Central Notes: Thompson, Bucks, Bulls

LeBron James urged that the Cavs and Tristan Thompson need to bend in order to work out a deal as soon as possible because the situation is becoming a distraction and told reporters, including Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com (Twitter links), that his Instagram post last night was meant to illustrate that thought.

“The last thing you need is a distraction when you’re trying to make a championship run and we have that,” James told reporters.

Thompson let the deadline pass without signing his qualifying offer earlier this week, which reduces his options to signing a long-term deal with the Cavs, signing an offer sheet from another team or continuing to sit out.

Here’s more from around the Central Division:

• Cavs coach David Blatt admitted that he needed to learn a lot last year in his first season in the league, but he seems much more comfortable and confident than he was at this point last year, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal details. “I feel more at home,” Blatt told Lloyd. “It wasn’t easy what I had to go through last year from the standpoint of a whole new environment and whole new way of doing things.”
• The Bucks have a few options at point guard heading into this season so it will be interesting to see who emerges during the preseason and what Jason Kidd‘s lineup will look like, Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. The Bucks, who already had Michael Carter-Williams and Jerryd Bayless, acquired Greivis Vasquez in a trade with Toronto.
• Players on the Bulls respect their former coach, Tom Thibodeau, but are, at least so far, seemingly happier with new coach Fred Hoiberg‘s player-friendly style, Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com writes after speaking with several veterans.