Chicago Bulls Thread

[Andrew]

They've taken it back by mere percentage points though, they can trade places again in the very next game should the Bulls win theirs and the Bucks lose. The race for 8th in the West may look better because of the team's record but the Suns are five games back of the Mavericks so chances are it won't be a close one as the season winds down.

[benji]

I assume he means the overall jostling for position. The East's top is set, and everyone at the bottom is trying to lose their way out of the playoffs it seems.

[Andrew]

Perhaps, but he did refer specifically to the fight for the 8th seed so I assumed he was talking about the Milwaukee-Chicago-New Jersey battle in the East and Dallas-Phoenix battle in the West. Overall the scramble amongst the top eight in the West certainly does present itself as more interesting with stronger teams in the mix.

[NovU]

Sorry for confusing you Andrew. I meant exactly what Benji said.

I found it somewhat funny how the teams are losing and still able to compete for 8th seed in East, while Western teams need to win a lot more to stay competitive in seeding fights. On positiave note, at least East teams have winning record against West.

[Andrew]

True, it does make it seem less a contest of who's better and more a case of who's the least mediocre/terrible. In times when the league was a little more balanced that was kind of the story for both 8th seeds though, at the very least it was often a team slightly above or slightly below .500 in both conferences.

[Andrew]

Nice win over the Hornets, who also did the Bulls a favour yesterday by beating the Bucks. Back in the 8th spot with the Bucks facing the Celtics tomorrow, a victory by Boston would give Chicago a bit of breathing room in this "win when they win, win when they lose, but only lose when they lose" scenario.

[Andrew]

So much for the Celtics being helpful as they fell to the Bucks. That's what concerns me about the dogfight with the Bucks, they're pulling out the big victories too despite being shorthanded though they do have the tougher schedule entering the final weeks of the regular season. As it stands they're ahead by 0.1% so it's hardly a dire situation though I was hoping today's game would give the Bulls that breathing room.

Meanwhile...

Gordon More Valuable To Bulls Than Other Teams?

Bulls guard Ben Gordon is one of just seven guards averaging 20 points per game and shooting over 45 percent from the field this season.

Gordon, who will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, is believed by some to have more value to Chicago than most other NBA teams.

"People like to pick out Ben Gordon's flaws all the time, but the great majority of games I've coached against Ben, he has been tremendous," said a longtime NBA assistant coach. "I would agree that Ben is more valuable to the Bulls than most other teams."

Due to the current economic climate and the reported lack of interest in the guard, the Bulls might be able sign Gordon to the six-year, $54 million contract he turned down last offseason.

"He should have taken Chicago's initial contract two seasons ago and everyone would have been much happier," said the longtime assistant coach. "He got bad advice."

That certainly could be leverage for the Bulls assuming there are no personal issues that would prevent Gordon from re-signing, it's a tough time for him to be seeking a lot of money elsewhere when teams are all looking at 2010. Much as I like Gordon, I can't imagine a team like the Knicks splashing out a max deal for him when they're eyeing LeBron and co after next season.

[Drausus]

Well, what is Chicago going to want at the end of the year? If Gordon turns down another offer they may be forced to look elsewhere. Here's a 2009 FA list -

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/stor ... ents-09-10

[Andrew]

Consider though that the only reason they'd be able to re-sign Gordon to a big contract is that he's their own free agent and Bird Rights are involved. MLE aside, they can't make a substantial offer to any first or even second tier free agents.

[Andrew]

Fine win over the Celtics today, following in the Bucks' footsteps in taking advantage of KG's absence. Back in eighth by half a game, if they can get the road win in Oklahoma City tomorrow and the Bucks fall to the Magic it'll help tremendously as the season continues to dwindle.

[NovU]

They are a different team without KG, but never expected them to lose to the Bucks then followed by loss to CHI. It seems Salmons had a big night. However, Rose hasn't really come up with big numbers lately. Is he still the leader for ROY?

[nba_baller]

Hows Brad Miller going?

[Andrew]

They are a different team without KG, but never expected them to lose to the Bucks then followed by loss to CHI. It seems Salmons had a big night. However, Rose hasn't really come up with big numbers lately. Is he still the leader for ROY?

I think he still has to be among the top candidates but I wouldn't say it's a given that he'll win or that he's unquestionably the top choice for that honour.

Hows Brad Miller going?

Seems to be working out alright. He had some timely boards and baskets in the Celtics game.

[Modifly]

Cheers on the big win against the C's. I was keeping track of the game via courtside live at NBA.com and I was so in to it.

I got a strange goosebumps that there will somewhat be a co-rookie of the year this season... just random predictions though.

[Andrew]

Not necessarily a bad idea when two candidates stand out as being the most worthy on different schools of thought. I like a definitive selection as much as the next person but I don't mind co-winners either.

[Dan's Brain]

Unbiasedly, I think Rose is still fairly likely to win. He was getting all of the media's attention in the early part of the season, and now with the Bulls fighting for the last playoff spot, more attention is going to be focused on them, whereas guys like O.J. Mayo and Russell Westbrook are playing on teams that have nothing to prove and nobody will want to watch. That said, Rose will have to take his game up a notch, both if the Bulls are going to grab that final seed and also if he's going to win ROY.

[Andrew]

Agreed. Meanwhile, I'm strongly considering getting the Celtics game and a couple of others off PonTel.

[NovU]

It seems like the Bucks only have ways to go down in the rankings from now on, instead, Charlotte is back in the hunt, it seems. I guess remaining schedule will play a factor for CHI and CHA.

[diddy]

i want to see at 7-th and 8-th seed Bulls and NJ i think they deserves it.

[Andrew]

Well the Bulls have that breathing room now having won one while the Bucks lost, which was keeping them from getting a firmer grip on the eighth spot. With it still being so close and 13-odd games left in the season it's still kind of tenuous but very promising at the same time.

[NovU]

Picking up Salmons and Miller seems to be working out well for the Bulls. I am bit surprised that Noah is still starting while Miller is coming off from the bench though.

[Dan's Brain]

Miller's still getting more of the minutes though, so it's not a huge deal if he doesnt get the start.

Does anybody else really, really want Salmons to stick around? He's been terrific so far, and I would be happy to see him higher in the rotation than a healthy Luol Deng. Anyone else?

[Andrew]

I second that, though it's been a while since we've seen Deng healthy so we're probably more familiar with him being injured and inconsistent at the moment. All the same I like the Salmons seems much more willing to score and is capable of putting up good numbers given the opportunity. I actually like the rotation they have at the moment, shallow as it may be with the trades and injuries. A couple more pieces and they could be back on the right path.

Of course, they could've had such a player in Sefolosha who's putting up some good numbers starting for the Thunder. That's kind of disappointing but that's not the player the Bulls appeared to be giving up, especially at the offensive end. I guess it comes down to the team's offense and opportunity but right now he's looking more like the player I hoped would emerge in Chicago. Such is life, I guess.

[air gordon]

Er, you really didn’t answer the Gordon question, Andrew lol. Either shit or get off the pot
Imo the bulls will (still) be the team offering him the highest contract. 6yrs/60mil or 5/yrs 50 mil. I also think Hinrich will be indeed traded for what turns out be expiring/2yr contacts.

Salmons has impressed me. I knew coming in he could put the ball in the basket but there were some doubts since he was doing it on a team worse then the bulls plus he would to be doing well only when he was starting…I don’t think he’s going anywhere soon with that cap friendly contract and the possibility of Gordon leaving in the offseason

Whats with this infatuiation with Thabo? His offensive skills are the same as they were with the bulls. Now that Green & Durant are back, his flavor of the week status is gone

I like the playing rotation as well. It took an injury to Gooden to get Tyrus & Noah going. now Deng being out got Salmons goin. VDN and his 7 man rotation is working for this team- the consistency of playing time & shots has those 7 guys settled in with their roles

I don’t call gaining a full game in the standings getting breathing room /let alone getting a firmer grip… especially when that lead is a mere 1.5 games lol. And now Charlotte is making it interesting. but whatever.. the bulls finally won a road game and have a nice sched to close out the season

[Andrew]

Er, you really didn’t answer the Gordon question, Andrew lol. Either shit or get off the pot
Imo the bulls will (still) be the team offering him the highest contract. 6yrs/60mil or 5/yrs 50 mil. I also think Hinrich will be indeed traded for what turns out be expiring/2yr contacts.

What more of an answer can I give? I've said I think the Bulls should keep him and would like him to do so. I said $65-70 mil seems like a reasonable range off the top of my head but I'm not signing the cheques so it's easy for me to say. I don't see how I'm not answering the questions or walking the fence on that one and even if I am, I don't claim to have all the answers anyway.

Whats with this infatuiation with Thabo? His offensive skills are the same as they were with the bulls. Now that Green & Durant are back, his flavor of the week status is gone

No infatuation, if you'll recall I didn't disagree with the trade when it happened. I just noticed he was putting up reasonable numbers since going to the Thunder and was kind of surprised to see him scoring in double figures, as I wouldn't have expected him to do that consistently given his offensive abilities. I realise it's premature but I'd hate to see him become another player who left the Bulls and finally become consistent and/or the player we hoped/expected him to be. In any case, it was just meant as a casual observation, I was surprised to see him put up numbers like that even considering Durant and Green were out.

I like the playing rotation as well. It took an injury to Gooden to get Tyrus & Noah going. now Deng being out got Salmons goin. VDN and his 7 man rotation is working for this team- the consistency of playing time & shots has those 7 guys settled in with their roles

Well with that in mind, should they try to hold onto Gordon and look to move someone else, padding out the bench with someone else and a mid first round pick? I think that's a decent scenario though the issue of having a small lineup is still going to be there. I think that does get overblown a little though it's always going to be a valid point with other teams being equipped to really take advantage of a smaller lineup.

I don’t call gaining a full game in the standings getting breathing room /let alone getting a firmer grip… especially when that lead is a mere 1.5 games lol. And now Charlotte is making it interesting. but whatever.. the bulls finally won a road game and have a nice sched to close out the season

I didn't say it was a lot of breathing room but it broke the chain of swapping places on an almost daily basis. I'm not suggesting they have the comfort of a team ten games up on the team closest behind them but even if it isn't a firm grip, it's firmer when they were basically tied and going in and out of the top eight game-to-game. You're right though, Charlotte has come charging up the standings and look like the team that will battle them for eighth while the Bucks hover around there too. 1.5 games is not a lot of distance but it's sure better than half a game and a lot better than a tie/"virtual tie" where a team is mere percentage points head and of course far preferable to being behind at this point of the season.