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Bulls Exploring Boozer Trade For Bargnani

February 8th, 2013 at 7:58am CST by Daniel Seco

FRIDAY, 7:58am: The discussions between the Raptors and Bulls happened over a week ago, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, who says talks were initiated by the Bulls. Talks aren't currently active, but could be revisited by the Raps and could also expand to include Nate Robinson and John Lucas III.

Both Johnson and Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times suggest a deal is unlikely, since Toronto would be reluctant to take on Boozer's contract. According to Johnson, the Bulls are also not likely to amnesty Boozer this summer, assuming they hang on to him through February 21st.

THURSDAY, 5:09pm: The Bulls are looking into a potential trade with the Raptors that would send big man Carlos Boozer to Toronto in exchange for Andrea Bargnani, writes Marc Stein of ESPN.com. More pieces will need to be added to any prospective deal as Boozer makes $5MM more than Bargnani this season. 

While the Bulls could seemingly save money with the deal, the Raptors do not have an expiring contract to send to Chicago, thus making financial flexibility less likely for the Bulls. Conversely, the addition of Boozer to the Toronto roster would likely put the Raptors well into the luxury tax for next season. If traded, neither player would be eligible to be amnestied by their new team as an amnesty candidate must be on his pre-lockout team under a pre-lockout contract.

Boozer, 31, would provide the Raptors with a strong post presence as he's averaged 15.7 PPG and 9.6 RPG in 45 appearances. Toronto originally had interest in acquiring Pau Gasol from the Lakers until the Spaniard injured his foot earlier this week.

Bargnani, 27, offers the Bulls perimeter shooting that the team believes it so desperately lacks. The former overall number one pick has averaged 15.9 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 22 games this season.

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Ingram On Howard, Grizzlies, Celtics, Boozer, Bargnani

January 25th, 2013 at 9:33pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest from around the NBA as reported by Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld.com:

  • The Lakers are keeping their options open with regards to Dwight Howard, but as of now they are determined to keep him in Los Angeles.
  • Ingram doesn't think the Grizzlies should trade Rudy Gay or Zach Randolph this season, writing that they are close enough to title contention to keep the core together in the short term.
  • The Celtics need to find younger players to build around Rajon Rondo and Avery Bradley, Ingram writes.
  • Given Carlos Boozer's recent stretch of excellent play, Ingram doesn't see the Bulls trading him.
  • While the Raptors would love to trade Andrea Bargnani, it is unlikely that any player he could net in return is worth trading him for.
  • Ingram talk to Rockets rookie Patrick Beverley about his transition from the D-League to the NBA.
  • Ingram writes that the firing of head coach Alvin Gentry has injected a sense of urgency into the Suns locker room.
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Odds & Ends: Gay, Knicks, Bulls, Sullinger

January 10th, 2013 at 10:51pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Thursday night:

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Odds & Ends: Spurs, Varejao, Draft, Fisher

November 30th, 2012 at 4:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier today, I asked Hoops Rumors readers whether Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was in the wrong for sending his star players home before last night's game against the Heat. Over 83% of respondents so far have sided with Popovich rather than with commissioner David Stern, who called Pop's decision "unacceptable." Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports agrees with you in his take on the subject, calling Stern's statement a "temper tantrum that left everyone around him embarrassed, humiliated and wondering why he insisted on staying until February of 2014."

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA as we prepare for the weekend:

  • While Anderson Varejao has been a popular topic of trade speculation lately, the Cavaliers have no plans to move him, writes Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio. In any case, most teams who would be interested in Varejao don't have the assets to acquire him or aren't willing to part with them, says Amico.
  • In his latest draft blog at ESPN.com (Insider only), Chad Ford examines a few players whose stocks have slipped early in the season, including UNC's James Michael McAdoo and Tony Mitchell of North Texas.
  • A pair of Dallas Morning News scribes offer up opposing takes on the Mavericks' signing of Derek Fisher, with Eddie Sefko noting that signing Fisher as a starter will make the team's bench stronger, while Kevin Sherrington says it's a patchwork move in another year "about nothing."
  • Within Sam Smith's latest mailbag for Bulls.com, he writes that Carlos Boozer "basically cannot be traded" unless it's for a contract that's as bad or worse than his.
  • NBA.com's Fran Blinebury wonders if it would be in the Trail Blazers' best interests to consider trading LaMarcus Aldridge this season.
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Eastern Notes: Turner, Fields, Heat, Boozer

November 16th, 2012 at 9:35am CST by Luke Adams

We've already had one update out of the Eastern Conference today, with ESPN.com's Marc Stein reporting that the Raptors have Mickael Pietrus on their radar. Let's round up a few more Friday morning items from the East….

  • Evan Turner spoke to Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News about the adjustment from "standing out to fitting in" that he'd made since being drafted second overall by the Sixers in 2010. "I want to get minutes on the court and help the team out," Turner said. "Sometimes people don't think that's something that a guy who was the second pick would do. But here that's what I'm seen as and that's what I'm going to do to the best of my abilities."
  • Landry Fields got off to a terrible start with the Raptors, but given his elbow issues, it's unfair to call him a bust at this point, writes Stephen Brotherson of HoopsWorld. According to Brotherson, it will be at least another month or two before the team will really be able to tell what kind of player it signed.
  • In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel says a defensive-minded point guard is still something the Heat could use.
  • Sam Smith has his own mailbag up at Bulls.com, heavy on Chicago content. Among the highlights: Smith writes that every indication he's gotten to date indicates the Bulls don't plan to amnesty Carlos Boozer next summer.
  • Although he acknowledges it won't happen, Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio suggests the Heat should consider trading Dwyane Wade, since a team like the Kings or Hawks would give up plenty of young talent and assets for the perennial All-Star, and the Heat could win without him (all Twitter links).
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Stein On Extension Candidates, Boozer, Paul

October 17th, 2012 at 11:43am CST by Luke Adams

Earlier this week, TNT's David Aldridge shared the latest rumors and rumblings he'd heard about this year's fourth-year extension candidates. ESPN.com's Marc Stein follows suit today, and while much of what he's hearing is along the same lines as Aldridge's updates, there's still enough new info that it's worth rounding up the highlights….

  • Despite chairman Jerry Reinsdorf's apparent aversion to early extensions, it's still likely that the Bulls and Taj Gibson work something out this month, and that the team will eventually release Carlos Boozer using the amensty clause.
  • An extension for Ty Lawson remains more a question of "when" than "if," sources tells Stein.
  • The Raptors seem to "want to be wowed" by DeMar DeRozan in the 2012/13 season before committing to him long-term.
  • The Bobcats aren't expected to lock Gerald Henderson up to an extension unless the terms are very team-friendly.
  • Although the Hawks like Jeff Teague, they'll likely hold off on committing future cap space to a point guard until they're 100% sure they can't lure Chris Paul to Atlanta.
  • Extensions for Darren Collison and Rodrigue Beaubois can safely be ruled out as the Mavericks attempt to preserve next summer's cap room.
  • Stein also believes Stephen Curry and James Harden are likely to be extended, and that a new deal for Jrue Holiday is possible. However, he classifies the rest of this offseason's extension candidates as unlikely to receive long-term contracts by Halloween.
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Kyler On Gasol, Randolph, Boozer, Heat, Perkins

August 28th, 2012 at 9:31am CST by Luke Adams

In his latest NBA AM piece for HoopsWorld, Steve Kyler examines a few players that may not be a part of their respective teams' long-term plans. Let's round up the highlights from Kyler's piece….

  • According to Kyler, 2012/13 is "likely [Pau] Gasol's last season with the Lakers," and some people even believe he'll be dealt by the trade deadline if Dwight Howard is healthy and dominant. However, it's more likely that the team commits to the current roster for the full season and re-evaluates things next July. Given the $19MM+ Gasol is owed in 2013/14, along with the CBA's more punitive luxury tax penalties, the odds Pau remains with the team until the end of his contract are "astronomically small," says Kyler.
  • The Grizzlies shopped Zach Randolph around the time of the draft, but didn't find a suitor with serious interest. Of the Memphis players with big, long-term deals, Randolph is probably the one the team is most open to moving, says Kyler.
  • Bulls sources maintained this summer that amnestying Carlos Boozer has "never been a real consideration," but the team figures to revisit that issue in future offseasons.
  • Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem are both future amnesty candidates for the Heat, though Miller could end up eventually retiring for medical reasons.
  • If one or more of the Thunder's big-man projects (Cole Aldrich, Hasheem Thabeet, Daniel Orton) shows promise and consistency this season, Oklahoma City could be faced with a decision on Kendrick Perkins. His contract and health questions may make him a trade or amnesty candidate, particularly if the team locks up James Harden to a big contract.
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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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Bulls Notes: Offseason Moves, Deng, Boozer

June 6th, 2012 at 9:49am CST by Daniel Seco

The Bulls will face an uphill battle next season as they find themselves without star point guard Derrick Rose for an indefinite period of time thanks to his torn ACL. Beyond Rose's injury, the Bulls could be without Luol Deng if he elects to undergo wrist surgery after playing in the London Olympic Games. The Bulls will face a series of decisions this summer as they hope to remain one of the top eight teams in the Eastern Conference after falling to the Sixers in the first round of the playoffs this spring. ESPNChicago.com's Nick Friedell has the latest news and notes out of Chicago…

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Bulls Notes: Boozer, Rose, Offseason

May 16th, 2012 at 7:32pm CST by Ryan Raroque

In six games against the 76ers, Carlos Boozer averaged a disappointing 13.5 PPG, 42.2 FG%, and 3.8 turnovers per game compared to his 15/ 53.2/ 1.7 averages during the regular season. His 1-for-11 performance in a do-or-die Game Six could only have added more frustration for Bulls fans, as some have reportedly called for Boozer to be amnestied this summer. Bulls general manager Gar Forman was quick to show his support (Sportando link via CBS Chicago) for his starting power forward, as he spoke on The Mully and Hanley Show: "Even in that last game, in 27 minutes, he had 13 boards. I anticipate Carlos being with us and having another productive year next season."  

Here's more of what's buzzing in the Windy City: 

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