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Bulls’ Paxson Talks Roster, Hoiberg, Lopez, Draft

April 12th, 2018 at 1:11pm CST by Luke Adams

With the Bulls’ 2017/18 season officially over, executive VP of basketball operations John Paxson spoke today to reporters about a handful of topics in his end-of-season press conference. Notably, while Paxson called the coming offseason “as important a summer as we’ve had in a long time,” he said he expects the majority of the current roster to be back, since the team is “headed in the right direction” (Twitter link via K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune).

The Bulls don’t have any unrestricted free agents on the roster, and none of their players have the ability to opt out this summer, so Paxson’s comments about roster continuity don’t come as a surprise. The most important free agent decisions for the Bulls figure to come in restricted free agency — Zach LaVine, David Nwaba, and Noah Vonleh can all become RFAs.

Let’s round up a few more of Paxson’s noteworthy comments from today’s presser:

Head coach Fred Hoiberg will “absolutely” be back with the Bulls next season, per Paxson (Twitter link via Johnson). Unlike fellow Eastern lottery coaches Frank Vogel and Jeff Hornacek, Hoiberg was always considered very likely to return, but Paxson’s public confirmation makes it official.
Although Robin Lopez doesn’t necessarily fit the development timeline of core pieces like Lauri Markkanen, Kris Dunn, and LaVine, the Bulls continue to talk about him as a potential fixture. Paxson said today that the veteran center is “an important part of our future” (Twitter link via Johnson). Lopez is under contract for one more year at a cost of about $14.36MM, so it’s not clear if Chicago envisions keeping him beyond the summer of 2019.
After finishing in a tie for the sixth spot in the lottery standings, the Bulls are assured of a top-10 pick in the 2018 draft. Paxson said today that the club may target a wing with that lottery selection. “That would be an ideal spot,” Paxson said, per Johnson (Twitter link). “Size and length and a shooting and defensive component at the wing.” Villanova’s Mikal Bridges is one potential option who would fit that description.

Central Notes: Calderon, Thomas, Lopez, Lottery Pick

April 1st, 2018 at 3:58pm CST by marksuleymanov

Jose Calderon has become the Swiss army knife of players for the Cavaliers. As the team has dealt with injuries and inconsistency, Calderon has provided a spark in the lineup, on the bench, or any role he’s asked to fill, per USA TODAY Sports.

The 36-year-old has appeared in 53 games for the Cavaliers, starting 30 of them. His numbers are modest as he’s averaging 4.2 PPG 2.1 APG and 1.4 RPG in less than 16 minutes per contest. However, he’s always prepared to help the team, which is an invaluable commodity for a veteran team that underwent a midseason makeover. His teammate, LeBron James, is one of his biggest supporters.

“You got to have one or two guys like that on every team, someone who has kind of like zero ego, zero notion of entitlement,” James said. “Listen, his whole thing is like, ‘I’m going to stay ready. I’ll stay ready so if my number is called,’ and he goes out and produces and that’s big for our team because you never know when someone is going to go down.”

Check out more Central Division notes below:

Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer revisited the offseason trade that brought an injured Isaiah Thomas to the Cavaliers and shipped Kyrie Irving to the Celtics. Pluto writes that it would have probably made sense for Thomas to undergo hip surgery last season as he will miss the next four months due to hip surgery. Thomas never got acclimated to Cleveland and was shipped to the Lakers. Pluto also looks the deal for the Celtics and several other aspects of the deal.
Bulls center Robin Lopez was fined $25,000 for abusing game officials and failing to leave the court in a timely manner after he was ejected in the fourth quarter of the team’s loss to the Heat on Thursday, the league announced.
Mark Strotman of NBC Sports Chicago looks at the Bulls’ odds of falling to a top three pick in the 2018 NBA Draft and which players would make sense as targets.

Central Notes: R. Jackson, Dunn, LaVine, Love

March 7th, 2018 at 7:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson hasn’t given up on playing again before the end of the season, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. Jackson, who has missed the past 10 weeks with a severely sprained right ankle, was able to perform some quick movements in a workout today and step into his shot without discomfort.

“In a lot of ways, it’s been tough,” Jackson said. “It’s [past 30 games missed] now and I never envisioned a sprain lasting this long. Usually, you bounce back and play within a few hours or a few days or a week’s time. I never envisioned being out this long. The season’s been up and down and I just really want to go out there and play.”

Coach Stan Van Gundy recently suggested that Jackson may be ready for a full-contact practice by next week, but Beard cautions that’s unlikely without significant progress in the next few days.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

The young Bulls stars are showing respect to one another now, but conflict will come when someone has to emerge as the team leader, predicts Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago. Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn are both aware that possibility is coming, but they are focused on more immediate goals. “I don’t worry about that. I don’t get into that — who’s the best player and all that,” Dunn said. “We all have to be leaders for this team. We have to be leaders in different ways. It’s a matter of time to see how we jell out. Right now we just keep playing.”
After sitting out seven games as the Bulls opted for a youth movement, center Robin Lopez will return to the starting lineup Friday in the wake of a warning from the NBA about resting healthy players. “It’s a little bit of a crazy situation,” Lopez told K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). “I’m always excited to get out there and play with the guys.”
Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, who is getting a positive response throughout the league over a piece he posted on The Players Tribune about panic attacks, said he was motivated to write it after the issue came up at a team meeting in January. “One of the things that was brought up was [coach] Ty Lue had mentioned the panic attack [from] early in the season,” Love told Michael Singer of USA Today. “And I wasn’t aware how many people knew. I kind of buried it and put it off to the side. And that kind of started a big push in the back to why I wanted to write this article.”

Central Notes: Bulls, Cavs, Pistons

March 1st, 2018 at 8:52pm CST by Austin Kent

The Bulls are walking a fine line between developing young players and outright tanking, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune writes. The organization’s recent decision to sideline starters Robin Lopez and Justin Holiday is one glaring examples of the club’s bold strategy down the stretch.

While vice president John Paxson did proactively say the Bulls would be launching a player-development plan when the team returned from the All-Star Break, league commissioner Adam Silver is on a mission to curb the thought that teams could be losing on purpose.

To Paxson’s credit, there’s merit to the idea of auditioning unproven players during the final months of an otherwise lost campaign, gauging how individuals fare with heavier workloads is an essential part of planning for the future. The question is how well the Bulls can balance that with putting a reasonably competitive team out on the floor.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

The Cavaliers added four rotation players at the trade deadline, so it’s not surprising that head coach Tyronn Lue is still sizing up what exactly he has on his hands. “I just want to see what I’m working with,” Lue told Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. “I really don’t know the guys that much, that well. Just want to see in big moments, pressure situations, how they perform. They performed well and they’ve been performing well.“
The Pistons hope that Reggie Jackson is able to practice on March 11, prior to the team embarking on a six-game road trip, Keith Langlois of the team’s official site tweets.
Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy views his decision to take Eric Moreland out of the team’s rotation as a mistake, Geoff Robinson of The Detroit News writes. The bench boss plans to amend that by getting Moreland more minutes in order to capitalize on the energy he brings.

Bulls Notes: Lopez, Holiday, Portis, Tanking

February 25th, 2018 at 5:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

Robin Lopez has been the Bulls’ starting center since being acquired from the Knicks in the summer of 2016, but he has been relegated to the bench as Chicago launches a youth movement, writes Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago. With Cristiano Felicio being named the starting center, Lopez has sat out the past two games and it’s not clear when he might return.

“It was rough for me. I get it. I understand it,” Lopez said. “I always want to be out there playing on the court. That’s what I enjoy, especially playing with these guys. But I’m excited to watch these guys give it a go from the bench.”

Lopez isn’t sure if he’s in the Bulls’ long-range plans, even though he has one more season left on his contract at more than $13.5MM. He’s averaging a career-best 12.3 points to go with 4.7 rebounds in 57 games, so there should be interested teams if Chicago decides to trade him this summer.

There’s more news from the Windy City:

Justin Holiday has been benched along with Lopez, but both may return to the lineup at some point this season, tweets K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. Coach Fred Hoiberg didn’t directly answer questions about their future, but Lopez said he expects to play again. Holiday is also signed through next season at a salary of nearly $4.39MM.
Third-year forward Bobby Portis is part of the youth movement and has been succeeding with a grating style that irritates opponents, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Portis has nearly doubled his scoring average to 13.0 points per game, while piling up an enemies list that includes former teammate Nikola Mirotic, who missed the start of the season with facial fractures he suffered in a preseason skirmish with Portis. “People used to joke around all the time about it, but now I’m making it into something I like,’’ Portis said of his “Crazy Eyes” nickname. “My eyes do get crazy, and I never know what they’re going to do.’’
The Bulls are three games out of the top spot in our latest Reverse Standings, but tanking may not be the best strategy for a turnaround, Cowley suggests in a separate story. He notes that Chicago already has a wealth of young talent on hand and may benefit more by trying to win some games before the end of the season than by trying to improve its draft pick.

Bulls Notes: Lineup Changes, Payne, Forman

February 22nd, 2018 at 3:13pm CST by Luke Adams

With 25 games left in their season, the Bulls are focusing on the future, as VP John Paxson explained to reporters on Tuesday (link via Sam Smith of Bulls.com). That means that Cristiano Felicio will move into the starting lineup on Thursday in place of veteran center Robin Lopez, while David Nwaba will supplant Justin Holiday.

“The hard part from our standpoint is you can’t play 12 guys. Nine or 10 is the most,” Paxson said. “We’re going to start looking at blocks of games where we’ll be having a few guys who haven’t been playing much or at all have a significant role. The whole goal in our position is to evaluate what we have on this roster.

“The hard thing when you do things like this is you’re asking certain people to sacrifice roles and minutes,” Paxson continued. “It’s veteran guys. That’s never an easy thing. As I told them, I, along with [GM] Gar [Forman], we’re entrusted with the future of the organization. So these last 25 games, we’re going to evaluate what we have on this roster by playing more the guys we haven’t seen much this year.”

Let’s round up a few more Bulls notes…

Cameron Payne, who has missed the entire season with a foot injury, is set to make his 2017/18 debut on Thursday, writes Madeline Kenney of The Chicago Sun-Times. Payne figures to cut into Jerian Grant‘s playing time.
With John Paxson once again addressing reporters on Tuesday, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times explores where Gar Forman has been “hiding” this season. According to Cowley, Paxson comes across as more “honest and transparent” than Forman, which is why the VP has handled most of the team’s media responsibilities this season. However, Forman is still very much involved in basketball operations and is by no means being pushed out of the organization.
Justin Holiday is trying to take his reduced role in stride, per K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. “I have to deal with it, be professional about it,” Holiday said. “Regardless of the situation or the reason, I have to carry myself a certain way because that’s how I do things. How I react and carry myself in this will be a good leadership situation for the young guys to see and follow the example if it does happen to them.”
The $600K fine Mark Cuban received for publicly discussing the benefits of losing is exactly why Paxson and other members of the Bulls organization will dance around the subject of tanking, says Mark Strotman of NBC Sports Chicago.

Central Notes: Bulls, Nelson, J.R. Smith, Pacers

February 13th, 2018 at 5:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Bulls need to get more serious about tanking and start making moves to improve their lottery chances, Nick Friedell of ESPN.com argues. Cristiano Felicio, Paul Zipser, Noah Vonleh and Cameron Payne should receive a lot more playing time, while veterans like Robin Lopez and Justin Holiday should have their minutes reduced, Friedell says. Holding out Zach LaVine on the second game of back-to-backs would also facilitate the cause, Friedell adds.

Also around the Central Division:

Small forward James Ennis and point guard Jameer Nelson have jumped right into the Pistons’ rotation after being acquired just before the trade deadline. Ennis, who was traded by the Grizzlies for forward Brice Johnson and a future second-round pick, has averaged 9.5 PPG and 17.5 MPG over the past two games. Nelson, who was traded by the Bulls for Willie Reed and future draft considerations, has averaged 9.0 PPG and 5.0 APG in 19.5 MPG during his first two games with Detroit.
Nelson, 35, told Hoops Rumors and other reporters that he’d like to continue playing after this season. The Pistons point guard be an unrestricted free agent this summer. “I never want to put a limit or a time frame on my career,” he said. “My body feels good, my mind is right. So I’ll just continue to work. My body and mind will tell me when it’s time for me to go. I think there will be a lot of teams that will need a guy like me next season.”
Pacers players lobbied GM Kevin Pritchard to stand pat during the trade deadline, Jim Ayello of the Indianapolis Star relays. Pritchard was approached by six players, who told him they wanted to see what they could accomplish with the current mix. “They feel like they are overachieving and had a little bit of a chip on their shoulder,” Pritchard said during a press conference. “They wanted to have the opportunity to finish this out and try to get into the playoffs. … That carried a lot of weight with me.”
Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith held onto his roster spot and retained his starting job, but he admits he was sweating out the deadline, as ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reports. “My name was being thrown around a lot out there, so it was nerve-wracking for sure,” Smith said. “When you see six guys getting traded and there’s still more than an hour to the trade deadline, there’s no telling what can happen.” Smith is owed $30.3MM over the next two seasons, which made his contract difficult to move, McMenamin notes.

Bulls Notes: Paxson, Lopez, Holiday, Allen, Dunn

February 8th, 2018 at 7:27pm CST by marksuleymanov

The Bulls were relatively quiet as the trade deadline passed on Thursday, completing a pair of minor deals involving Noah Vonleh and Jameer Nelson. Chicago’s major move came when the team dealt Nikola Mirotic to the Pelicans, which netted the team highly-coveted draft picks.

Vice president of basketball operations John Paxson, is happy with the Bulls’ moves and is excited about the future, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times writes. Paxson compared draft picks to gold for teams as his franchise restocks for the future. In particular, Paxson likes having future high picks to go along with the young talent already on the roster.

“We look at it this way: We got the three young guys [Lauri Markkanen, Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn] when we made the [Jimmy Butler] trade for last year, we’re going to have two [first-round] picks most likely in this draft, and we’ve got Bobby [Portis] and Denzel [Valentine] as young guys,” Paxson said. “That’s seven young pieces, and we just need to continue to develop them, grow, and make the smart decisions, not get in a rush.’’

Check out other Bulls news and notes below:

Paxson said that the Bulls were offered several multiyear bad contracts in trade talks, but the team was not comfortable taking on significant money that went beyond the 2018/19 season, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Paxson added that the Bulls were comfortable taking Omer Asik in the Mirotic trade because he is set to make just $3MM in 2018/19.
While the Bulls could have traded Robin Lopez and/or Justin Holiday, Paxson said their value as veteran leaders and teammates was too important to the club, Johnson tweets.
Tony Allen, who was acquired as part of the Mirotic trade, was reportedly set to be waived by Chicago. However, Paxson said the team will have a discussion with Allen’s agent before deciding on his future, Nick Friedell of ESPN tweets.
Point guard Kris Dunn is out of concussion protocol but he is still not ready to return, per the Associated Press. Dunn has missed the Bulls’ past eight games; he’s averaging 13.7 PPG and 6.4 APG for Chicago this season.

Robin Lopez Trade Talks Intensifying

February 5th, 2018 at 11:31am CST by Luke Adams

After sending Nikola Mirotic to the Pelicans last week, the Bulls remain on the lookout for more potential trades, with Robin Lopez among the candidates to be dealt. According to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune, talks centering on Lopez have “intensified” as of late, with this year’s deadline just three days away.

Lopez, 29, is averaging a career-best 12.6 PPG this season to go along with 4.8 RPG, a career-high 2.1 APG, and a .525 FG%. While Lopez’s per-minute rebounding numbers in 2017/18 are the worst of his career, he continues to be a respected defender with a reputation for effectively boxing out opponents and allowing his teammates to grab boards.

A report last week suggested that the Bulls are seeking a first-round pick in exchange for Lopez, which may be a tough sell. Although the veteran’s contract isn’t toxic, he’s Chicago’s highest-paid player, with cap hits of $13.79MM this season and $14.36MM next year. In order to have a chance at a first-rounder for Lopez, the Bulls would probably need to take on a bad contract, as they did in the Mirotic trade when they acquired Omer Asik.

Lopez isn’t the only trade candidate on the Bulls’ roster, according to Johnson, who notes that Jerian Grant continues to be available. Recently-acquired veterans Tony Allen and Jameer Nelson are also being kept on the roster in case they can be used in larger packages or traded on their own. Johnson reported over the weekend that the Bulls and Thunder have discussed Allen.

Scotto’s Latest: Pelicans, Gordon, Carroll, Nuggets

February 2nd, 2018 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

Before sending Omer Asik to Chicago, the Pelicans explored trading the veteran center to a number of other teams, according to Michael Scotto of The Athletic. League sources tells Scotto that the Hawks and Pelicans recently talked about a deal that would have sent Asik and a first-round pick to Atlanta in exchange for Marco Belinelli and Ersan Ilyasova.

The Mavericks discussed a deal that would have seen them take on both Asik and Alexis Ajinca – along with a first-round pick – in exchange for Wesley Matthews, but Dallas was hesitant to take on two undesirable multiyear contracts, says Scotto.

Additionally, the Pelicans proposed a pair of trades to the Lakers, according to Scotto, who reports that one would have sent Asik and a first-round pick to L.A. for Jordan Clarkson, while the other would have sent Ajinca and a second-round pick to the Lakers for Julius Randle. That second deal could technically still happen, but I can’t imagine it would appeal to the Lakers.

Scotto’s piece for The Athletic is jam-packed with more noteworthy trade rumors, so let’s dive in and round up some highlights…

The Magic‘s front office has “left no stone unturned” as the team explores potential trades. Scotto hears that the club has even quietly gauged trade interest in Aaron Gordon, who will be a restricted free agent this summer. I imagine Orlando would require a pretty overwhelming offer to seriously consider moving Gordon.
Several teams have expressed interest in Nets forward DeMarre Carroll, according to Scotto, who identifies the Heat as one of those teams.
As we heard on Thursday, the Bulls are still very much open for business. Robin Lopez is a trade candidate, but Chicago wants a first-round pick in a deal for the veteran center, per Scotto.
Scotto names Malik Beasley, Kenneth Faried, and Emmanuel Mudiay as trade candidates for the Nuggets, noting that the team could be a suitor for Jazz guard Rodney Hood.
Hood isn’t the only Jazz guard who could be available at the deadline — Scotto hears that Utah has also explored the trade market for Ricky Rubio.
Several teams are monitoring Pistons forward Stanley Johnson. Scotto notes that Johnson was one player the Magic coveted when they discussed deals with Detroit earlier in the season, and adds that the Spurs have interest too.
Speaking of the Spurs, they’re one of the teams – as are the division-rival Mavericks – that has expressed interest in Knicks center Willy Hernangomez.
The Wizards are keeping an eye on the trade market and buyout market for a backup point guard, writes Scotto.
Fourth-year forward Noah Vonleh has been shopped by the Trail Blazers, according to Scotto. In addition to keeping tabs on DeAndre Jordan, Portland is also interested in acquiring a small forward.
Executives around the NBA believe that Raptors swingman Norman Powell could be a trade candidate during the offseason due to the emergence of rookie OG Anunoby.