Its weird because we wanted Augustine and traded up to get bayless. I think that's right, maybe it was Lowry.
It seems to me you guys should be dumping Bobcats players, not accumulating them. A change of scenery and Nate's coaching isn't going to turn them into winners.
Because they are short. Try this. Find a gym with several ballers who are between 6'6" and 6'10" tall. Join a pickup game. Try to shoot.
Because they were insanely quick and had fantastic handles all combined with excellent shooting ability. This is a very, very, very rare combination. They were smart enough to know how to get to a spot on the floor where they could get a shot off. Then you have the Nash / Stockton types who aren't as insanely quick, but are such drop dead shooters and good passers, that picks get them open looks.
A couple of OT rumors, involving the Bulls. I'm curious what you guys think. Carlos Boozer, Luol Deng, and Omer Asik to Orlando for Dwight Howard. Apparently Howard won't commit to re-signing with the Bulls, so probably no deal. But The Magic would do it. Same three to Boston for Pierce and Garnett.
Damn, even if he WOULDN'T commit to re-upping there, I'd still do that deal. Start Noah and Dwight together, and nobody will get into the lane on you. Or, you start Gibson alongside Dwight. You remove two big salaries, though, in Deng and Boozer. I know they ar eboth contributing well, but there's the potential for some good cap space in the offseason. Also, they can S&T Dwight to where he wants to go to get some pieces. And, I think the best part, you can make dwight look like an idiot for leaving an awesome situation, if he were to win, and still walk away, after complaining about wanting a team built to win. I think Bulls should just say yeah, we'll do it. Asik, he's good, but you have Noah locked up big, so who cares. Jerry won't pay for Boozer, Noah, Gibson and Asik to all be on the team together. And if they did manage to get Dwight to stay, they could probably get pretty good value for Noah in the offseason if they wanted.
If you can get Howard I think you do it, he may say he won't resign but he wants to win and you couldn't ask for a much better place to do it. Losing Deng hurts though with no real replacement for him but having a top 2 PG and the best center in the league on the same team is just to good not to do. With the Boston one its a little more intresting, you give up the Boozer contract which he hasn't really earned and you get KG who still has some left in the tank defensively and is a massive expiring but so many people have money this summer that every players price will be inflated. Pierce would give you guys another killer mentality that the bulls really need, two guys who are unafraid to shoot and you have to guard in the last two minutes is worth there weight in gold. Pierce isn't as good defensively as Deng is plus his age is a huge factor, he will remain very competitive for the next three years but his defense will probably continue to decline. With Asik leaving too your big man rotation is very limited and with Noah's ability to quickly get into foul trouble and Garnets age i'd be a little worried about it. The Boston trade seems more like a side grade that would give you a better shot in the playoffs this year but doesn't guarantee a championship and leaves you worse next year, so unless your team is motivated for the savings i'd frown upon that trade. I do think Chicago needs another killer mentality in crunch time (which Rip gives you if healthy) to really try and close games out strong and allow you guys another great option if the D tries to shutdown Rose.
If that deal was ever a possibility for Howard, you do it in a second! Instant contention and domination with just rose and Howard.
I think the Howard deal is one that you have to make. It seems the Bulls won't do it without a commitment from him. There's not much season left, and getting him and Rose and the rest of the team playing with chemistry might be tough. Going forward, if he did re-sign, you have a 23/26 year old Wade/Shaq kind of duo to build around, with Noah locked up and Taj a priority to re-sign. I don't see Noah and Howard as a good fit, actually. Both need to be near the basket to score. I think Taj starts and Noah either comes off the bench or gets traded. If the Bulls won't do Howard then the Boston deal is intriguing. As they're built, the Bulls win regular season games and cannot stand up to the Heat with their overwhelming talent. Deng is the Bulls' 2nd best player, and he's probably not as good as any of the big 3. Pierce gives the Bulls a true #2 option who would make the Heat pay for putting LBJ on Rose. Garnett is still a quality player, putting up similar numbers as Boozer, but a much better defender. Bulls send out one guy with a 19 PER, two guys with 12-15 PER, and get back a 20+ PER and a 19+ PER. It's definitely a go-for-it this season gamble. If Rip Hamilton can get healthy, the Bulls would face the Heat with: Rose, Hamilton, Noah, Pierce, Garnett With Gibson, Watson, and Brewer off the bench. Seems like a nice and tight 8 man rotation. Garnett is a HUGE expiring deal (maybe the Bulls can sign Howard as a FA). Pierce has one year after this and a $5M option. Rip signed a 2 year $5M/year deal. Watson and Brewer are expiring. I guess what I'm saying is the Bulls would give up Deng (who's hurt and needs surgery), Asik (who they may not re-sign anyway), and Boozer (who's good, but on a big long contract) for improvement at two positions, a better chance to win it, and cap flexibility. Also, both those guys played in Thibs' defensive scheme with Boston. The transition might be pretty smooth.
It seems so. The Bulls are giving up 2 all-stars and a top defensive C who's young for Howard who'll be a UFA after 25 games and playoffs.
It's a risk but Chicago is a large market. Howard can still make loads of dough and still be in a east coast spotlight. I doubt he leaves, especially since rose and Howard are so young. It could be a bulls 4 peat contention with those two. If there was ever a place I would want Howard to land, it's Chicago. Perfect fit and with his addition, they could let the big three in Miami cry each and every year. That in itself is worth it's weight in gold!
Supposedly, Howard wants to the "the man" and is willing to go to a losing situation to be just that. Though he says he'd play for Miami or the Clippers, where he clearly wouldn't be #1. What he needs to realize is that he and Rose would be 1a and 1b. He'd get all sorts of plays called for him, and he'd put up monster stats. He also needs to realize that Shaq was better (in his prime) and couldn't win as "the man" - without Wade or Kobe.
