<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Ideally, both Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich and general manager John Paxson would like to come to terms on a new contract. But the reality is, Paxson and agent Jeff Austin have one week until the league's deadline to get a deal done. ''Right now, I honestly don't know if it will happen,'' Paxson said Monday. ''If it does, great. If it doesn't, it waits until next summer. ''As I [said] before, Jeff and I made an agreement that we aren't going to talk publicly about numbers or anything like that. We've had discussions. We've made our case, and he's made his. If it happens, it happens. But I've said this before, too: If we don't get a deal done, it doesn't reflect how we feel about Kirk.'' An attempt to reach Austin on Monday was unsuccessful. Hinrich, who will make $3,064,916 this season, said on Oct. 13 that he had ''the impression it's going to get done,'' but that he was ''not counting on it.'' If a contract can't be worked out by next Tuesday, Hinrich will become a restricted free agent next summer when the Bulls will extend a qualifying offer of $4,110,052 to retain the right to match any offer he receives. Should the deal get done now, the maximum length of the contract would be five years by league rule vs. six years should he sign next summer. ''It would be nice to have it done, but I don't have a problem with waiting,'' Hinrich said when he last addressed the negotiations. ''From the day we started [negotiations], I was just going to plan on playing another year with the same deal I have. Because if it doesn't happen, I don't want to be disappointed. ... If it happens, great, because I want to stay here. If not, I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing.''</div> Source
I hate how long this is taking the longer this drags out the more it seems like we will not get the deal done. This situation is eerily similar to that of Jamal Crawford's a couple years back the contract negotiations were slow to start and quick to end, before you knew it he was a New York Knick. I really hope Paxson gets something done quickly we can't afford to lose Hinrich. If we let him go out into the free agent market we will end up overpaying for him.
<div class="quote_poster">Best Kept Secret Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I hate how long this is taking the longer this drags out the more it seems like we will not get the deal done. This situation is eerily similar to that of Jamal Crawford's a couple years back the contract negotiations were slow to start and quick to end, before you knew it he was a New York Knick. I really hope Paxson gets something done quickly we can't afford to lose Hinrich. If we let him go out into the free agent market we will end up overpaying for him.</div> Not only that, but I've been reading that the Bucks are interested in him. To lose him now, would be a big blow. We should really extend that contract and lock up our young core.
<div class="quote_poster">Franchise4Ever Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Not only that, but I've been reading that the Bucks are interested in him. To lose him now, would be a big blow. We should really extend that contract and lock up our young core.</div> I mean the Bulls just got a good low post defender to solify this team. If you guys lose Hinrich, its a major blow. I'm sure the Bucks are interested after trading away TJ Ford. He really needs to have an extension like B.Gordon.
