Chicago Bulls Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Notes: Vonleh, Smith Jr., Tanking, Prospects

January 20th, 2019 at 11:41am CST by Arthur Hill

Noah Vonleh has achieved his goal of re-establishing himself with the Knicks, but their partnership may not last beyond the February 7 trade deadline, writes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Vonleh was looking for playing time when he chose New York last summer instead of the Spurs, Bucks or Cavaliers. He joined the Knicks on a one-year, partially guaranteed contract and has turned in his best NBA season, averaging 8.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game while shooting better than 40% from 3-point range.

“A lot of talented players in the NBA don’t get to showcase certain things because that’s not how the team views them — they already got guys that can do that,” Vonleh said. “So the opportunity and the role is here, so I’m able to showcase some of the things. Coach (David Fizdale) said he has confidence in me, and that’s a big part. If your coach has confidence in you, ain’t no telling where you can go in this league. Sky’s the limit.”

However, Vonleh’s contract status brings some uncertainty to his situation. The Knicks don’t have his Bird Rights, so there’s no advantage to keeping him for the rest of the season. They will have the cap space to bid on him in free agency, although they are hoping to use that money on a top-level talent. A few teams have expressed interest in dealing for Vonleh, sources tell Vorkunov, although the Knicks haven’t said if they’re open to a trade.

There’s more out of New York:

It doesn’t appear the Knicks are interested in a second chance at Dennis Smith Jr., according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. New York bypassed Smith in the 2017 draft to take Frank Ntilikina and hasn’t pursued him despite rumors that he might be available in the midst of a troubled second season in Dallas. A source tells Berman that the Knicks asked about the Mavericks about Smith before the season, but “not recently.”
Despite reforming the rules for the draft lottery, the NBA is still faced with a four-team tanking race for the rest of the season, Berman notes in a separate story. The teams with the three worst records will have an equal shot at landing the top pick, and the Knicks are in that competition with the Cavaliers, Suns and Bulls. New York has dropped 17 of its past 19 games to move into third place in our latest Reverse Standings, but all four teams are separated by just two games.
In another piece, Berman examines the top five prospects the Knicks will be looking at if they land a high lottery pick. He places the Duke trio of Zion Williamson, Cam Reddish and R.J. Barrett and as the top three, followed by Murray State guard Ja Morant and Virginia forward De’Andre Hunter.

Central Notes: Lopez, Anthony, Burks, Bledsoe

January 19th, 2019 at 5:16pm CST by Arthur Hill

The thumb injury that will sideline Wendell Carter Jr. for the next eight to 12 weeks won’t change the Bulls‘ plans to trade veteran center Robin Lopez, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Even though a deal would leave Chicago short-handed in the middle the team, the team could give more minutes to Cristiano Felicio or get by with a small lineup until Carter returns.

With an expiring $14.3MM contract, Lopez is unlikely to return to the Bulls next season and management wants to get something now by shipping him to a contender. Relegated to a reserve role, Lopez’s numbers are about half of what they were last season, averaging 5.9 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.

The Bulls will continue to look for deals involving Jabari Parker as well, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Parker recently returned to the rotation after being exiled when Jim Boylen took over as head coach, but Chicago reportedly made no progress in working out a Parker trade while he wasn’t playing.

There’s more from the Central Division:

The Pistons had internal discussions about acquiring Carmelo Anthony, but decided not to pursue him, tweets Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. There were reports yesterday that Anthony, who remains on the Rockets’ roster although he hasn’t played in more than two months, has multiple options for his next location. Houston needs to open a roster spot before signing Kenneth Faried, so the team may have some urgency to get the Anthony situation resolved soon.
Alec Burks wasn’t sure if the Cavaliers planned to keep him when they acquired him from the Jazz in November but he says the experience in Cleveland has been positive, relays Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Burks’ playing time has increased with the Cavs and he has become the team’s top perimeter defender. “I would say there’s more opportunity here, definitely,” he said before Friday’s return to Utah. “I think it’s been great. Been up and down. Still going to be up and down I feel like just trying to find a rhythm. But it’s getting better and better. I’m adjusting more and more every day.”
Andrew Sharp of Sports Illustrated examines the impact that point guard Eric Bledsoe is having in his first full season with the Bucks.

Deveney’s Latest: D. Smith Jr., Nuggets, J. Parker

January 18th, 2019 at 1:21pm CST by Arthur Hill

Teams that might otherwise be interested in trading for the Mavericks‘ Dennis Smith Jr. may prefer to try their luck with a talented crop of point guards in free agency, writes Sean Deveney of Sporting News. The Magic and Suns, who have been mentioned in trade rumors involving Smith, will both have cap room available this summer and could try to upgrade at the position without giving up any assets.

Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker will headline this year’s class, which will also feature D’Angelo Russell and Terry Rozier. They are all more traditional point guards than Smith, who was bumped out of that position in Dallas when the Mavericks drafted Luka Doncic.

“He is very athletic, but he’s not a playmaker and not a great shooter,” a front office executive said of DSJ, per Deveney. “If you have money under the cap this offseason, there are other guys you can pursue who fit better, who can pass and score.”

There are also concerns that Smith is already clashing with management midway through his second season in the league, Deveney adds. Dallas is reluctant to give up on such a talented young player a year after taking him with the No. 9 pick, but another source says he will eventually be traded, whether it happens before the February 7 deadline or sometime in the future.

Deveney shares a couple more trade-related rumors:

The Nuggets may be willing to use their trade exceptions to help improve their defense. After some early-season progress, Denver has been allowing 115.3 points per 100 possessions over the past 15 games, placing the team 29th in the league. The Nuggets have three active trade exceptions, worth $13.7MM, $12.8MM and $5.9MM. They can’t be combined, but any of them could be enticing for teams looking to get rid of salary before the deadline.
Jabari Parker‘s return to the Bulls‘ rotation came more out of need than coach Jim Boylen’s declaration that he has displayed more effort in practice. Deveney claims that Chicago’s front office hasn’t made any progress in its effort to trade Parker and needs him back on the floor to help spark some interest. The former No. 2 overall pick has responded by averaging 14.7 PPG in 18.0 minutes per night over past three games.
The Bulls have no desire to accept salary beyond this season, so Deveney speculates that in order to move Parker, a three-team deal might be necessary with an under-the-cap team involved. Deveney also notes that the Knicks and Pelicans have expressed interest, but Chicago doesn’t want Courtney Lee or Solomon Hill, who are both signed through next season.

Trade Rumors: Hawks, Most Active Teams, Porter

January 18th, 2019 at 8:42am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s 2019 trade deadline is now less than three weeks away, and a number of the trade candidates whose names are popping up the most have something in common, as Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports tweets: They’re all on expiring contracts.

Smith identifies Dewayne Dedmon (Hawks), Jeremy Lin (Hawks), Jonathon Simmons (Magic), Wayne Ellington (Heat), Robin Lopez (Bulls), Enes Kanter (Knicks), Noah Vonleh (Knicks), and David Nwaba (Cavaliers) as those players cited most frequently in trade chatter. Of those eight players, Simmons is the only one under contract for next season, and his 2019/20 salary of $5.7MM is partially guaranteed for just $1MM. In other words, his deal can be viewed as a de facto expiring contract too.

Here are a few more notes and rumors on the NBA’s trade market:

The Hawks appear willing to take on 2019/20 salary in trade discussions, according to Smith (Twitter link). A willingness to eat a bad contract in exchange for a more favorable asset could make Atlanta a team to watch in the coming weeks, since most teams around the NBA want to preserve their cap space for 2019.
Smith names the Sixers, Nets, Magic, Kings, Rockets, Pelicans, and Clippers as the teams that appear to be most active in trying to upgrade their rosters (Twitter link). Besides gauging the trade market, these clubs are also keeping an eye on potential buyout candidates, Smith notes.
The Wizards have shown “little appetite” for any trade that involves moving Otto Porter for a return heavy on future assets and cap flexibility, sources tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe. That stance aligns with comments on Thursday made by owner Ted Leonsis, who stressed that Washington continues to push for a playoff spot and has no plans to tank.

Paul Zipser To Play In Spain

January 17th, 2019 at 11:02am CST by Luke Adams

Former Bulls forward Paul Zipser has found a new home for the rest of the 2018/19 season, having joined Spanish team San Pablo Burgos, according to a tweet from Spain’s Liga ACB (hat tip to Sportando).

Zipser, a second-round pick in the 2016 draft, had a decent rookie year in 2016/17, but averaged just 4.0 PPG and 2.4 RPG in 54 games (15.3 MPG) for the Bulls in 2017/18. The 24-year-old German was waived by Chicago last July in order to create the cap room necessary to finalize the signing of Jabari Parker.

A new NBA opportunity appeared to open up for Zipser earlier this month, with the Nets seemingly on the verge of signing him to a two-way contract. However, Alan Williams – who had left Brooklyn in the hopes of signing a deal with a Chinese team – ultimately remained stateside and returned to the Nets, occupying the two-way slot that Zipser would have taken.

As a result, he’ll resume his professional career overseas, playing for a European team for the first time since 2016. Zipser began his career with USC Heidelberg in Germany in 2010 and spent several seasons with Bayern Munich from 2013-16.

Wendell Carter Jr. Dodges Significant Thumb Injury

January 16th, 2019 at 4:53pm CST by clarkcrum

In a relatively innocuous tweet earlier this afternoon, the Bulls announced that rookie big man Wendell Carter Jr. hurt his left thumb in last night’s loss to the Lakers in Los Angeles. However, several reports surfacing since then indicated that the injury to Carter’s thumb may have been far worse than the team’s tweet originally let on.

Minutes after the Bulls’ initial tweet on the subject, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune reported that there was internal concern that Carter’s thumb injury was “significant” and the the team was waiting on further test results. He followed that report up with a tweet that the Bulls hadn’t ruled out a broken thumb, which would have required surgery.

Meanwhile, the Chicago-Sun Times reported that Carter was believed to have suffered an injury known as gamekeeper’s thumb, which generally requires a recovery time of 4-6 weeks, depending on the severity of the damage to the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL).

However, Johnson is now reporting that the aforementioned further test results have come back and that Carter’s UCL is intact, meaning the thumb is simply sprained and will not require surgery. As the previous reports indicated, the Bulls initially feared Carter could miss weeks, so the fact that they can now call their prized rookie day-to-day is a huge relief for the team during an otherwise injury-plagued season.

Bobby Portis Talks Future, Betting On Himself

January 15th, 2019 at 5:27pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Bobby Portis turned down the long-term security of a contract extension with the Bulls with the hopes of landing a more lucrative deal on the open market during the summer of 2019. While it may appear as if Portis made a bad bet, the former No. 22 overall pick believes he’s still in position to cash in.

“Obviously I’ve had some injuries up to this point, but I still feel like everything is lined up,’’ Portis said of his plan to become a restricted free agent this summer (via Joe Cowley of The Chicago Tribune). “It’s about me just staying healthy now and me doing my thing. The wins and losses obviously, come and go from game-to-game. You really can’t control that part all the time. We control our effort.”

The upcoming market should be much better than it was in 2018 due to the number of teams with available cap space. Many of the sour contracts from the 2016 offseason will come off the books, leaving teams the ability to make major additions. However, the competition for deals will be fierce with roughly 50% of NBA players eligible to hit the open market. Portis will likely be behind other power forwards, such as Tobias Harris, Julius Randle, Harrison Barnes, and former sparring partner Nikola Mirotic, when teams set their wish lists for a forward.

Portis has had opportunities to improve his stock, particularly during the stretch of games Lauri Markkanen missed to begin the season, but he hasn’t been able to capitalize them due to health problems. He suffered a knee injury near the start of the season and has since been sidelined during two separate stretches with ankle and elbow woes.

“I just need to stay healthy, be on the court, play as hard as I can when I can,” Portis said. “With the minutes that Coach Jim [Boylen] gives me, go out there and play with force. At the end of the day everybody wants to make as much money as they can in this game, but with me I’m just focused on my team, turning this around, and going out there and having fun. Enjoy the ride the rest of the year.’’

Entering Tuesday, Portis’ ride with the Bulls this season has only spanned 13 games. He’s been outspoken about his desire to remain with the Bulls past this season and he believes the feeling is mutual.

“Obviously I know that I really want to stay a Bull,’’ Portis said. “I can’t see myself in any other jersey. It would be weird to start the next season off in another uniform. I’ve been here for four seasons now, time flies fast, but I think I will be a Bull. It’s not only in my control, but honestly I’ve loved this opportunity to be a Bull and don’t see that changing.”

Portis will be a restricted free agent, meaning Chicago can match any offer sheet he receives. The franchise’s recent strategy has been to let RFAs hit the market and then decide whether to match, as the organization did with Zach LaVine‘s deal last offseason. Drafted in 2015, Portis is the Bulls’ longest-tenured player and he doesn’t “want that to change.’’

“To be around this long … obviously Bulls across my chest means a lot to me. I really take pride in that every time I step on the court. It’s a big-time honor to be the longest-tenured Bull, but at the same time I feel like I’ve got a long way to go,” Portis added.

Can Kris Dunn Still Be Bulls' PG Of Future?

January 15th, 2019 at 4:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Kris Dunn has been something of an enigma in his first season and a half with the Bulls, according to Sam Smith of Bulls.com, who explores whether the former fifth overall pick can still be Chicago’s point guard of the future.

Bulls Notes: Lopez, Boylen, Portis

January 14th, 2019 at 5:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Robin Lopez‘s shaky status with the Bulls led to some tense moments during practice on Monday, according to a series of Chicago Sun-Times tweets. Lopez was told prior to practice that his minutes might be reduced and he showed his irritation on the court, exchanging words with guard Kris Dunn, according to Malika Andrews of ESPN.

Coach Jim Boylen removed him from practice for approximately 10 minutes because Boylen felt he was getting too chippy. No punches were thrown, but the incident displayed how frustrated the veteran center feels about being in limbo. He and his expiring $14.36MM contract are on the trading block but the market for him is currently quiet after a potential deal fell through last week.

Chicago is hoping to get at least a second-round pick for Lopez without having to take back anything but another expiring contract to match up the salaries, Andrews adds. The Bulls have so far resisted buying out Lopez in the hopes that a trade can be worked out before the deadline.

We have more on the Bulls:

The re-negotiation of Boylen’s contract was mainly a show of support by management rather than a firm commitment, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune explains. Boylen had his salary doubled from what he was making as an assistant to $1.6MM. He also received a $1MM guarantee for his $1.6MM salary next season. That still might make him the lowest-paid coach in the league and doesn’t preclude him from getting fired if management has an unexpected change of heart, Johnson continues. It does show that the brass recognizes Boylen is trying to implement his philosophy without the benefit of a training camp or hiring his own staff, Johnson adds.
Forward Bobby Portis felt Kevin Durant intentionally injured him on Friday, Chelsea Howard of the Sporting News relays. Portis sprained his elbow when he got tangled up with the Warriors superstar. “If I would have done that, I would have got a foul call on me, defensive foul,” Portis said. “I guess it’s just who you’re playing against. Everything is officiated different toward whoever it is, but if you look back at the video at the time, it was obvious.”
The Knicks have considered moving disgruntled center Enes Kanter in a deal for Bulls forward Jabari Parker. Get the details here.

Knicks Have Explored Kanter, Parker Trade Scenario

January 14th, 2019 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

As the Knicks attempt to find a new home for Enes Kanter, one scenario recently discussed by the team would see New York acquire Bulls forward Jabari Parker, reports Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News.

Both Kanter ($18.6MM) and Parker ($20MM) are on pricey expiring contracts, and the Knicks were previously cited as one of the teams that expressed interest in the former No. 2 overall pick. However, Chicago is unlikely to have any interest in Kanter, since the team is headed for the lottery and wants youngsters like Wendell Carter, Lauri Markkanen, and Bobby Portis to handle the brunt of the frontcourt minutes.

Bondy acknowledges as much, writing that finding a third team to take Kanter represented a “snag in the framework” of a deal involving Kanter and Parker. It’s unclear if discussions ever really got off the ground and advanced beyond the preliminary stages, Bondy adds.

Like the Bulls, the Knicks are currently focused on player development rather than playoff contention, and Kanter has made it clear he’s not on board with that approach, so the team has been on the lookout for potential trades.

The Knicks reportedly talked to the Kings about a possible swap involving Kanter and Zach Randolph, who has an $11MM+ expiring contract. Bondy suggests that Sacramento would like to add Kosta Koufos – another veteran on an expiring contract – to that hypothetical deal, but says the Knicks would require a sweetener (ie. a second-round pick) to make it work.

It’s not clear how much interest the Knicks really have in Parker, but if they like him as a player and view him as a better long-term fit than Kanter, acquiring him in a trade would give them some options in the offseason. His $20MM team option will certainly be declined, but whichever team has him at the end of the season would hold his Non-Bird rights and could offer him a starting salary ranging from anywhere between the minimum and $24MM.