http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...-0724-bulls-hinrich--20120724,0,6016508.story The Bulls on Tuesday officially will announce they have declined to match Omer Asik's three-year, $25.1 million offer sheet from the Rockets, sources said, paving the way for multiple signings that began Monday with Kirk Hinrich.
Anticlimactic announcement. Once they used the MLE on Hinrich and the BAE on Belinelli, they couldn't match Asik without unloading salary elsewhere...I removed Asik from my salaries spreadsheet at that point. For me this offseason was mostly about retaining Asik. I was told that they'd match any offer that wasn't "totally ridiculous." When the offer came in at $8M/year, I was confident they'd match because I thought the offer would be at least $7M/year and an extra mil didn't put the offer in the world of the totally ridiculous. The fact that the Arenas Provision made the 3rd year $15M was irrelevant to me since the mechanics of the provision were clear to Bulls' management. I was also told that the Bulls would make "basketball decisions (that is, not financial decisions)" this offseason. No doubt, not matching Asik will be explained as a long-term basketball decision, and while it's an arguable point, I ain't buyin' it. The Bulls have unquestionably gotten weaker this offseason on paper. I have little confidence that they can compete for the title next season even if Rose returns earlier than many expect. In the end, I feel that Bulls' management misled me. It won't be as easy for them to do this again. Bulls' management still has work to do this summer...adding one more vet minimum player and attempting to sign Gibson and Thibodeau to new contracts. Obviously, I wish them every success.
Pay for a winner. Dinosaur and egg problem. Can't build a winner without paying for it. http://sports.yahoo.com/news/asik-introduced-rocket-212052542--nba.html
