I've never seen any article, anywhere, that quotes Reinsdorf as saying he'd never pay the LT. Quite the contrary - I've seen quotes, direct or indirect, that he'd be "willing to pay for a winner." It's only a recent development that after trying to get Deng and Gordon to sign less than market value deals, that PAXSON was quoted as saying the Bulls would never pay LT. My take is that it's Paxson saying the Bulls won't pay LT, not Reinsdorf saying that. So the challenge is to prove otherwise.
Don't have a link, but apparently on ESPN Insider today Ford explicitly says a deal for Gasol was vetoed by Reinsdorf b/c he wouldn't pay the tax.
Shape posted an article yesterday or day before talking about how doing an S&T of PJ Brown would put the Bulls over the threshold and that Reinsdorf wouldn't allow it (something along those lines). However, I'm still not believing that it was Reinsdorf who used a veto, but rather Paxson. As I said in my first post, I've seen Pax say the Bulls wouldn't pay the LT, but nothing conclusive about that being Reinsdorf's policy. Reinsdorf is a baseball guy and he was willing to pay huge sums to baseball players. I don't believe the Bulls are his red-headed stepson. On the other hand, if Reinsdorf has no such policy about the LT, and Pax does go over without results, it doesn't reflect well on him. My take is that Pax is simply overly conservative.
I also heard an interview with Pax, again, I don't have a link, I think it was the last one he did, where he says deals have to be approved by ownership. Here's what Ford said: <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>The downside for Chicago would have been that adding Gasol's salary to the books would have pushed them into the luxury tax, something Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf is telling general manager John Paxson he won't pay.</div> Also, has anyone listened to all of the recent Pax interviews? There was one with Mike North and one on ESPN1000. I believe in one of those he said he put together trades only to have them rejected by ownership. Maybe he was referring to this situation with Gasol. I really should ahve posted about it because it seemed a real slip for the GM to say he went to the owner with a trade he endorsed, only to have it rejected.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (o.iatlhawksfan @ Feb 5 2008, 06:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>who's LT?</div> Luxury Tax
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MikeDC @ Feb 5 2008, 04:59 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I also heard an interview with Pax, again, I don't have a link, I think it was the last one he did, where he says deals have to be approved by ownership. Here's what Ford said: <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>The downside for Chicago would have been that adding Gasol's salary to the books would have pushed them into the luxury tax, something Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf is telling general manager John Paxson he won't pay.</div> Also, has anyone listened to all of the recent Pax interviews? There was one with Mike North and one on ESPN1000. I believe in one of those he said he put together trades only to have them rejected by ownership. Maybe he was referring to this situation with Gasol. I really should ahve posted about it because it seemed a real slip for the GM to say he went to the owner with a trade he endorsed, only to have it rejected. </div> This happened to Mitch Kupchak a few times and it got to a point where other GMs would stop dealing with him and wanted to deal directly with Buss. I'm sure Reinsdorf flip-flops on the LT situation. If the Bulls put a contender out there I'm sure he'll be more than willing to pay. Maybe he didn't feel Gasol was enough to compete in the East against the Big 3 or the Pistons.
^^^ What Shape said. This quote: <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>The downside for Chicago would have been that adding Gasol's salary to the books would have pushed them into the luxury tax, something Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf is telling general manager John Paxson he won't pay.</div> is like 3rd hand. I don't see it as conclusive. However, the quote of Paxson specifically saying the BUlls would NEVER pay the LT is something that is for sure.
I kinda agree with you DaBullz. This is conjecture, but I suspect Paxson could convince Reinsdorf to pay the LT. Like you said, Reinsdorf has said that he would pay for a winner, and I don't think that's a totally empty promise. There is no doubt JR is one the greediest owners in sports, but he has had huge payrolls in the past. If Paxson came to Reinsdorf and said, "This Gasol deal is a steal for us, we're giving up very little talent and getting a big man with a great low post game in his prime, one of the best offensive players in the league. Sure we would have to pay the luxury tax, but this team would finally be a championship contender," does anyone really think Reinsdorf would give it zero consideration? Paxson is Reinsdorf's handpicked GM, JR wouldn't have hired him if he didn't value his opinions. The reason Paxson would never say that is because he would get fired if the trade didn't work out, if he was wrong. His job is fairly secure right now and there's no incentive for him to take such a risk.
Most likely the conversation is going: Paxson: "We can get Pau Gasol for very little talent, but we'll have to take on a lot more salary." Reinsdorf: "Will the team compete for championships?" Paxson: "Possibly. Maybe. Perhaps." Reinsdorf: "Then no. Of course not." But if the conversation was: Paxson: "We can get Pau Gasol for very little talent, but we'll have to take on a lot more salary." Reinsdorf: "Will the team compete for championships?" Paxson: "Yes, I think it will. A lineup of Gasol - Noah - Deng - Hinrich - Gordon, when healthy, would be the best team in the east. It's our best shot at competing for the next five years. When you can trade PJ Brown and Tyrus Thomas for Pau Gasol, you do it because the disparity in talent is overwhelming. The team hasn't played very well this season, but I'm convinced it's an aberration and not a display of their true ability." Reinsdorf: "See if you can dump Joe Smith and Nocioni, too. But fine, find a way to make it happen."
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rwj @ Feb 5 2008, 11:16 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Most likely the conversation is going: Paxson: "We can get Pau Gasol for very little talent, but we'll have to take on a lot more salary." Reinsdorf: "Will the team compete for championships?" Paxson: "Possibly. Maybe. Perhaps." Reinsdorf: "Then no. Of course not." But if the conversation was: Paxson: "We can get Pau Gasol for very little talent, but we'll have to take on a lot more salary." Reinsdorf: "Will the team compete for championships?" Paxson: "Yes, I think it will. A lineup of Gasol - Noah - Deng - Hinrich - Gordon, when healthy, would be the best team in the east. It's our best shot at competing for the next five years. When you can trade PJ Brown and Tyrus Thomas for Pau Gasol, you do it because the disparity in talent is overwhelming. The team hasn't played very well this season, but I'm convinced it's an aberration and not a display of their true ability." Reinsdorf: "See if you can dump Joe Smith and Nocioni, too. But fine, find a way to make it happen."</div> Why "will the team compete for championships" is the wrong criterion.
