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Bulls Sign Kirk Hinrich

July 23rd, 2012 at 1:37pm CST by Daniel Seco

1:37pm: Hinrich's two-year deal will pay him roughly $8MM, says K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. In that case, Hinrich will receive more than $3.09MM in year one, meaning the Bulls are using their full mid-level exception, hard-capping their 2012/13 team salary at about $74.3MM.

JULY 23RD, 12:33pm: The Bulls have officially signed Hinrich, the team announced today in a press release. Since Chicago couldn't work out a sign-and-trade with Atlanta, the deal is expected to consume the team's full taxpayer mid-level exception.

JULY 8TH: The Bulls have reached a verbal agreement on a deal with free agent guard Kirk Hinrich, reports K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter). While details are still being finalized, Hinrich is expected a receive a two-year, $6MM contract from the Bulls. Hinrich returns to the franchise that drafted him in 2003 after spending parts of the last two seasons with the Wizards and Hawks. 

By adding Hinrich to their backcourt, the Bulls have given themselves more stability at the guard position with Derrick Rose on the shelf for at least a portion of the upcoming season. The former Kansas star averaged 6.6 PPG and 2.8 APG in 48 games during the 2011/12 season. 

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Clippers Sign Ryan Hollins

July 23rd, 2012 at 1:25pm CST by Zachary Links

MONDAY, 1:25pm: The Clippers have officially signed Hollins, the team announced today in a press release.

THURSDAY, 4:34pm: Free agent Ryan Hollins has verbally agreed to join the Clippers, according to agent Todd Ramasar on Twitter.  Earlier today it was reported that Los Angeles reached out to Hollins in hopes of securing a backup big man for the minimum salary.

The 27-year-old was waived by the Cavs in late March and promptly picked up by the Celtics.  In 39 games last year, Hollins averaged 13.4 minutes per contest and put up 3.4 PPG and 2.1 RPG.  While he has always shown promise as an athletic big, Hollins' inability to rebound was rather apparent in his time with Cleveland and Boston.

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Bulls Notes: Rose, Asik, Belinelli, Gibson

July 23rd, 2012 at 11:43am CST by Luke Adams

In his latest piece for the Chicago Tribune, K.C. Johnson recalls a statement Bulls GM Gar Forman made less than a month ago, on draft night: "Our decisions this summer will be basketball decisions, not financial decisions." Based on the Bulls' moves so far this offseason, particularly with the team on the verge of losing Omer Asik and getting nothing in return, it's hard to argue that finances haven't been strongly considered, as Johnson writes. Here are a few Bulls-related updates from his column:

  • Derrick Rose will "likely" be out until March, according to Johnson. We'd heard before that Rose probably wouldn't be back until the new year, but if the March ETA is accurate, that would mean the star point guard would miss most of the regular season.
  • The Bulls still plan to clear major cap space for the summer of 2014 to be a player on the free agent market. Luol Deng's contract will expire that summer, and Carlos Boozer will likely be amnestied by then, leaving Rose and Joakim Noah as the only big investments left on the team's books. If Chicago is hoping to clear enough space for a maximum-salary player that summer, it's a little easier to understand why the club wouldn't want Asik's $14.9MM salary for 2014/15.
  • Speaking of Asik, the Bulls still haven't officially informed the Rockets of their decision on the center's offer sheet, but league sources tell Johnson that Rockets management believes Houston will land Asik.
  • The Bulls "appear close" to signing Marco Belinelli, as we heard on Friday. As Johnson points out, spending the bi-annual exception on Belinelli would hard-cap the Bulls at about $74.3MM this season, and with payroll already approaching that figure, I'd be surprised if the team imposed that kind of inflexibility on itself. We'll see if the Bulls can land Belinelli for the veteran's minimum instead.
  • Extension negotiations for Taj Gibson are "next on the docket" for Chicago, says Johnson.
  • Johnson adds that one factor to watch this year as the Bulls weigh "basketball decisions" and "financial decisions" is whether the team spends the $5MM trade exception acquired in the Kyle Korver deal.
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Bobcats Unlikely To Sign-And-Trade For Landry

July 23rd, 2012 at 10:59am CST by Luke Adams

The Bobcats and Warriors were said to be "neck and neck" in the race for free agent forward Carl Landry, with Charlotte potentially able to offer more money via a sign-and-trade deal. However, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, it's unlikely the Bobcats will be able to pull off a sign-and-trade to acquire Landry (Twitter link).

There are a number of obstacles in the way of a sign-and-trade involving Landry, the Bobcats, and the Hornets. Not only would Landry have to agree to go to the Bobcats, but the Hornets would have to agree to send him to Charlotte, which would mean acquiring a palatable package in return. One report suggested that DeSagana Diop's expiring contract could interest the Hornets, and I'd imagine New Orleans would also acquire a draft pick in any Diop/Landry swap. But based on Bonnell's tweet, it doesn't appear those talks have much momentum.

If the Bobcats fall out of the running for Landry, the Warriors certainly look like the odds-on favorite to land him. Golden State probably can't use its full $5MM mid-level exception, but should be able to offer at least a portion of it to Landry. As I wrote last week, the 28-year-old forward now has the best 2011/12 PER of all the remaining free agents.

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Largest Free Agent Contracts Of 2012

July 23rd, 2012 at 9:44am CST by Luke Adams

There are still plenty of unsigned free agents on the market, but with respect to Carl Landry, Alonzo Gee, Brandon Rush, Leandro Barbosa, and the other top remaining options, we almost certainly won't see any more $30MM+ contracts signed this summer.

As Hoops Rumors' Free Agent Tracker shows, 15 free agents have signed multiyear contracts worth $30MM or more this offseason, based on reported salary figures. We're not 100% sure all the reported salaries are accurate, but these are the numbers we know so far, and should at the very least be in the neighborhood of the official figures.

So which players saw the biggest paydays this summer? Listed below are the 15 largest free agent contracts of the summer of 2012, from Deron Williams to Goran Dragic. Let us know in the comments section which players you feel are worthy of these massive contracts, and which ones might have been overpaid. Here's the complete list:

Note: Blake Griffin signed a five-year extension with the Clippers that would rank second on this list, but since he wasn't a free agent, he isn't included.

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CSKA Moscow Announces Shved’s Departure

July 23rd, 2012 at 8:29am CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have yet to officially finalize the deal they reached with Alexey Shved nearly two weeks ago, but an announcement today from Shved's former team in Russia suggested that could happen in the very near future. CSKA Moscow released a statement to say that Shved has exercised his NBA opt-out to join the Timberwolves, wishing him luck in his NBA career (English link via Sportando).

In the statement, CSKA president Andrey Vatutin indicated that he anticipates Shved will comfortably make the tradition to life in the NBA, adding that he fully expects the 23-year-old to proudly represent Russia and CSKA basketball. For his part, Shved thanked Vatutin and CSKA for the opportunity, and said he was looking forward to challenging himself at the highest level with the Timberwolves.

Shved, a 6'5" guard, will provide backcourt help and outside shooting in Minnesota. Terms of his contract aren't yet known, but the Wolves regained a good deal of cap space when Nicolas Batum's offer sheet was matched by the Trail Blazers, so there's room for Shved to receive a decent salary, even as the club finalizes deals with Brandon Roy and Greg Stiemsma.

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Odds & Ends: Beal, Williams, Cavs, Morrison

July 22nd, 2012 at 10:05pm CST by Zachary Links

Bradley Beal specifically asked that the Wizards’ take him with the third-overall pick and so far he is justifying the club's decision to oblige, writes Michael Lee of the Washington Post.  While summer league results aren't a perfect barometer for future success, the shooting guard impressed as he averaged 17.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per contest.  Here's more from around the Association..

  • One scout told Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter) that Derrick Williams, who went No. 2 in the 2011 draft, would not have have gone in the top eight in 2012.  It's an interesting take as some observers seemed to be down on what the 2012 class had to offer beyond the top few selections.
  • Cavaliers coach Byron Scott believes that the club's future looks bright even if they don't make a significant trade, writes Joel Brigham of USA Today.  "I'm looking at a nice young core of guys," Scott said. "If we add some guys to that core, more power to us, and if we don't, we'll go with what we got because I think right now the future of our team is pretty bright."
  • Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter) opines that Adam Morrison has played his way onto an NBA roster this season.  The forward is averaging about 20 points and five boards per game for the Clippers' summer league team.
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Poll: Should Bulls Match Asik’s Offer Sheet?

July 22nd, 2012 at 6:32pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, it was reported that the Bulls are expected to pass on matching the three-year, $25.1MM offer sheet that Omer Asik signed with Rockets.  Houston managed to land the restricted free agent with a gameplan eerily similar to the one they used to ink Jeremy Lin.  While the Bulls made it known publicly that they planned on matching any offer, it turns out that the hefty, backloaded deal was too rich for their blood.

Are the Bulls making a mistake by letting the 7'0" center walk?  Mark Potash of the Chicago Tribune certainly doesn't think so.  Potash writes that the $15MM cap hit that Asik would carry in the final year of the contract would loom over the team and simply wouldn't be worth it for a player who is as offensively challenged as Asik.  While the Turkish big man shines in the low post defensively, he averaged just 3.1 PPG in 14.7 minutes per contest which would translate to 7.6 PPG per 36 minutes.  Of course, it's hard to imagine Asik seeing that much playing time as he is firmly entrenched as a member of the club's second unit.

Still, even Potash admits that Asik's presence will be missed when the Bulls go head-to-head with the Heat.  And while the Bulls found a suitable backup in Nazr Mohammed, it's hard to imagine the club getting similar output from him.  It's your turn to weigh in – are the Bulls making a mistake in letting Asik go?

 

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Week In Review: 7/16/12 – 7/22/12

July 22nd, 2012 at 4:23pm CST by Michael Pina

Here's a list of all NBA related news that occurred this past week.

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Hoops Rumors Originals: 7/16/12 – 7/22/12

July 22nd, 2012 at 3:30pm CST by Michael Pina

Here's a rundown of all the original content produced by our team of writers over the past week. 

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