The Bulls and Cavs are two teams heading in opposite directions of late, but there's some news coming out of both camps. Here's the latest:
- The impending return of Derrick Rose will likely send John Lucas III back to the end of the Bulls bench, but Lucas believes his performance this season has proven his ability to play in the league, writes Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times. Lucas, averaging 7.0 PPG and 2.1 APG in 14 minutes a game this year, is on a minimum-salary deal expires at the end of the season.
- It's no surprise, but Celtics coach Doc Rivers would like to see the Bulls extend the contract of coach Tom Thibodeau, a former assistant to Rivers in Boston, reports Melissa Isaacson of ESPNChicago.com. The Bulls have a team option on Thibodeau for next season.
- Sam Smith of Bulls.com answers reader questions on the Bulls, free agency and the draft, among other topics.
- Bob Finnan of The News-Herald examines the impact of guard Lester Hudson, who's with the Cavs on a 10-day contract. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal recounts Hudson's long journey to Cleveland.
- Both Manny Harris and Donald Sloan have non-guaranteed contracts for next season, according to the joint Twitter feed of Plain Dealer reporters Tom Reed and Mary Schmitt Boyer. Storytellers Contracts has the non-guaranteed contracts extending out another year, ending in 2014. Neither is slated to make as much as $1MM in any season.
- Sloan and presumably Harris will play for the Cavs' summer league team in the offseason, Reed and Boyer also note, via Twitter.