose.  Can Boozer run with Rose?  I don’t think so, he is lazy getting back on transition defense and getting out in transition offense.  This is the best option obviously, but it just doesn’t seem like he would be a good pair with Rose.  The one main thing that really makes this guy attractive is that his deal expires at the end of the season, so it could be a one-and-done deal, if the Bulls weren’t inclined to offer him an extension.  Regardless, he just seems all wrong for the Bulls new up-tempo offense led by Rose.

So overall none of these moves really makes much sense, especially in light of the fact that the Bulls are legitimate contenders in the 2010 free agent sweepstakes.  Rumors also have the Bulls looking at Nate Robinson, although he would probably put them into the luxury tax this year and command a deal that extended past next summer.  Instead, go out and get a young Rashard McCants type.  Someone cheap with something to prove to play next to Rose.  Then sit on your hands and see if a good trade can get done before the deadline or just wait out next summer.

The debate here at NQTC over Ben Gordon has raged on for a while now and his departure has only served to stir it up even more. Clearly I have been a Ben Gordon supporter from day 1, although I will be the first to admit that his game has some severe flaws. Regardless, an interesting question surrounding a backcourt without Gordon has arisen: How will it effect Derrick Rose? TrueHoop took an in-depth look and here are some of the conclusions they made:

On Gordon’s positive effects on Rose

• Ben Gordon: More efficient than you think, given the volume of shots he launched on a nightly basis. As a 41% shooter from beyond the arc in 2008-09, Gordon was a classic floor-spacer for the Bulls. Since smart opponents were loath to leave Gordon on the perimeter to help, this allowed the rookie to attack the defense, which is the most potent feature of Rose’s game. With a less lethal shooting guard on the weak side, Rose might find defensive help and double-teams heading his way early and often next season.
• Rose is a natural penetrator. His drives-and-kick often resulted in a pass-out to Gordon once the defense collapsed, particularly in end-of-shot-clock situations. The luxury of having Gordon on the perimeter — ready and eager to shoot — took a lot of pressure of Rose, who didn’t have to be the guy in every series. On a team with very little help up front offensively, Gordon was indispensable.

On problems Gordon caused for Rose

• Although Gordon was a dynamic one-on-one player for the Bulls, he rarely created opportunities for anyone else on the court. That left virtually all of the playmaking duties to Rose. If ever there’s a young point guard who could handle that burden, it’s Rose, but Gordon’s tunnel vision made life more difficult than it needed to be for the rookie. Rose has the potential to be a very good off-the-ball player. Unfortunately, Gordon’s tendencies didn’t allow those skills to flourish for Rose. A shooting guard with a greater capacity to facilitate will help Rose develop that part of his game.
• Gordon, to put it kindly, was a below-average defender at the two for Chicago. And Rose, though his defense will almost certain improve with age, was no great shakes on the other side of the ball either. Some of Gordon’s deficiencies can be chalked up to inattentiveness, but he’s also quite small for a shooting guard. Either way, Vinny Del Negro didn’t have the comfort to cross-match his smalls, which meant that Rose spent almost all of his time guarding the ball. A more capable defender at the two would afford Rose a breather on defense.

On what Salmons and Hinrich can do for Rose in the backcourt:

• Salmons is more of a natural small forward, but could very well land as the Bulls’ opening night starter at the shooting guard. He’s not the one-on-one player Gordon was by any stretch, but he shot a respectable 41.7% from 3-point range last season (better than Gordon), and is a far superior defender on the wing. The downside for Rose will be that, regardless of what the number say, defenses will be far more likely to move off Salmons to collapse on Rose.
• Back in January, TrueHoop examined how Rose and Hinrich play together as a backcourt tandem. There’s real value in having two guards on opposite sides of the court who can both handle the ball and initiate the action. In addition, Hinrich is a pesky defender who can spell Rose defensively at the one. It won’t always be a viable option — don’t expect Rose to draw Dwyane Wade or Vince Carter — but Hinrich gives Del Negro a lot more defensive flexibility. On the downside, Hinrich is a below-average offensive player who, at times, has trouble breaking down a defense, and gets to the line about once every election cycle. While his presence allows Rose to work off-the-ball, that doesn’t mean Hinrich can always capitalize on that scheme.

Happy 4th of July everyone!

So thus ends the tale of Ben Gordon and the Chicago Bulls.  In general he was underappreciated by the fans, media and the organization as a whole.  He was exactly what he purported to be, which was a pure shooter and an explosive offensive threat.  His defensive skillset was not as bad as most people thought (though I might be the only one who feels that way), but we all agree his strengths were on the offensive end.

Now he goes to Detroit, and StevieY pointed out to me that they appear to be trying to create a UConn reunion.  With Rip already a part of the team, and now Gordon and Villanueva joining up, the only logical next step is to go out and acquire Hasheem Thabeet and Ray Allen and call it a day.  In all seriousness, this makes the Pistons annoyingly competitive.  Not competitive in a Championship sense, but competitive enough to give the Bulls problems in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference playoff race.  On the bright side, this cuts into the Pistons ability to compete for free agents over the next 5 years since they have a decent chunk of change wrapped up in these guys.  Gordon’s contract is reported at 5 years $55 million and Villanueva’s is 5 years $40 million.  Those two guys together equal 1/3 of the Pistons cap space, with the Cap unlikely to rise anytime soon (it may even shrink this summer).  Hopefully this will keep Detroit mired in mediocrity for a while while the Bulls shoot past them in the standings over the next few seasons.

For Ben Gordon himself, it is really an unfortunate situation that he was treated like crap while Deng was so beloved and got rewarded the big contract.  Not to say Deng didn’t deserve it, but the fact of the matter is that Ben Gordon was one of the top 10 shooting guards in the league by most statistical metrics for the last few years, while Deng was injured and performing at an average rate, and management and fans were all certain he would “take that next step” (He’s still injured, by the way).  If I were Ben Gordon, I would feel similar to the way he feels.  Would I have rejected the 5 year $50 million dollars that the Bulls were offering me the past 2 summers?  Probably not.  But whether he really rejected them or whether he was being jerked around by Paxdorf, the fact that the organization continually made him look like the selfish bad guy in the media would have been enough for me to say “see you later”.  Ben Gordon was a hard working gym rat who was very coachable and well-liked by his teammates.  Hopefully Detroit understands and appreciates his skills and attitude and doesn’t continually hang him out to dry like they did in Chicago.  The big difference now is that he is playing under the weight of a huge contract and with huge contracts come huge expectations.

For the Bulls, this changes things a bit.  It is good to finally be done with the Ben Gordon saga, which seemed never ending.  Also he would have put the Bulls into the luxury tax (though only for a year and then they would have BG AND the space needed to sign a big name free agent like Bosh or Wade).  The problem is that their starting lineup is now: Rose, Hinrich, Deng/Salmons, Thomas, Noah.  Hinrich is very effective and if he can get back to the defense that he earned him his reputation as a tough player, it could be an effective lineup.  Whether he does or not, however, where will the scoring come from?  Rose?  Salmons?  Sure those guys can score, but replacing 20+ points a night (and as efficiently as BG’s excellent 45% shooting) will be very tough.  You have to think Gar Paxdorf has more moves in mind, but moving Kirk may be more difficult than it seems, since he is on the hook for $11 million a year and his contract extends past the 2010 free agent bonanza.

Overall I think this was a good move for the Bulls and Gordon and an extremely risky one for the Pistons.  Hopefully the Bulls can find a replacement for BG’s scoring, and hopefully the Pistons have locked themselves into mediocrity for the next 5 seasons.  Only time will tell.

• Here are two relatively new Bulls rumors.  Pick 16 and 26 for the Nets 11th pick sounds fine to me I guess.  Then this crazy Hinrich to Portland rumor that I could definitely get behind. [Yahoo Rumors] + [Blogabull]
• Dusty Baker must be kidding about not knowing his players were using steroids.  He presided over two of the best hitters (who coincidentally did steroids) of the modern baseball era.  [Bleacher Nation]
• DeRosa was good as a Cub, but does he deserve the adoration he got at Wrigley Field this weekend?  I think he did, but some clearly did not. [WV23]
• An old school high school slam dunk contest featuring Kobe Bryant and Tim Thomas.  [Pippen Ain't Easy]
• Random retro Cubs player.  I love this feature.  Hopefully we get to see some Henry Rodriguez and of course Ron Cey. [Friendly Blogfines]
• Ben Gordon talks about his situation heading into free agency. [Docksquad]
• Speaking of Ben Gordon, didn’t you find it strange that he claimed to have that ludicrous offer from Detroit?  Besides the legal implications (it is a violation of rules to make offers to free agents before the period begins July 1), I wonder what Gordon actually knows and doesn’t know about his own situation.  KD takes an interesting look at BG’s situation. [BDL]
• Baseball Players Union head Donald Fehr is resigning.  He did a lot of great things for players’ salaries and benefits, but boy did he dick up the steroid thing. [Shysterball]
• Kerry Wood looked miserable in his return to Wrigley Field.  Who cares?  I love the guy no matter what he does.  [Tribune]

Lost in America’s obsession with LeBron James and the possibility of Shaquille O’Neal joining him in Cleveland is the fact that CLEVELAND HAS NOTHING TO OFFER in exchange!  On the other hand, the Suns have been interested in Luol Deng since they drafted him in 2004 (he was immediately traded to the Bulls).  Not only that, but there are some reports out of Phoenix that they may be interested in dealing for Deng (h/t: Rod Beck’s Mullet):

The Arizona Republic wrote late Sunday of a rumor that involved the Suns getting Deng, Tim Thomas and another player for O’Neal.

The Bulls would be able to make a little noise in the East with O’Neal in the paint, while also freeing up cap room for 2010.

With Salmons on the payroll, I can’t imagine a better scenario than this for the Bulls.  The Bulls would be able to unload Deng’s enormous contract and take another expiring deal for 2010.  Dwayne Wade?  Chris Bosh?  All are affordable in 2010 without this deal, but the Bulls could go out and get a big name and add other pieces if they got the flexibility that would come with Shaq’s contract.  Or maybe even resign Gordon.

Unless of course, Gordon leaves (which seems likely).  In fact, according to Ben Gordon, he has a standing offer of $11 million on the table from the Pistons:

I haven’t heard they are, and General Manager Gar Forman has not come off his stance that he wants to bring Gordon back. But I also heard that Gordon’s agent allegedly has been saying he has an $11 million promise from the Pistons.

If Gordon leaves and the Shaq trade miraculously materializes, the Bulls lineup would then presumably look something like this:

PG: Rose

SG: Hinrich

SF: Salmons

PF: Tyrus

C: Shaq

Bench: Noah, Miller, Gordon(?)

Not bad for 2009-2010, and then after that, the possibilities are endless.  Are any of these rumors going to come true?

A few days ago I had a conversation with NQTC reader Black Rob.  I sent him a link to a story about the Raptors trading Jason Kapono to the 76ers for Reggie Evans, a power forward.  I remarked “Does that qualify as news” after I sent the link.  He laughed because we both knew that it was a minor meaningless trade that no one gave a shit about.  Until now that is.  A Bleacher Report story is speculating that the deal may have meant a lot more than I originally thought:

This deal wasn’t anything major, which is probably why nobody either noticed or cared that it took place on the day of Game Three of the Magic-Lakers Championship series. But the domino effect that might happen could be something everyone notices.

Let me state again, for emphasis, what the Raptors did yesterday: They traded for a power forward.

This comes within a handful of days of the Raptors’ franchise player, Chris Bosh, saying he would join Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter on the list of Toronto’s former franchise players after the 2009-10 season.

There have been rumors since before the trade deadline this spring that there are nearly a dozen teams interested in the young superstar, but this specific trade brings one rumored exchange into focus.

The Chicago Bulls are looking at losing guard Ben Gordon either in free agency or, more likely, in a sign-and-trade deal this summer.

Gordon’s name was linked to rumors about Bosh before last season, and his playoff performances against the Boston Celtics certainly raised his profile as an elite scorer in the league.

So is this move a precursor to a bigger deal with Toronto?  Logically it makes sense for both teams, working under the assumption that Bosh will be fleeing Toronto the second the 2010 summer hits.  The report further speculates on who the Bulls might send in a package for Bosh:

The Bulls have a lot of options that might look good to Toronto. They have two first round draft picks in this summer’s NBA draft and have a couple of young bigs in Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas that might be part of a package with a signed-and-traded Gordon.

The trade that would make the most sense in my mind would be Tyrus, Gordon and the #16 pick for Bosh.  That would leave us with a starting lineup of Rose, Salmons/Kirk, Deng, Bosh and Noah with Miller and Salmons/Kirk coming off the bench.  I know some of you would rather see Noah go and keep Tyrus, but I think it would be important to keep Bosh at his natural position of PF.  If Noah were gone, he would have to start at the 5 with TT at the 4.

Wait wait wait!  Don’t pinch me yet…..okay now I’m ready to wake up.  It was a nice dream though, wasn’t it?