Joakim Noah Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Noah, Cavs, Pistons, Raptors

July 4th, 2012 at 3:42pm CST by Luke Adams

The U.S. squad for the 2012 Olympics has been hit hard by injuries, but Team USA isn't the only country that will see NBA players miss the London games. Already facing concerns over Tony Parker's health, France will be without Joakim Noah this summer, the Bulls big man told L'Equipe (French link). K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune confirms the news, noting that Noah will miss the Olympics to rest and rehab the ankle he sprained in the playoffs.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA on Independence Day….

Bulls Rumors: Hinrich, Asik, Roy, Fisher, Lucas

July 2nd, 2012 at 11:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

In case you missed it amidst tonight's flurry of free agent rumors, the Bulls are making Kirk Hinrich their top free agent target, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Johnson has more in a full report, adding that Hinrich will command most, if not all, of the team's $3MM mini mid-level exception. Hinrich may not be altogether exciting for Bulls fans, but they haven't stopped their pursuit of others, including Brandon Roy, and GM Gar Forman left open the possibility the team could match the Rockets' backloaded offer for Omer Asik, which will be officially tendered on July 11th. "I'm not going to talk about any type of negotiation or anything contractually until we see something," the GM said. "We've made it clear we value Omer and it's been our goal that Omer would stay with the Bulls." Johnson has more out of Chicago, and we've got the highlights here:

Odds & Ends: Magic, Ellis, Turiaf, Bulls, Garnett

June 27th, 2012 at 10:39pm CST by Alex Lee

Earlier today we heard that the Magic general manager Rob Hennigan spoke with the media and addressed the plethora of issues he has on his plate in his first few weeks on the job. Following Hennigan's availability, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel put together a comprehensive story on the rapid rate of change with which the Magic have overhauled their organization. By Schmitz's count, the Magic have dispatched of 17 important pieces of the organization since December. Starting as early as tomorrow night's draft, it is Orlando roster's turn for a makeover.

Here are some some odds and ends from around the NBA on this Wednesday night:

Lawrence On Riley, Shaq, Bulls, Knicks

June 23rd, 2012 at 5:54pm CST by Sean Highkin

Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News has a new column focusing on Miami Heat president Pat Riley, who is attempting to build a new dynasty in Miami following the team's NBA Finals victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday. Here are the highlights of the column:

Bulls Links: Noah, Offense, Watson

May 5th, 2012 at 10:57pm CST by Ryan Raroque

It's difficult to think of another team this year that has faced much more misfortune at such an inopportune time than the Bulls. After losing Derrick Rose in Game One to an injury that will sideline him beyond the start of next season, the team now lists Joakim Noah as doubtful for Game Four after badly spraining his ankle during Game Three. Here are a few more links out of Chicago:

Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago examines Chicago's failure to find offensive rhythm without Rose in the lineup.
The Chicago Tribune's K.C. Johnson writes that guard C.J. Watson is experiencing some pain in his elbow and ankle, but coach Thibodeau is confident that he'll be able to come through and play well tomorrow.
Johnson wonders if the decision to let Noah continue playing after spraining his ankle caused the injury to become worse.

Bulls Exploring Pau Gasol Trade; Deal Unlikely

March 14th, 2012 at 12:09pm CST by Luke Adams

WEDNESDAY, 12:09pm: Negotiations between the Lakers and Bulls about Gasol may have fallen apart when Chicago was unable to find a third team to facilitate the deal, reports Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. An East GM said of the talks: "I think that died on the vine."

TUESDAY, 9:56pm: If a deal between the Lakers and Bulls involving Gasol were to materialize past the exploratory talks, it looks as though there are some major financial obstacles to overcome, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.

There are major luxury tax implications for both teams, and while there are expiring contracts for the Bulls to offer, it isn't likely that cap relief will help get the deal done. Taking on the remaining three years of Boozer's contract could have a dire effect on the franchise, as they could be subject to more prohibitive penalties as a luxury tax-paying team, writes Johnson.

K.C. also cites the Los Angeles Times, saying that the Lakers have reportedly asked for Joakim Noah, an unknown player, and two first-round picks in exchange for Gasol.

3:34pm: The Bulls are exploring avenues to try to trade for Pau Gasol, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein. Chicago has been linked to Gasol multiple times in recent weeks, though this is the first time we've heard that they're actively pursuing trade scenarios for the Lakers' big man.

According to Stein, the Lakers have limited interest in the players the Bulls could offer for Gasol, including Carlos Boozer. Stein hears that for a deal to have any chance of working, a third team would likely have to get involved, and the Bulls haven't found that third team yet, tweets K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. The Lakers, who continue to talk to other clubs about potential Gasol trades, prefer to receive a top point guard if they're going to deal the Spaniard — and Chicago certainly won't be moving its top point guard.

The Rockets have also been aggressive in their pursuit of Gasol, though Houston's unwillingness to include Kyle Lowry in such a deal was a roadblock in those discussions. According to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com, Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak has been telling people recently that he doesn't anticipate a Gasol trade will happen before Thursday's deadline.

Assessing Stocks: Chicago Bulls

February 12th, 2012 at 6:02pm CST by Jesse Blanchard

Portfolio Review: The Chicago Bulls are veritable billionaires in terms of roster quality. Third on ESPN's future power rankings (Insider required), the Bulls are young, deep, and talented. Furthermore, their success hinges greatly on the chemistry established by reigning MVP Derrick Rose and head coach Tom Thibodeau. The Bulls lack the sheer star power of the Miami Heat, but can close the gap through its defensive system.

That of course means any drastic roster change disrupts that chemistry, and as such the Bulls are amongst the most risk-averse teams during this season.

Prime assets: Rose is untouchable, one of the top five players in the NBA. That leaves Joakim Noah and Luol Deng as the prime trade chips with one caveat. The only deal worth disrupting the Bulls chemistry is one that lands a Dwight Howard-level talent.

Worthless stock: Carlos Boozer has a large contract and enough flaws for other teams to think twice about taking on that contract. But worthless stock does not mean worthless player. In this case it simply means Boozer's value as a player on this roster probably exceeds what he would get in return in a potential trade.

The rest: The rest of the roster features a number of interchangeable parts that fit specific roles on this team. Tweaking on the fringes of the roster would simply bring in other interchangeable parts. One interesting name brought up by our own Daniel Seco is Ray Allen for Kyle Korver and Ronnie Brewer–a move that would somewhat consolidate the two players' skill sets into one player.

Odds & Ends: Nowitzki, Noah, Heat, Wizards

February 1st, 2012 at 4:50pm CST by Luke Adams

This year's later-than-usual trade deadline means we shouldn't expect the same amount of February player movement we'd normally see. Still, flipping the calendar page from to January to February means we're that much closer to seeing a few deals go down. While we wait to see where Dwight Howard, Chris Kaman, and the rest of this year's trade candidates land, let's round up today's odds and ends from around the league:

Asked about his future in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Dirk Nowitzki said he plans to play "at least two more years" in the NBA (hat tip to BallinEurope.com). I wouldn't read too much into that statement — even when Dirk's current contract with the Mavericks expires in 2014, he'll be just 36. I'd be surprised to see him retire at that point, barring a major injury or drop-off in the next couple seasons.
Joakim Noah admitted to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune that the pressure he felt after signing a $60MM contract extension with the Bulls contributed to his struggles early this season.
The Heat have kept their expectations for the Eddy Curry experiment in check, and still may look to add another center, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sentinel. Their first choice is presumably Joel Przybilla, who will reportedly decide between the Heat and Bulls this week.
Despite the team's struggles this season, president Ernie Grunfeld doesn't intend to abandon the Wizards' long-term strategy, as he tells Michael Lee of the Washington Post.
Chris Paul's departure has left something of a leadership void in New Orleans, writes Jimmy Smith of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
Marcus Banks has officially joined the D-League's Idaho Stampede, tweets Scott Schroeder of Ridiculous Upside. The eight-year NBA veteran signed with the D-League last week.