Possibly Luol Deng?

Rumors (without confirmation from either team officials) had the Clips sending the Bulls their 8th pick overall in exchange for Luol Deng and the 17th pick in the draft.

This makes sense for the Clips as Luol Deng would be better than any free agent that they would be able to dupe into signing a free agent contract this summer. It also lends them a starting lineup of Miller-Gordon-Deng-Griffin-Kaman.

It also makes sense for the Bulls if they think that they think they really have a shot at Lebron and another free agent that may cost some coin, since this will help them shed Luol’s “ghastly” contract.

Alas, it looks like for now, this deal will not be consummated. But it’s fun to think about what the Bulls lineup might look like by the end of July.

Excuse me if I don’t cover much of the first three quarters of this game, but  I was spending time with my grandmother who is extremely ill. Thus, most of my impressions from the first three quarters were based on what the radio team was telling me on the drive back into the city.

Without further ado:

• Chris Paul is fearless in playing the passing lanes and looking to pick the ballhandler’s pocket.
• Kirk Hinrich is no slouch and seemed to fluster Chris Paul on a number of occasions, using a combination of quick feet and a bigger body than folks give him credit for. Also the elbow to CP3′s temple and the ensuing step back 3-pointer was vicious.
• Aaron Gray looked like a pretty big jack ass grinning on the Hornets’ bench after they tied it up late in the game and went ahead. Now I know how the rest of the NBA’s fans felt all these years. (Javier Sandooski and I are organizing a Favre-like burning of all Aaron Gray jerseys the next time Gray returns to Chicago).
• Luol Deng really seems to be finding his rhythm in the Bulls’ offense and looks more confident than he’s been in the last year and a half.
• The City of New Orleans is awesome right now. Most of the crowd was on their feet for the last 5 minutes of the game. Consistently cheering, living and dying with every play. This is obviously spill over from the Saints making the Super Bowl but the entire city is just jacked.  Hell, do you realize that Mardi Gras is in full force from the February 7 until February 16th? If the Saints win on the 7th, the city would be a non-stop celebration for the next two weeks.  Chamber of Commerce meetings would include beads and beer bongs.  The local Jaycees would devolve into an organization dedicated to the flipping of cars.  The National Guard will be called in to combat public urination and treat those traumatized by incessant “Who Dat” cheers.
• What a great play at the end of the game by Hinrich to track down Chris Paul, corral the loose ball, and push it up court quickly.  And what a great controlled follow up finish by Luol. Really took the energy out of the crowd.
• On second thought for most of OT, the crowd sat on their asses and barely cheered. If the Saints lose the Super Bowl and in heartbreaking fashion, they might have to ban beads from Mardi Gras as a preventative measure for emotionally distraught fans.
• Brad Miller redefines the  “crafty veteran” role. Only he would have the guile to pretend he’s injured for a month, lull opponents into thinking he’s even slower than he already was, believing his only move is the flat footed jumper from the top of the key, only to appear in January and become an offensive threat with his patented head fake and burying hanging driving jumpers in the key.
• Hinrich and Deng sealed the game with the great stop at the end forcing Collison’s turnover.  The Bulls defense is good and getting even better.
• It also appears the offense is gelling, with guys getting comfortable with their roles. We had six players in double digits, and Taj Gibson and John Salmons each threw in eight.
• Joakim Noah continues to impress, thoroughly outplaying Emeka Okafor, and continuing to shoot well from the charity stripe. Did you know he was an 88% free throw shooter in the month of January (52-for-59)?
• All in all, this was a great win for the Bulls. Who would have thought they’d win five straight over five legit Western Conference teams, closing out a 10-5 January?
• Heading into February, the Bulls play 14 games, only 3 of which where they will be the underdog (@ Atlanta, and home against Orlando and Portland).  While this road trip proves that the Bulls may let down to lesser opponents (or we can just blame it on the flu) they could be heading into a tough March around nine games above .500. Not too shabby for a team we left for dead in December.

This is painful to see.  I mean in my gut I know we are a jump-shooting team that can’t hit 3s.  I know it.  But part of me always thinks that we are getting some points in transition and Rose gets a lot of his points around the basket (lately at least).  Alas, thanks to Hoopsdata‘s painstaking and painful research, the point has been proven mathematically:

As a team, the Bulls shoot 36.1 percent on long twos which is well below the league average of 39.6 percent. That might not seem like a big difference on the surface but in the last four years, only this year’s New Jersey Nets and the Isiah Thomas-led New York Knicks of 2006-07 fare worse from this area. So if you’re scoring from home, the Bulls love taking shots from a zone where they rank 118 out of 120 teams. Not only that, even though the Bulls frequent the long range shot, they almost never launch where the payoff is higher in 3-point land.

Gross.  The article goes on to discuss how Luol Deng is the main culprit from 16-23 feet (37.2% on 7.1 attempts a game).  It also points out that Deng and Thomas are terrible pieces to put next to Rose.  I don’t entirely disagree with him, and it shows exactly why we miss Ben Gordon so much.  With everyone taking long 2s and missing them, defenses are packing it in near the basket and allowing the Bulls to fire away.  If we had just one guy who could knock down the 3 consistently (Salmons and Hinrich do NOT count this season, and Pargo doesn’t make 3s anymore for some reason), that would help Rose get to the basket more and open up lanes for Tyrus to attack the rim.

So what does this mean for the Bulls?  Well Hoopsdata seems to take a dump on everyone’s wish for Bosh or Boozer, since a big man in love with the long jumper seems to be the last thing we need.  Joe Johnson anyone?  Obviously LeBron or Wade would be ideal, but Johnson could be the perfect fit next to Rose.  He can knock down the 3 and defend the other team’s bigger guard.  Think about it.

I would have to say watching Luol Deng belt out “Fame” is probably the highlight of my day.  Enjoy the Bulls Totally 80′s tapes!

h/t: Rule 5 Draftee

What would be the most appropriate costumes for the Bulls to wear for Halloween?  That is the question I tried to answer when writing this.  And I know, Noah looks exactly like Sideshow Bob, but that didn’t seem like the best costume for him in my opinion.  Here they are:

Derrick Rose as Jesus

Sacreligious? Maybe.  True? God I hope so.

Joakim Noah as Cheech Marin

Sideshow Bob would have been appropriate too, but he didn’t smoke as much weed as Noah/Cheech

Kirk Hinrich as Captain Kirk

Always a captain of the squad, the costume is just fitting for our scrappy white leader.

Lindsey Hunter as a Ghost

Just when you think he’s disappeared, all of a sudden he shows up.  Boo!

John Salmons as Inspector Gadget

He is extremely versatile and has a tool for every occasion, be it defense, outside shooting, or getting to the basket.

Luol Deng as Mr. Glass from Unbreakable

If you didn’t see the movie, basically this was a character who’s bones were so brittle they shattered anytime he did anything.

Tyrus Thomas as Balloon Boy

Both are high fliers and both are a complete hoax.

Brad Miller as Jed Clampett

Every time Miller takes the floor, I always hear that Beverly Hillbillies music.  “Black gold, that is!”

Taj Gibson as an alien

I mean he does kind of look like one, agreed?

Jannero Pargo as a garbage man

This is based entirely on his prior stint with the Bulls, where he served as the garbage-time MVP.

If you haven’t caught much of the Bulls preseason but want to know what’s going on with them, don’t worry.  I’ve got your back.  Before I do, however, I highly recommend checking out Kelly Dwyer’s Bulls Season Preview.  Anyways, here are some things of note so far in the Bulls hot 4-1 preseason start.

• Derrick Rose is hurt.  It’s unclear how hurt, but the team and Derrick assure the media that it is not a big deal.  Its something wrong with his ankle or heel that just needs rest apparently.  As a result, he hasn’t played much at all so far.
• Tyrus Thomas is also banged up.  He has yet to play any meaningful minutes.  Fortunately for some, this has given a lot of minutes to some other guys who are showing up big time.  Most people feel that this year is a put up or shut up year for Thomas and will probably dictate any kind of future contract he can get from the Bulls or elsewhere.  The Bulls say he is going to practice today and maybe be back on the court soon.
• Joakim Noah looks like a man possessed.  He is in significantly better shape than at this time last year.  His defense looks good and most importantly he is becoming the rebounding machine we had all hoped he could be.  Oh and that offense thing that we weren’t expecting much of, well he made 3 hook shots the other night.  I’m not saying he looks like an offensive beast out there, but if his offense was a 2 on a scale of 1-10 last season and he can get that up to a 3 or even a 4, that would be huge for a Bulls team desperate for easy baskets inside.
• Kirk Hinrich has looked very consistent across the board.  He will be a nice insurance policy on the Rose-Salmons starting backcourt.  Even coming off the bench he will be looking to get 20-25 minutes a game.
• Apparently the locker room chemistry is there too, as many players are saying this is the most fun they’ve had as a team in a while.
• Salmons is Salmons.  I love that guy, he is continuing to do what he did last year, hit 3s, drive the ball, and play great one-on-one defense.  His ballhandling is still somewhat suspect, but when Rose gets back that should be a non-issue since Rose will have the ball in his hands most of the time.
• Luol Deng is still extremely inconsistent.  His shooting touch clearly has not returned, plays that look like dunks end up as soft layups, and he just doesn’t look comfortable out there.  He has had a few flashes, but nothing spectacular.  Hopefully he’s not still hurt and he is just getting used to playing
• The rookies have looked spectacular.  I know it is the preseason, but Taj Gibson looks like the kind of guy that could develop into a solid role player in this league.  He has nice touch from about 12-18 feet but he never forces shots and plays smart like a veteran.  He could do to bulk up a bit, but so far I’m not complaining.  James Johnson is a little tougher to peg.  He’s clearly athletic and talented, but he is still very raw.  He seems to be a decent rebounder but as a 3-4 tweener, he will have to develop some sort of outside game to be effective.
• Others: Byars and Richard are both guys that are unlikely to make the squad, but they are making a case nonetheless.  Byars has looked great in the backcourt and Richard actually put up some nice numbers last night in the paint.  Pargo has been Pargo (just like you remember, jacking up shots and not playing defense).  Not much to say about Lindsey Hunter that you don’t already know.

Overall the Bulls have looked pretty good with the exception of Deng.  We really won’t know what we have until Rose and Thomas come back, but the rookies are showing something and Noah seems poised to take the next step.

Oh and even though Rose’s offcourt demeanor seems vanilla, apparently his on-court abilities are making him very marketable.  On that note, here’s a pair of his newest Adidas commercials.  I like the first one much better, but the second one is cool too.  Enjoy!

h/t: Docksquad

• This is the place to go for NFL Week 1 previews.  It has all the spreads and information you need for each game this coming weekend. [Midwest Sports Fans]
• Luol Deng will be ready for the preseason.  Oh and he likes rap and eats Egyptian food.  It’s all in his interview with CNN. [By The Horns]
• Oh Shaq, when will you just chill out?  Hopefully never if this hilarity continues. [NESW Sports]
• This week’s random retro Cub?  Scott Sanderson.  Usually the guys in this feature were lovable but not all that talented.  Sanderson is an exception, posting a career 3.84 ERA. [The Friendly Blogfines]
• So now it looks like Cubs fans are just booing everyone for everything without any good reason.  Here’s one: they have underperformed all season.  [I94 Sports]
• Michael Jordan wanted a guy named Joe Wolf in the 1987 draft.  Good thing Krause took Scott Pippen.  Whoever that is. [Pippen Ain't Easy]
• Friends of the site Docksquad Sports was featured on ESPN.  Does this mean they are part of the MSM now?  Just kidding, congratulations! [Docksquad Sports]
• Last night’s Florida State-Miami game was a great one, but should FSU have had one more play? Controversy…  [Detroit4lyfe]
• Here are 15 minutes of young MJ highlights if you have the time. [BDL]
• Soriano is being shut down, for now.  I’m trying really hard to care.  Here’s what it makes me think about: Had he been shut down months ago and Fox got his at-bats, maybe we would have won a few more.  Just speculation, but still. [Bleacher Nation]

• Jay Cutler cleans up pretty nice.  It appears he “got his hair did” for a magazine cover. [Jay Cutler Superstar]
• Michael Jordan’s perfection explained. [Hardwood Paroxysm]
• The best fantasy football team names by city.  Yeah, mine is in there for Chicago.  “Offense is not our Forte”.  Bam. [Detroit4lyfe]
• Ted Lilly was nominated by his teammates for the Roberto Clemente award.  This guy is a great baseball player and a great human being.  His contract looked a bit bloated when they signed him but it has worked out perfectly. [Bleacher Nation]
• The 40 most undeserving players to get MLB Starting Lineup action figures.  This is a hilarious must-read. [Sharapova's Thigh]
• There’s that White Sox white flag everyone was waiting for.  It was a good move to get rid of Thome and his contract, but I really liked that guy.  Contreras sucks. [I94 Sports]
• 8 guys you may have forgotten were in the NBA. Some will make you laugh, others you know. [Give Me The Rock]
• Did you see that Brett Favre chop block on Eugene Wilson?  Shady.  More importantly, what was Brad Childress thinking?  That guy is an idiot. [Midwest Sports Fans]
• Raiders fans have it rough, and losing their star cornerback won’t help.  Unless he plays.  But he won’t, or maybe he will. [Just Blog Baby]
• More evidence about why you should lay off Milton Bradley.  Statistically speaking, of course. [Wrigleyville23]
• Luol Deng was listed in Dime Magazine as an NBA player that must take that next step this upcoming season.  Wasn’t everyone saying/thinking that the last 3 summers? [Pippen Ain't Easy]
• Remember that cut Orton got on his finger in Sunday’s game?  It’s a bit worse than we thought. [Blog Down, Chicago Bears]

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?

• So I don’t get it; Does Jerome James salary count against the Bulls cap or not? [Blogabull]
• Scott Boras may be evil, but the real bad guys are Baseball ownership, who have somehow managed to make ridiculous profits while at the same time been able to make players seem selfish for trying to get paid 1/100th of the amount the owners make.  [Deadspin]
• With Ramirez out, Piniella coyly suggests Josh Vitters may be the answer.  Then he remembers the kid is at Single A and is only 19 years old.  Then he remembers that the Cubs haven’t brought a good position player up through their farm system since the 1980s. [Tribune]
• Deng is still 3-4 weeks away from resuming regular basketball activities.  Wasn’t he 3-4 weeks away 4 months ago when he got injured?  This is the worst stress fracture in history. [By The Horns]
• Ryan Theriot has retaken the team-lead in TOOTBLANs.  Balance is restored to the universe. [WV23]
• The new Deadspin commenting restrictions are a bit fascist, and this video starring AJ as Hitler is almost as accurate as it is hilarious. [Deadspin]
• The Bulls are working out a bunch of college and international talent over the next few days.  Here is the schedule. [PAE]
• Luol’s Dong recommends a brand new extremely violent sport where the two competitors are tethered together.  Anything to help with the boredom of trying to sit through 4 hours of baseball only to watch your bullpen shit the bed. [Luol's Dong]
• Ryan Dempster’s ongoing battle to help his newborn baby fight a rare disease makes me like the guy even more.  Especially with his ability to make every start this season. [Bleacher Nation]

• The Bulls are probably going to take Tyler Hansborough with one of their picks.  Don’t be mad though, he might be a good fit (albeit a white, unathletic one). [Blogabull]
• It looks like the acquisition of Cutler may have boosted the Bears organization ratings according to a new Fox Sports study. [WCG]
• So how is Deadspin different than the MSM at this point?  Don’t restrict your commentors AJ.  Or Gawker.  Or whoever is making this bad decision. [Luol's Dong]
• Remember Luol Deng?  Yeah he was good for a while. [By The Horns]
• Curtis Granderson likes Luke Scott.  A lot.  I would respect him too if he had just single-handedly beaten my team twice in one series. [The Grandstand]
• Yes LeBron is an idiot for out and out saying he didn’t like to shake the hands of the winning team.  But come on, don’t you feel that way sometimes after you get your ass handed to you on the court? [Zoner]

Luol Deng struggled this season from wire to wire.  After signing a huge contract (oops), he played like shit the first half of the season and eventually sat the last few months of the season with a stress fracture.  Some people say he was faking it, or that he couldn’t play through pain and that he is some kind of pussy.  I’m not saying either of those things, but he better allow his injury to heal this summer and come back to play in October:

While a real injury and extremely painful, if allowed to heal properly it won’t have any long-term effects.

So if Deng decides he must absolutely play for the British national team this summer, the Bulls ought to tell him not to bother coming back.

Not only does he risk injury by shortening his rest time, but he also insults his teammates who dug down and discovered a playoff spot, and then fought so valiantly against Boston for seven grueling games without him.

Deng is hurt and Deng is healing, but in order to gain his teammates’ trust again, he’s going to need a healthy season ahead, and it starts with a productive – and quiet – summer.

Damn right he better have a quiet summer.  I’m not sure if the Herald has heard that he is actually considering playing for them, or this is just speculation.  If he does play for the British National Team after ditching out on the Bulls the last couple of months, I’ll flip out.  The city has already begun to turn on him and with the addition of Salmons, who is arguably a more effective player, Deng needs to play well to win back his fans and even some people in the Bulls front office (I’m guessing).  Now if Paxson is able to trade Deng somehow, then he can go play on Mars for all I care.  As long as the Bulls are paying him $71 million though, he better rest that goddamn leg.

• Deng will be out for the rest of the year unless the Bulls make a lengthy playoff run.  So yeah, see ya next year Luol. [Sun-Times]
• Your ‘ceps is on fire!  Sorry, had to.  Soto will miss at least two more games with inflammation in the biceps area.  Hopefully we’ll see him in the home opener.  [Tribune]
• Bulls win.  Boom, playoffs. [ESPN]
• Chris Getz is moving to the top of the lineup and Wise is moving down to eighth.  Who the hell are these guys?  [Tribune]
• Looks like Fenway Park may be the next venue to host the Winter Classic.  Wicked awesome.  [ESPN]
• Some very sad info on Nick Adenhart’s accident.  Good move by the Angels to postpone last night’s game by the way.  [3:10 to Joba]
• Just days after signing Tank, the Bengals are trying to keep up the PR blitz.  Corner Leon Hall got picked up for DUI.  [Slow Breaker]
• Here’s to hoping for the Bulls to face the Celtics in the playoffs.  Oh, and to play some defense.  [Pippen Ain't Easy]
• Gatorade with yet another ad campaign.  This one features an animated Tiger Woods; not animated like fist pumping, but you know, drawn.  Check it out.  [HHR]

• Joakim Noah is interviewed and let’s just say he thinks his life is like Entourage.  Great. [DC Sports Bog]
• Has the big man died in basketball?  (Not literally of course). [ChiCity Sports Fanion]
• The Bulls took care of business without D-Rose last night.  Closing in on that 7 seed… [ESPN]
• Does anyone want to win that spot in the bullpen?  It doesn’t seem like it. [Wrigleyville23]
• Bong got hit hard and other thoughts from the WBC.  I just like the title. [Zoner]
• Deng might be done for the year, but who needs him anyways? [Pippen Ain't Easy]
• A look at the NBA MVPs.  Personally I think its all Lebron, but you have to give Wade credit for what’s going on in Miami. [Truehoop]
• Oil Can Boyd wants to pitch at the ripe old age of 50.  He claims to have 4 pitches and wants to get in 30 starts.  Ha! [Shysterball]
• A penis on the roof of a mansion?  Priceless.  A high school kid having to fly home to clean off his parents’ roof because he got caught?  Even better. [BBC]

Could it be possible that the answer to the question of who could be the guy next to Rose for the next couple years was neither Gordon or Deng?  Could it be that a throw-in for a salary-dump deal was the answer?  I believe that it is.  Not that we don’t all love Deng as a person, but he cannot do anything better or even as well as Salmons.  Salmons is a better shooter, defender, and slasher.  Does Deng make up for it with his ballhandling, passing or rebounding?  I don’t think so.  Salmons does all those things just as well as Deng. 

Besides a stinker in Charlotte, Salmons has averaged 22 points, 6 rebounds and is shooting 49.6% from the field in the month of March.  He is making almost 50% of his shots!!!  He is far more efficient than Deng ever was, even before Deng was battling nagging injuries and lost his shooting touch.  I know StevieY19 (and others I’m sure) think that this little love affair with Salmons will wear off, but I don’t think it will.  Even if he ends up not being as great as he’s been, he will still be no worse than Deng and at only half the price.