Stacey King: "A sick dunk from Asik."

There is plenty of tape of the Bulls’ new additions including Carlos Boozer, Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer, CJ Watson and Kurt Thomas. We generally have an idea of what each of these players will bring to the court this upcoming season. This is not the case with Bulls import, Omer Asik.

Asik, whom the Bulls picked up from the second round of the 2008 NBA Draft, hails from Turkey. He played the majority of his games for Fenerbache Ulker and had some considerable success (mostly shot blocking) in Euroleague contests. Hopefully, we’ll get a chance to see Asik play against some higher level competition in August and September when he suits up for the Turkish National Team at the World Championships in Turkey.

Until then, head on over to NBAPlaybook.com for a detailed analysis of Asik’s strengths and considerable weaknesses with supporting video evidence. Looks like he has some ability to finish at the rim, but I agree with the assessment that he looks pretty weak. Some sites have him at 7’0″ but in truth, he probably is closer to 6’11″. And at that height and 230 lbs he’s going to be pushed around a lot in the NBA. Yet, if all he does is keep someone else from getting a clean shot at a rebound, I’ll trust Taj or Joakim to come away with any deflections that he can’t pull down himself.

At 6:50 pm on May 13, I prepared my computer to track the Cavaliers-Celtics game that was to start ten minutes later. I wasn’t sure what the outcome would be but I knew that a Celtics win would be bad news for the future of Lebron James in Cleveland. That’s when I turned around in my chair and looked west toward the United Center. There it was, a sign from the heavens, with clouds breaking and one lone beam of light shining down on the corner of Damen and Madison Avenues on Chicago’s West Side. It was at that moment that I knew the Celtics would emerge victorious and the Lebron James Sweepstakes would begin.

The chatter in the press and amongst fans has not subsided in the last three weeks. The only person who hasn’t come out with an opinion on the matter seems to be Lebron himself. (Did anyone really believe him when he said Cleveland still has the edge?)

• World Wide Wes, a long time advisor of James and others in the NBA, has Lebron going to Chicago.
• Carmelo Anthony thinks Lebron is staying in Cleveland. Funny that you would think that Melo, that would mean more dollars available to you next year as the lead dog in the 2011 Free Agent Class.
• Jay-Z isn’t going to push Lebron to come to the Nets, because he would feel guilty if they started 4-30 next year. Ouch, that’s not really a vote of confidence from a minority owner.
• No one outside of Manhattan seems to think the Knicks still have a shot, with Charles Oakley going as far as saying he would tell Lebron to go to the Heat and pair with D Wade or the Bulls.
• A contributor from Bleacher Report proclaims Miami is the front runner for Lebron, all but assuming D Wade will also stay with the Heat.
• This is my favorite rumor that was floated/advanced by Bill Simmons during his Game 2 Live Chat on Sunday. Tom Thibodeau, the new unofficial head coach of the Chicago Bulls, once served as an assistant coach at Harvard University. One of the players he took under his wing? Arne Duncan, who is now U.S. Secretary of Education. Who’s Duncan’s boss? Barack Obama. For the uninformed, he’s the President of the United States of America. And when the POTUS asks you to play for his adopted hometown team, you ask him how high. Am I right?!

By Paul M. Banks, Founder/President of The Sports Bank.net

Forget the first round series loss to top-seeded Cleveland, the Chicago Bulls 2009-10 season actually begins on July 1st, the opening of the free agent signing period.

NO ONE got excited about a 41-41 team sneaking barely into the playoffs and somehow taking one game of series that everyone knew was a lost cause. After all, this was the same squad that went 0-10 down the stretch in every game played without Center Joakim Noah. A week after the season ended, The Bulls finally fired their joke of a head coach Vinny Del Negro, whose greatest 2010 offenses included the international shoe-tying incident versus Toronto and blowing a record lead at home to lowly Sacramento.

Superstar in the making and 2009 NBA Rookie of the Year Derrick Rose took another step forward, becoming the franchise’s first All-Star since the Jordan era. He became the guy you can rely on to take the big shot at the end and also scored a new career high 37 twice during the regular season.Now we move on to the opportunity to land LeBron, Dwanye Wade (born and raised just outside Chicago, a maximum deal and chance to come home is a big selling-point!) Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson etc.

The Bulls could easily vault to the top of the East if they a big name free agent to add to their current nucleus of Derrick Rose, Noah, Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich and Taj Gibson. Add in James Johnson and those are the only players under contract for next season.  Throw in the 17th pick in the draft and a remaining $9 million in cap space (after spending a max contract on a fa) and the Bulls are as big a player in free agency as anyone.

The immediate concern is more focused on coach than Craig T. Nelson. But once they find a new leader, things get real interesting, as the Bulls find out which superstar, if any, will take their money.

2010-11 Projected Depth Chart:

C: Joakim Noah/Brad Miller

PF: Taj Gibson/Hakim Warrick

SF: Luol Deng/James Johnson

SG: Kirk Hinrich/Flip Murray

PG: Derrick Rose/Kirk Hinrich

NBA Draft Picks:

#17

NBA Free Agents:

all unrestricted:

Brad Miller

Jannero Pargo

Jerome James

Tim Thomas

Hakim Warrick

Joe Alexander

Acie Law

Flip Murray

Devin Brown

Chris Richard

2010-11 Team Salary: Approximately $31.8 million

2010-11 Expected League Salary Cap: $56.1 million

NBA Offseason Needs:

1. Closing the free agent deal- We’ve all heard the hype, now it’s time to make it happen. The Bulls cleared out as much cap space as possible so they could in the words of Jay-Z, “play monopoly with real cash.” Whoever signs with the Bulls will be in a MUCH  better situation than New York or New Jersey, because the Bulls are an excellent big market destination, but not a complete rebuilding project. In Rose and Noah, the Bulls already have two legit pieces, and that’s a huge selling point.

However, here’s what they have going against them: the Michael Jordan factor. We all know the Bulls have had big trouble recently grabbing top tier free agents, and the reason why, according to Bulls insiders espousing their theories within the restricted areas of the United Center is MJ. Word got around quick about how management mistreated Jordan whenever he returned to the UC, and (supposedly) many players are hesitant to come to Chicago to try and live up to the great one’s legacy. Maybe this offseason will extinguish this theory?

2. Front-court offense- The Bulls’ biggest need is obviously a coach who cares about strategic substitution, game-planning and decision making, since Vinny Del Negro did none of that during his two year tenure. To his credit, he wasn’t the worst coach in the state of Illinois- Ron Zook still has that distinction.

After that, the team obviously needs front line consistency. They were finally able to find a buyer for Tyrus Thomas, a big step in the right direction, but the rise of Taj Gibson at the four will never equal consistent front court offense. In Chicago, it seems like the need for a scoring big has been as long as their championship droughts in hockey (Blackhawks 1961) and baseball (Cubs 1908).

But Joakim Noah’s arc trends upward. He followed through on his bulking up to augment his game talk. He’ll never be a big time scorer, but is among the best double-double machines in the league. The Bulls must find a scoring big to complement him down low. Chris Bosh set new career-highs in points, rebounds per game, and field goal percentage this past season. Since Chicago kept Toronto out of the playoffs, they might as well poach their best player too. Yes, karmic payback from the shoe-tying incident is a b—-!

3. Perimeter scoring– Since Ben Gordon left town a year ago, the Chi has had two huge voids at guard: 1.) somebody to take the scoring load off of Rose, letting him become more of a distributor. 2.) a legitimate, consistent three-point threat.

Other than Rose, they have no superstars or anyone with superstar potential. (Luol Deng’s contract, which will pay him $10 million-plus per year through 2014, is superstar, but his talent certainly is not) This team often settles for “the worst shot in all of basketball,” low percentage/ long two point field goals, on so many of their offensive sets that you’d think they get more of their scoring from deep on the wings. I’d like to see the Bulls take Oklahoma State shooting guard James Anderson, who should be available when they’re on the clock at #17.

Paul M. Banks is Founder/President of The Sports Bank.net, an Upper Midwest sports webzine. He’s also a member of the Football Writers Association of America, the United States Basketball Writers Association and a sports writer for the Washington Times.com Communities and Walter Football.com

Like a kid having trouble sleeping on Christmas Eve, I sat up last night thinking about what exactly would be said this morning at the Berto Center. For much of the season I was on Team Gar-Pax, but after the March 30th incident, I began to drift over to Team Vinny. Now that didn’t mean that I necessarily wanted Vinny to stay on and coach next year, but I did feel a little bit more blame could be placed on management for not acquiring a replacement for Ben Gordon’s 3-pt shooting.

I had concluded that I would try to take up Henry Abbott from TrueHoop’s challenge to write a recap focusing on defense only. I figured that would be easy as I expected Gar-Pax to be extremely defensive about their decision to hire Vinny in the first place, not firing him in the winter when they offered him little to no support, the March 30th incident, and the firing of a coach that brought a young team to the playoffs two years in a row.

If the Forman or Paxson were defensive in today’s press conference they must have been watching Golden State game tape (lack of defense, not the whole completely dysfunctional organization part). In what I thought a wise choice, they refrained from double-teaming the press, instead choosing to go with a man-to-man approach.

Forman went first, as a GM should, and acknowledged that Vinny Del Negro had worked hard, and had certainly done some good things with the Bulls. I thought it was odd that when asked why they fired Del Negro, Forman responded there was not “anything specific” and then went on to say that where they were just wasn’t where they wanted to get.  I can’t quite remember but didn’t the Bulls make the playoffs these past two seasons? Even more remarkable this year considering they struggled with numerous injuries, BG’s departure, ho-hum free agent signings and two significant trades during the season? Where else did they expect the Bulls “to get”? What Forman really meant to say was that they didn’t believe Vinny could get them to where they wanted to go.

Forman was clear, in his last bit of defense he played, that he would let the media drive past him and discuss the March 30th incident with the man responsible for it, John Paxson, sliding over to provide the weak side help defense. Interestingly enough, he said that Paxson wanted to address the matter with the media immediately after it happened, but Forman told him to hold off until the end of the season to avoid distraction (Whoops!).

From there Forman then went on the offensive, turning the press conference into an extended free agency pitch. It was as if they were saying “we know we can’t talk with all of you until July 1st, but put on these 3-D glasses and it’s as if I’m talking directly to you -Lebron, Chris, Dwyane, Joe, Carlos, whomever”. He praised his young nucleus of Rose, Noah, Deng, Hinrich, Gibson and Johnson, explaining that they were almost all in their early 20′s (although he called Kirk a glue guy, which is code for “I know Kirk is turning 30 next year”). He went on to detail the great city of Chicago, the great fans, and the great organization – insert talking points – which was first rate, with great ownership, and unified.

Forman offered very little in terms of what he would look for in a new coach, indicating that today was truly the start of their search and that he had twenty messages waiting for him on his voicemail after the press conference.

With that, John Paxson took the podium and without recanting too many of the specifics of the March 30th incident, apologized to Del Negro and the rest of the Bulls organization. He explained that as a player he had to fight and scrap for everything he had, but that there was no place for such behavior as an executive in the organization. Paxson also smartly acknowledged that it didn’t matter the reason for why he stood up to Vinny on that day, he was wrong and he was still embarrassed by his decision. Consistent with the Bulls organization’s message that Vinny didn’t do anything wrong and they were merely looking for a new dynamic moving in the future, Paxson saluted Vinny for being a diligent, hard worker, who did not short change the Bulls in his preparation.

Post-Script to Press Conference:

About a half an hour later, Vinny briefly spoke with the press outside of the Berto Center. He thanked Jerry Reinsdorf for the opportunity to coach the Bulls and thanked his players for their effort and support. He credited his assistant coaches for working extremely hard throughout the two seasons. Lastly, he thanked the fans for continuing to support the team and its growth.

Notice anyone missing? You can’t blame Vinny for omitting the two guys above after the complete lack of support throughout the season. They easily could have lent Vinny the support and still made the same decision at the end of the season. It should not be hard to get a quality coach in place this offseason, but only time will tell whether Forman and Paxson can succeed with the upcoming free agent class.

By Paul M. Banks and David Kay, President and V.P. of The Sports Bank.net

The Chicago Bulls could use a good perimeter scorer, someone who can really light it up from deep. Even though Kirk Hinrich played out of his mind for a couple games of the first round series loss to Cleveland, he’s not that guy.

John Salmons was not that guy, and the Bulls haven’t had “that guy” since Ben Gordon left town. Chicago doesn’t really shoot a whole lot of threes, because there isn’t anyone truly dependable out there beyond the arc to consistently drain them. Whoever replaces Vinny Del Negro needs to add this dimension to the offense next season.

Oklahoma State’s James Anderson, who should be available when the Bulls pick in the NBA Draft, could just be “that guy.”

Obviously this off-season is all about the free agent derby (you’ve heard a thing or two or three million about that, right?), but the Bulls could also find the long-distance marksman they need on June 2^4th; seven days before the free agency period begins.

Anderson, the Big 12 Player of the Year, is a surefire first round pick who could go as high as the mid-teens.  His athleticism is not at the elite NBA level which could drop him into the twenties, but he is a great scoring guard who could complement Derrick Rose and whatever big name free agent the Chi is able to land. I caught up to the 6-6 shooting guard at Milwaukee’s Bradley Center, following the final game of his collegiate career.

I asked Anderson if there was anyone he looks up to in the league, and his answer was a former Bull, the most famous of all. “I looked up to Michael Jordan ever since I’ve been a child, that’s about it,” Anderson said.

His biggest strengths include his pull-up jump shot, the quick release he has on it and the fact that he doesn’t need much space to get it off. He’s a great free throw shooter, possesses ideal size for an NBA two-guard, and is an effective slasher to the basket (granting him more offensive versatility) and a smooth finisher in transition.

Conversely, he has some weaknesses, including his tendency to dribble too much, his lack of creativity off the bounce and always favoring the left hand in driving to the basket.

But perhaps the biggest reason he’s a good in fit in Chicago is that Johngar Paxman (GM Gar Forman and Executive John Paxson actually make all personnel decisions together, so I just morphed them into one person) always likes to draft big school players, often stressing character issues. And character is perhaps Anderson’s biggest strength.

Read the ringing endorsement his collegiate coach Travis Ford gave at the NCAA Tournament:

“If all my players were the type of person he is and as responsible and accountable, as nice, coming ready to practice every day as James was makes it a lot easier. As I’ve said, he’s the most coachable young man I’ve ever coached, and that’s a broad term and I can get into what that means. In my two years of James, I’ve never had to call him into my office one single time for something he’s done wrong or been late to or anything like that. I’ve never had to tell him something twice.

Anytime you see James, he’s extremely humble and very polite, in a good mood. He’s a “no, sir/yes, sir.” You tell him to do anything, he does it. Yes, it makes my job easy coaching a young man with his talent level, but also the type of young man he is. It makes everybody around him better. Makes me a better person. It makes his teammates better players and better people. There’s not many James Andersons that come around every day, there’s really not.”

To read an in-depth scouting report on Anderson go here.

Paul M. Banks is Founder/President of The Sports Bank.net, an Upper Midwest sports webzine. He’s also a member of the Football Writers Association of America, the United States Basketball Writers Association and a sports writer for the Washington Times.com Communities and Walter Football.com

By Paul M. Banks is Founder/President of The Sports Bank.net

Normally, I’m the last absolute last person to say something like this. I’m the polar opposite of the sports fans who believe in things along the lines of “If I listen to them on the radio they always do better than when I watch ‘em on television,” or “if I wear my jersey on gameday, they always play better.” Everyone knows these types of sports fans. I am NOT one of these types of sports fans.

But after Chicago Bulls All-Star Derrick Rose scored a career high 39 points Tuesday night, the second time he established a new career high in points while I was present, I quickly became one of “those guys.”

I’ve media creds for 7 Bulls games this season. In those 7 home games, the Bulls have gone 6-1 and Rose has averaged 27.7 ppg. On the season, Rose averaged 20.7, the Bulls finished 41-41, 24-17 at home. I haven’t purchased any Bulls tickets this season, so I have don’t have any more games to add to the sample size. But check it out here are the seven games I had a pass for in 2009-10 and how many points Rose scored:

11/3 Milwaukee (16), 12/2 Detroit (19), 12/15 Lakers (21), 1/16 Washington (37- career high), 2/16 New York (29), 2/26 Portland (33), and 4/12 Boston (39- career high). The Los Angeles game was the only loss. Rose has scored over 30 in 8 games this season, and I’ve witnessed three of them.

Clearly, in the interests of both Rose and Bulls fans everywhere, I need to apply for a Bulls season media pass next year. And I need to show the Bulls PR department these numbers so that they can approve it.

What did Rose have to say afterwards about his career night? “We’re just trying to get into the playoffs and do whatever it takes to get us there- play defense move the ball,” Rose said.

“We have a lot more confidence in each other. We’ve been playing good basketball.” Rose continued, failing to mention my presence as the x-factor.

(note: if you really think I’m dead serious about my showing up actually augmenting Rose’s game then…well, you probably consider “The Onion” to be a legitimate and serious news source and you’ve likely handed over thousands of dollars to princes in Burkina Faso that promised to share their multi-million dollar inheritances with you.)

Paul M. Banks is Founder/President of The Sports Bank.net, an Upper Midwest sports webzine. He’s also a member of the Football Writers Association of America, the United States Basketball Writers Association and a sports writer for the Washington Times.com Communities and Walter Football.com

If this get up didn't hurt Vinny's coaching career, then this episode with Pax won't either.

Stormin Norman aptly wrote in this space earlier this week that the Bulls were trying to build a shady case to fire Vinny Del Negro. Well today the news broke that Bulls management went further than just trying to question his in-game management skills or refusing to publicly support Vinny Del Negro with reporters.

Reports have John Paxson confronting the coach in the locker room after the March 30th game against the Phoenix Suns when Joakim Noah played beyond his organizational set minute limits.

The Tribune reported that Paxson allegedly grabbed Del Negro’s tie (not the hair John!) and shoved him twice in his chest.

ESPN Chicago downgraded the contact, claiming Paxson “poked him with jabs to the chest”. Paxson then challenged Del Negro to a fight before being restrained by assistant coach, Bernie Bickerstaff.

Last month during their tilt against the Houston Rockets, the Bulls players all laughed after one of the players suggested they “Win this for Vinny!” when Del Negro was ejected for arguing foul calls. It’s unclear whether the Bulls players will rally around their coach in this last week and hopefully, into the playoffs. But what is clear, is that in showing restraint, Del Negro saved himself for being fired for cause (although you could argue that his coaching coming out of timeouts may constitute “for cause”) and kept his reputation clean for his inevitable job search in his future.

*UPDATE: Charles Barkley, quickly becoming the Joe Rogan of the NBA (fight analyst/mediocre comedian/mediocre actor), admitted that no one would want to see a Vinny Del Negro v. John Paxson fight in the first place. But if a fight happens? “Vinny will whup his ass.”*

By Paul M. Banks, President of The Sports Bank.net

When my hometown Chicago Bulls drafted Joakim Noah ninth overall that summer night back in 2006, I yelled and cursed at the television. When Noah was a Florida Gator, he was one of my least favorite college basketball players of all time. And he did a lot of things that made a lot of people hate him.

Including this. And who could forget his attempt to sound “street” during his post national title game interviews; despite the fact that we all knew his French upbringing was as country club as possible. His mother was an international runway model/Miss Sweden 1978 and his father is Yannick Noah, legendary tennis player; and later a huge pop music star in France.

His first couple years in the league Noah was still a bit of a clown and some of his behavior only reaffirmed my initial disgust on Draft night. However, that has all completely changed this year. Not only has he become a star on the court, conditioning his body to add muscle weight, and augment his game in the post, but he’s matured a ton off the court. His game has improved so much that he’s currently one of the small percentage of NBA players who averaging a double double on the season. He’s 5th in the NBA in rebounding and 16th in blocks. His emergence in 2009-10 now makes him the Bulls’ second most valuable player after Derrick Rose.

In addition to the fundamental differences, his attitude about basketball has grown up so much that even called out Lebron for dancing. There’s a common misperception out there that many NBA players are like Vince Carter or Tracy McGrady- not always giving 110% night in, night out. But you won’t get any ammunition for your argument by studying Noah. It is an absolute crime that his plantar fasciitis is keeping him off the court. When talking to him you see HOW MUCH he is dying to be out there as much as possible.

“I’m just trying to be in the moment of the game. Obviously, I don’t want to come out, I want to play. I think I have to be really smart about when I can and can’t. It just hurts, and the only thing you can do is rest it. It’s very painful, no joke,” Noah said after the Bulls 115-111 OT win over Portland, a game in which he played a few more minutes than was expected.

His coach Vinny Del Negro knows he overplayed Noah too. “We probably got a little greedy, but I asked him he how felt and he said he felt good, but I could see he got a little fatigued…his injury is going to bother him for awhile whether we play him 10 minutes or 20 minutes,” the overuse

“He could be out a while,” Del Negro said after Monday’s practice. “A week, two weeks, a month. I don’t know yet. It’s going to be how his foot reacts. When you get him back, his conditioning and his minutes (are also factors to think about). It’s not the perfect scenario.”

Exactly! Noah’s conditioning when he does return is a huge factor into how much he can contribute down the stretch as the Bulls fight for playoff positioning.

“The biking, the water cardio…for me the only thing that keeps me in shape is basketball. So there’s that aspect of it too. If it was October I could sit out for 6 weeks, but we don’t have 6 weeks. There’s not a lot of time left until the playoffs,” Noah said Friday night

So did Vinny play him too much Friday night and screw up Noah’s convalescence timetable? Who knows? I don’t have M.D. after my name so I can’t say, and Noah doesn’t seem to think that his more-than-expected playing time was a mistake.

“Everyone has an opinion on whether I should or shouldn’t play, but there’s no right or wrong answer,” Noah stated.

However, there is right answer to this question: Does Noah have as much heart and desire to play hard as ANYONE in the NBA? Resounding yes!

Paul M. Banks is Founder/President of The Sports Bank.net, an Upper Midwest sports webzine. He’s also a member of the Football Writers Association of America, the United States Basketball Writers Association and a sports writer for the Washington Times.com Communities and Walter Football.com

You’d think that being drafted in the first round of the 2009 NBA draft, starting for your team for almost half of the season, and getting selected to play in the Rookies-Sophomores game during All-Star Weekend would ensure that someone at ESPN would have a photo of you. Sorry Taj Gibson, those 20 points you put up and those 13 boards you brought down were not enough for the guys at ESPN to look too hard for a picture of you. So while you and the rest of your team whupped the 76ers last night, we get to look at “the other” A.I.’s mug on the ESPN recap of last night’s game.

Aside from the obvious East Coast bias that ESPN showed in slighting Taj Gibson, Saturday night’s game was extremely encouraging. Vinny Del Negro is such a masterful coach that both Hakim Warrick and Flip Murray already appear completely in sync in the Bulls system. If you twisted my arm I’d give some credit to the players themselves. Murray drove and kicked the ball out to open shooters on a number of occasions and the 3-pointer he buried from the corner near the end of the first half showed what the Bulls have been missing from the SG position. And Hakim Warrick will quickly become a fan favorite if he keeps this up. Stuffing a few of the lanky 76ers, throwing down that sick spinning dunk on Thaddeus Young, and crashing the offensive glass, he ensured there was no let down with the second team.

The Bulls seemingly have a reliable quartet of Power Forwards and Centers to work with now that Joakim is slowly coming back (let’s hope he gets into game shape soon, sucking on an inhaler is not what you want to see from your future All-Star Center).  More importantly, the entire team is realizing that they can win games in the paint and at the free throw line. During the second quarter the Bulls began to settle for a few 15 to 18 foot jump shots early in the clock and it allowed the 76ers to regain the lead. In the first half of the season, the Bulls would have continued to force shots and we would’ve awoken to Sunday morning articles bemoaning the Bulls’ inefficient jump shooting letting the team down again. Instead, coming out of a TV timeout, Rose and Deng began driving and slashing to the rim and either finishing or dishing off to our big men, and if the drive wasn’t there the Bulls ran their offense opting for the jump shot with less than 5 seconds on the shot clock. Conversely, the young athletic 76ers seemed gassed by the amount of work they were putting in on the defensive end and quickly resorted to isolated, step back jumpers and easy rebounds for the Bulls.

Last night was a great example of what kind of team the Bulls can be. Taj Gibson is a huge part of that, as his development allowed the Bulls to make the moves they made for this season and the next. Is it too much to ask for ESPN to dig a little harder for his picture on nights when he outplays guys like Elton Brand?

On Thursday afternoon around 4:30 PM CST, Bulls GM Gar Forman spoke with the press regarding the Bulls’ trades and their roster moving forward for the rest of the 2009-2010 season.  He indicated that the entire staff would be meeting today to review their scouting plan and joked with KC Johnson that he had an entire dry erase board full of players waiting behind the curtain at the press conference.

Here are the main points that Forman had prepared:

• The moves gave the Bulls flexibility heading into this summer. They have cap space to attract a max free agent and positioned their roster to attract said free agents as well. This flexibility also affords the Bulls the opportunity to swing a sign and trade deal this summer (Hinrich anyone?)
• They kept their nucleus intact. Forman noted the nucleus included (in this order) Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Taj Gibson, and Kirk Hinrich.
• They acquired players that fit the Bulls’ system (still not sure what system he or Vinny is talking about).

During the ensuing Q and A with the local press, Forman spoke about the nucleus he mentioned, the individual players included in the draft and what their expectations would be, and what the Bulls would pursue moving forward.

• Derrick Rose has a very attractive game that any free agent would want to play with.
• Joakim Noah was having an all-star like season before he was sidelined with his plantar fasciitis.
• Luol Deng is putting up career numbers, and he’s only 24 years old. (I continually forget that Luol is this young.)
• Taj Gibson continually came up in conversations as the Bulls conversed with every other team in the league.
• Kirk Hinrich was in his fair share of trade rumors but they did not want to lose him because he’s a glue guy and a leader. (While Forman included him in his “nucleus” and made these comments, it still seems like if the right price can be had then Hinrich will be dealt in the offseason.)
• Flip Murray is a proven NBA player and scorer, that when the Bulls asked around the league they kept hearing he’s not afraid to take and make big shots.
• Hakim Warrick looks to project into Tyrus’ role.
• Both sets of players are expected to be with the Bulls (although they may not suit up) for their game against the Timberwolves.
• Vinny Del Negro did a good job acclimating Salmons and Miller after the trade last season and Forman believes it is one of his strengths. In the same line of questions, he hedged and said that Vinny will continue to be evaluated throughout the season.

Forman also mentioned the City of Chicago will serve as a great recruiting chip for the Bulls. I don’t know if the Bulls should bank on that since Chicago just made it into the Top Miserable Cities list, lost the Olympics, and had those run ins with Antoine Walker and Eddy Curry.  Maybe we should just go back to the days of having Benny the Bull and the Luvabulls show up at O’Hare. Hopefully we see a few of these guys throwing out the first pitches during the Cubs/Reds series at Wrigley beginning on July 1st.

"Gar, the screen says Chris' flight from Toronto is arriving at Gate 10."

Oh, to be the TSA Screener when these gals head through the expert traveler security checkpoint!

If you’re confused or can’t keep up with the moves the Bulls made over the last 48 hours, don’t worry, you’re not alone.

As of 5:00 PM (CST) the NBA.com website showed the Chicago Bulls roster/depth chart with Francisco Elson and Kurt Thomas occupying two spots on the bench. Oddly enough, neither Tyrus Thomas or John Salmons (not to mention my favorite, Chris Richard) are on the roster. Funny that the NBA would go ahead and make these changes before the paperwork had been finalized and submitted into the league office. The guy in charge of web content must have been looking to take a three day weekend and skip work Friday.

Ron Artest is famous for being insane.  Did he really see someone stab someone to death over a basketball game as a kid?  Did he really run into the stands over spilled beer?  Does he really think he’s a good rapper?  It’s basically accepted as a fact that he took a job at Circuit City while he was with the Bulls to get a discount.  But while he is definitely nuts, so far there is no reason to think he’s a liar.  Which makes this new story all the more disturbing:

Ron Artest says he drank alcohol during games as a member of the Bulls, in part because the team lost so frequently.

“I used to drink Hennessy … at halftime,” said Artest, who played with the Bulls from 1999-2002 and now is with the Lakers. “I (kept it) in my locker. I’d just walk to the liquor store (near the stadium) and get it.”

I mean sure it’s boring to lose games, but I don’t think that excuses this.  On the other hand, at least he was putting forth effort which is more than can be said for the current incarnation of the Bulls.  I probably would have been drinking on those crappy teams though, so who am I to judge?

h/t: Ethan

As you can see from the picture, the Bulls and Cavs game was a physical battle.  The Bulls managed to pull it out 86-85 after a very poor final possession by Cleveland, but not before Hinrich lost a good amount of blood.  More importantly to note, I think we are learning the character of this Bulls squad.  Although their shooting woes continued last night, they once again kept the game close to the end and were able to overcome the Cavs.  You can sense the energy on this team.  I’ll admit the talent level is lacking, and Rose is clearly hobbled somewhat by his heel (although he did post a double-double with 14 points and 11 assists last night), but they have shown a lot to get excited about.

So what is the identity of this team?  It appears to be a team that is essentially 9 deep and will find any way to stay in a game that it can.  While the shooting hasn’t been there, the team defense has evolved greatly since last season.  Everyone seems to be communicating better, and although there are still major lapses, even Brad Miller looked like he was trying on the defensive end against Shaq.  Last night?  The Bulls were actually outrebounded, but by protecting the ball better than I have seen them in years (only 5 turnovers the whole game, it has to be a record in this millennium for the Bulls) they were able to secure the victory.

So what to expect from the Bulls this season?  I know the haters out there point to the poor shooting and lineup full of question marks and say “this year is gonna suck”.  But I beg to differ.  I think this team is very exciting and plays with heart.  If Derrick Rose can get healthy, we could see 40+ wins, another playoff appearance and maybe even a shot to advance to the next round if they can somehow snag the 5th or 6th seed.

You notice how I didn’t mention Vinny in all this?  It’s hard to tell where he fits in to this team’s identity.  He seems to have them playing better defense, but at the same time the shooting woes cannot be completely blamed on a team-wide shooting slump.  If anything, Vinny Del Crapo’s “everybody freeze and watch each other force up bad shots” offense is more likely the cause of their shooting struggles.

• Milton Bradley’s mother chimes in on Milton’s problems with the Cubs.  Racism and negativity abound in this article. [Tribune]
• I’ve been hinting at this for many years, but there is mathematical proof that you should almost NEVER punt, kick a field goal, or attempt a PAT.  Over the course of the season those things create less points for your team.  Period.  Here’s a coach who is employing this strategy with a ton of success. [SI] + h/t: Kriezel
• Do I understand hockey completely yet? No.  Have I learned to love it? Somewhat.  And preseason fights are not hurting that process. [Zoner]
• Chicago Bulls finally have a big man coach.  It’s not a flashy name, but flashy names aren’t always the best coaches (see: Isiah Thomas). [Blogabull]
• The Bears catch another break.  Hasselbeck has a broken rib.  Even if he plays against the Bears this week, he’ll slowed considerably. [WCG]
• Looks like the MLBPA is going to appeal Bradley’s suspension. [Bleacher Nation]
• NFL Week 3 Preview.  Come and get it. [Midwest Sports Fans]
• The Zambrano trade winds are beginning to swirl.  Whether they are real, or media-induced, he has come out with three teams he would waive his no-trade clause for: Boston, Chicago (AL), and LA (NL). [Boston Globe]
• A Sonics fan, still clinging to his anger with the team for moving, is sentenced to the worst kind of hell there could be. [Truehoop]
• As of 2 days ago, Barack Obama still believed in the south siders.  Seriously. [The Swamp]

As some of you noticed (or not), I have been absent from NQTC since last Sunday.  As a result, South Side Sheik and StevieY19 managed to maintain the site using dignity, research, and well-thought out arguments and analysis about serious topics in sports.  Booorrrring.  So I’ve returned to bring the integrity of the site back down to earth where it belongs.  Here are a few stories you may have missed in the last week which were too dumb for my co-bloggers to write or rant about.

Cubs Injury Issues: Now Zambrano gets scratched with back problems.  It’s been a season-long injury issue with this team, with Fukudome and Theriot being the only real iron-men on the team.  How are the Cubs supposed to live up to the potential of their ridiculous payroll when none of the big money spent is even taking the field on a regular basis?  Can we blame the trainers? Or Hendry for signing a team full of players made from glass?

Richard Dent Gets Screwed: It’s a real shame that this kind of thing happens.  Richard Dent is one of the greatest defensive ends in the history of the game.  He dominated the position on what was the best defense of all time.  Be it journalists, or veteran’s committees, or whatever, the selection processes for professional halls of fame needs to be amended to actually let in hall of famers.  Dent had 137.5 sacks and was the Super Bowl XX MVP.  He created more turnovers and havoc in the backfield than any end in NFL history.  Why he didn’t get in the Hall is beyond me.

Broncos Fans Boo Orton: Broncos fans really suck.  I mean they are just terrible.  Apparently Orton got booed for having a bad practice.  Not a bad game or series of practices; one bad practice.  Gee I wonder why Cutler wanted out of Denver.

Kevin Gregg is Still Having a Better Season Than Kerry Wood: Even though he blew 2 saves last weekend, his numbers are still far better than Woody’s this year.  Gregg and the entire bullpen has just been overworked and needs some time to rest their arms.  Unfortunately that may or may not happen.

Obama Almost Wore a Cardinals Jersey: I really want to like this guy.  I do.  He says all the right things to make me believe he can turn this country around and he has pretty good handles on the hardwood.  Then he stalls on health care, makes some terrible appointments, continues many of the old failed policies of the last administration, wears a White Sox jacket, and now this.  Apparently he almost wore a Cardinal’s jersey at the All-Star game.  That would have literally lost my vote right there (not to mention make me vomit in my mouth a little bit).  Thank god he didn’t do it.

Hoffpauir Sent Down, Soto Called Up: It’s a numbers game, I get that, but why do the Cubs have to send down Hoffpauir?  Although his average has slipped a bit since he gets less consistent playing time, he still has the power numbers to be an effective left-handed option off the bench.  I mean do we need Scott Baker, Mike Fontenot, Andres Blanco, and Aaron Miles on the squad?  How about send Aaron Miles down, that guy sucks and everyone knows it.

Bulls Save Some Money on Tim Thomas: The Bulls bought out Tim Thomas’s contract which was worth 6.4 million but they only paid 4.8 million.  Every little bit of cap space helps.  I’m still wondering who will shoot the 3 on this team though.

Ben Wallace Returns To Detroit: Just kidding, even I don’t give a shit about this.

I Just Don’t Like Matt Holliday, Why Do I Need a Reason?: Either Mozeliak, LaRussa, or Holliday himself sold his soul so that Holliday, who had been hitting just .276 with 8 home runs before the break, all of a sudden is hitting .525 with 4 home runs since being acquired by the Cards.  I hate that whole team, and Holliday is no exception.  I’m sure he’ll do some classless Cardinal-like thing soon enough (that organization is character poison) to give me a good reason to hate him, but in the meantime I just don’t like him and I have no good reason.

Fine, Gordon Beckham is Good, But At Least I Was Right About Carlos Quentin Being a Fluke: The title says it all.  I was skeptical about both Beckham and Quentin this winter after every Sox fan I talked to told me Quentin was the second coming and Beckham will be great.  Quentin is not the second coming.  Don’t you find it odd he didn’t come up to the majors until he was 27?  And don’t even start with the “he’s been injured” crap.  If anything that just means he is injury-prone, proving me correct that last year was a fluke.  Props to Beckham though, that kid is filthy.

Marlins Little “Goat” Stunt Not Appreciated By Sweet Lou: Who cares Lou?  If the goat and the curse are all bullshit, then it doesn’t matter.  I’m sure you get sick of that stuff, but getting mad about it only brings more attention to the idiots who mock the Cubs.  I never thought I would say this, but Lou needs to just shut up about this stuff.  No one would have even batted an eye if he didn’t get all worked up about it.

The Return of Fire Joe Morgan: My favorite sports blog of all time will be returning (sort of) for one day.  On September 16, the old crew from FJM consisting of Dak, Ken Tremendous, and Junior will be running Deadspin for a day.  Hopefully it inspires them to start writing FJM again, but either way it should be fun.

Some White Sox Fans Might Be Actually Retarded: Not to be too rude, but how can you not laugh a little at how dumb some Sox fans are when you see this picture.  Did you really think Rowand was spelled “R-O-W-A-D-N”?

The “Derrick Rose Had A Rough Summer” Story is Bullshit: He didn’t have a tough summer, okay?  The two stories this is referring to are the gang sign thing and the SAT cheating thing.  Both are bullshit.  No one cares that he might have made a gang sign to a camera one time in college.  And he didn’t cheat, he was proven innocent pretty convincingly.  Here’s the real story of D-Rose’s summer: He tried out with Team USA, worked on his jumpers, and probably bought a lot of cool stuff with all his new money.  I don’t want to hear about the “cheating” or the gang signs anymore, okay mainstream media?

Tom Gorzelanny Can Pitch, and He Looks Like Sloth from the Goonies: So he probably isn’t as good as he was in his start for the Cubs, but to be honest all we need is 3-4 halfway decent starts from him until Lilly comes back.  If he pitches really well for the next couple weeks and its a tough decision whether to send him down or keep him in the rotation, that is the kind of tough decision a team wants to have.  Oh yeah, and he looks like Sloth from the Goonies.

Let’s Get Real, The Peavy Trade Probably Won’t Mean Much This Season: I know this will sound like sour grapes, but seriously, if he comes back healthy he can make 3 starts in September.  If the Sox make the playoffs, which seems less and less likely, then he can definitely be a factor.  Otherwise, this signing was for the future.  The Sox rotation will be formidable with Buerhle and Peavy at the top and Danks and Floyd at the 3 and 4 for the next few years.