Chicago Bulls KY

Bulls Beat Timberwolves, Move Into 1st Place in the East

2012-01-11T05:22:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves Tuesday night, 111-100. Derrick Rose exploded for 31 points, 11 assists and 2 blocks. Luol Deng had a great game as well, posting 21 points and 11 rebounds. Ronnie Brewer did a fantastic job filling in for Rip Hamilton scoring 17 points. Luke Ridnour lead the Timberwolves in scoring with 22 points including 3-3 from three point range. Ricky Rubio looked awesome coming off the bench for Minnesota, ending the game with 13 points and 12 assists.

This game looked like a blowout early in the first half. At one point in the 2nd quarter, the Bulls were up 24 points. This wasn't even because they were playing great defense or anything either, they were shooting 74%! Had the Timberwolves shown any defensive resistance, they probably wouldn't have dug themselves in such a hole. Derrick Rose had to leave the game at one point re-aggravating his turf toe injury. John Lucas filled in decently for about 5 minutes. However, at the end of the 2nd quarter, the Bulls shooting went cold and Timberwolves went on a nice run, cutting the lead to 6 to end the half.

The Timberwolves tied the game in the 3rd and D-Rose went to work like always, shouldering the load the rest of the game. While the Bulls were able to hold off the Timberwolves at the end, this looked like a team that could be very good in the near future...that is if Love and Rubio decide to stay.

Kevin Love is one of the best power forwards in the game. He's arguably already the best rebounder. However, he proved last night that his post game and defensive game need a little work. It's great to have a PF who can shoot the three but when he can't post up against guys like Boozer, he could probably stand to add that to his game over next summer. Ricky Rubio looks like the real deal. He dazzles in a way that's not flashy but effective. He has a great shot at winning rookie of the year and could definitely develop into the next Steve Nash.

With the Miami Heat blowing a big lead last night and losing to the Golden State Warriors, the Bulls move into 1st place with this win. Chicago plays the 1-8 Washington Wizards tonight at 8:00 p.m. EST on Comcast Sportsnet.

Bulls Outrun the Kings, 108-98

2011-12-30T08:17:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

After the lackluster performance Monday night against the Golden State Warriors, the Chicago Bulls revved it up to 11 for a win against the Sacramento Kings, 108-98. Carlos Boozer lead the way for Chicago with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Derrick Rose wasn't a slouch either, scoring 19 points and dishing out 8 assists. However, the real hero of the game was CJ Watson who came up big when Rose was in foul trouble. Watson tallied 8 points, 9 assists and 5 rebounds. Demarcus Cousins lead the way for the Kings with an impressive 15 points and 12 rebounds. Rookie Jimmer Freddette chipped in 14 points. Marcus Thornton had 20 points and 5 boards. The Bulls improved their record to 2-1.

This was a refreshing win for Chicago. After the miraculous Christmas victory over the L.A. Lakers, the Bulls struggled against Golden State on Monday night. It was one of those losses that just took the wind out of your sails. Rose was too focused on getting his teammates involved, shots weren't falling and the Warriors backcourt of Monte Ellis and Stephen Curry totally ran over Chicago.

Last night's game against Sacramento was a game the Bulls needed to win to get back into their groove. On paper the Kings look great, they have Tyreke Evans, Demarcus Cousins, Marcus Thornton and rookie PG Jimmer Freddette. If the Kings choose to keep their young studs, they might have a decent playoff team in a few years. However, the Kings couldn't catch up with the Bulls who ran almost the entire game and played some fantastic defense in stretches when they weren't fouling. Unfortunately, I doubt the Bulls will be able to repeat the running they did last night for the remaining 63 games. I was pretty surprised to see how well Rip Hamilton was running the floor last night. He had an ideal game for his role on the team with 16 points and 4 rebounds. Rose was back into his MVP mode, just slicing and maneuvering around whatever the defense threw at him. I think Rose knows that he's going to have to continue to shoulder the load on this team and it's not going to be as easy as last season was.

The Bulls kind of snuck up on everyone as a sleeper in the east and ended up with the leagues best record. Every team now knows that Chicago means business but they still have many holes in their game. It's easy to say that the lock down defense and Derrick Rose were enough last year but one forgotten factor is missing and that's the outstanding play of Kurt Thomas. Thomas was the enforcer on the Bulls last year and was able to step into either the PF or C position at any time and played solidly the entire season. Osik and Taj both foul way too much and are still pretty soft. Hopefully the Bulls front court will start playing a little smarter or maybe they could find a free agent who could slide in and take the Kurt Thomas role.

The Bulls play again tonight against the Los Angeles (Lob City) Clippers to a national television audience at 10:30 p.m. on NBATV. The Bulls need to replicate their performance last night in tonight's game against this fast paced Clipper offense.

Bulls Sign Richard Hamilton

2011-12-16T06:51:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls officially signed former Detroit Piston's all-star, Richard Hamilton Wednesday afternoon. The 33 year old shooting guard signed a 2 year, $10 million contract with a 3rd year team option. This signing puts the Bulls roster at 14.

While this signing was a no brainer, I can't help but feel like the Bulls may have missed out on possibly a younger back court running mate for Derrick Rose. Unfortunately, J.R. Smith is stuck playing in China and Arron Affalo and Nick Young were both restricted free agents so Rip was the only real option besides Jamal Crawford and Jason Richardson.

The good thing about this signing is that Rip brings a ridiculous amount of veteran championship experience to the Bulls. On paper it looks like the right fit, however Rip is 33 years old and coming off his worst NBA season since his rookie year. Does Rip still have something in the tank to guard the likes of Dwayne Wade in the playoffs? Who knows. I sort of look at this signing as a temporary fix to the Bulls shooting guard problems. I have strong doubts that the Bulls will keep Rip the entire 3 years if they haven't made it to the NBA Finals by 2013.

I've always felt that J.R. Smith would be the perfect backcourt partner for Rose and it's definitely a possibility in the near future. I also think they should may a strong push to sign someone like Eric Gordon after Carlos Boozer is off the books. However, for some reason stars don't seem to really want to come to Chicago. I don't know if they're bitter about the 6 championships in the 90's or that Derrick Rose doesn't wanna be buddy-buddy with any of them. Regardless, the Bulls championship dreams should look brighter with Rip coming on as an obvious upgrade over Keith Bogans.

The Bulls 2 game preseason starts tonight against the Indiana Pacers. The Bulls will also play Indiana on Tuesday (12/20). The Pacers have added some decent players this offseason including David West and George Hill. Their playoff shooting guard, rookie, Paul George also grew 2 inches in the offeseason putting him at 6'10. I imagine Frank Vogel will likely start running him at the 3 this season with George Hill as the starting SG. The Pacers are going to be incredably deep this year and will contend for the Central Division title with the Bulls. After a heated first round exit, I'm sure Indiana is going to come out strong against Chicago tonight. Should be an interesting/sloppy game. Tipoff is 7:00 p.m. and the game will be televised on WGN Chicago. NBA basketball is finally back. Go Bulls!

The NBA is back!

2011-11-30T09:01:00.000-08:00

It seems like the 2011 Conference Finals was like 5 years ago doesn't it? Watching the Bulls go down in 4 straight games was a little too hard for me to swallow so excuse me for not writing about it. You throw a really nasty 5 month lockout on top it and your motivation to be an NBA fan just goes down the crapper. Anyways, here we are 4 weeks before the NBA season starts and I'm just starting to come out of my no-NBA coma.

Like last season's Carmelo Anthony debacle that swallowed every bit of media coverage for 4 straight months, 2 free agents will swallow this year's. Dwight Howard and Chris Paul are this year's Carmelo story all over again. It's no secret that both players want out of the teams they're currently on. However, since both Howard and Paul are arguably the best players at their position, getting a fair deal is going to be hard for the Magic and Hornets.

Over the summer, in an interview for GQ, Howard was quoted saying:

"There's more you can do in a bigger place. I'm stuck in a tough position because I feel like right now, where I'm at, I've done so much. And I just don't know what else I can do. I can't live for everybody else."

That quote was the nail in the coffin for Orlando fans. While the Magic front office has tried their best to build a great team around their center, Howard obviously wants to move on. Howard can sign anywhere next season, and you can bet Orlando will try to trade him this season if they're positive he won't return. The problem Orlando is going to run into is somehow getting fair value from any sort of trade. The Nets are said to be offering Brook Lopez (who last season had a very lackluster year) along with multiple first round draft picks and other filler. The only other 2 teams that could top that offer are the Lakers (Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom and filler) and possibly the Bulls if they were willing to part with Joakim Noah. The problem with any trade is that the team vying for Howard is going to need assurances that he'll sign a contract extension and it's obvious Howard wants to play in a bigger market. L.A., Brooklyn and New York are said to be the options Howard prefers however, New York has absolutely no assets they can part with at this time that would be worth it to Orlando.

I'm not too sure the Bulls wanna stir the trade rumor pot by putting Noah on the block especially with how much this squad feeds off his energy. Yeah, D-Rose and Howard wear the same shoes but that doesn't mean anything. Chicago rarely takes chances like that so I wouldn't be getting my hopes up for a Noah for Howard trade. My guess is that Howard will be a Net, Laker or just stay put in Orlando by the end of the season.

Chris Paul will not be a Hornet by the end of the season, absolutely no way he's going to stay in New Orleans. Paul not so quietly prophesied at Melo's wedding last year that they were going to start their own big 3 with Amare' in New York. With Melo already on the roster, and Chauncey Billups as the odd man out, it's safe to say that New Orleans is going to get screwed in the end. The Boston Celtics are said to have already offered the Hornets Rajon Rondo for Chris Paul, however, Paul has no interest in signing an extension in Boston. Why would he? The Celtics are going to start to look like that 1993, old musty Boston team that were too loyal to trade away their old talent. The Lakers would be an interesting destination for Chris Paul. Due to the depth in L.A.'s front court, I could definitely see the same sort of trade scenario that's going to be offered for Dwight Howard as I could with CP3. Regardless, by the end of the season, Chris Paul will not be a Hornet.

Putting all Dwight Howard fantasies aside, the Bulls' real need is a quality shooting guard to pair with Derrick Rose. Because of the new "Derrick Rose rule" in the CBA agreement, Rose will be making more $ because of his recent MVP season and All-Star appearances. While Rose is now a superstar and deserves a bonus for his outstanding year, this alters the salary cap and leaves little room to sign a quality free agent. I've read the Bulls *could* use the the mid-level but Reinsdorf still has probably no interest in going over the cap to sign someone like Jason Richardson or Caron Butler when the Bulls were so close to the NBA Finals last season with their current roster. It's being said that the Bulls will keep their eye out for any amnesty drop offs from other teams but it's looking more and more like franchises aren't going to go for that option this early in the game. Should Rip Hamilton or Brandon Roy pop up on the free agent market, you can bet the Bulls will be very aggressive trying to woo those guys to Chicago but this is once again, probably another fantasy. There's also talk about possibly moving CJ Watson to SG and picking up a cheaper back up point guard like T.J. Ford. I think this would be a rather risky option but CJ has proven in times that he can score pretty well so it could work.

With all that being said, the questions to be answered of the 11-12 NBA season are: Will Derrick Rose come out of the gates like the MVP he was last season, or was it fluke? Who will be the Bulls starting SG? Will Dwight Howard and Chris Paul be dealt by the end of the season and does everyone STILL hate the effing Miami Heat?

This is definitely going to be a very interesting season.

Bulls Beat Hawks 86-73, Tie Up Series at 1-1

2011-05-05T06:03:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to grind out a rather uneventful victory against the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night, winning 86-73. After being presented the 2010-11 MVP trophy, Derrick Rose went to work by posting 25 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks. Joakim Noah was the real hero of the game with 19 points and 14 rebounds (7 of which were offensive). Luol Deng finished with a ho-hum 14 points and 12 rebounds. Jeff Teague lead the Atlanta Hawks with 21 points.

While it's nice to see 3 players on Chicago with double-double's, don't be fooled, this was a terrible game for both teams. Derrick Rose was able to muster up 25 points but only after taking 27 shots. Carlos Boozer was a complete non-factor with 8 points and 11 rebounds. Boozer's tendency to leave the man he's defending and hope he misses is going to start backfiring real soon if Marvin Williams ever gets going. I know the point of signing Boozer wasn't for his defense but he's not providing offense either. The whole season I've kind of looked at him as a temporary solution for the Bulls and I have a feeling next season he may be on the trading block if he's still performing like this. Maybe Gar Foreman could snatch up K-Love before he bolts for Oklahoma City in 2012.

The Hawks shot selection last night was absolutely TERRIBLE. That combined with the energized play of Joakim Noah and the constant double teams of Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford contributed to this win. Will it work for another 3 games? It's possible but regardless, the Bulls rhythm is off and Derrick Rose looks tentative to drive the ball into traffic with that sore ankle. While he played the ankle injury off like it was fine in the post game interview, there's something definitely wrong with his game. Rose has never been known to be a great defender but Jeff Teague scored 21 points which is someone who has no business scoring on the MVP.

Kyle Korver had an off night as well shooting just 1-9. I have no worries about Korver finding his shot because once he does, he rarely misses. Korver is really our x-factor clutch guy and I have faith he can knock down anything in a clutch situation. The rest of the bench is a totally different story though. With the exception of Kyle Korvers measily 5 points, the rest of the bench scored just 9. Lucky for the Bulls, the Hawks bench was even worse scoring a combined 13 points (11 were from Jamal Crawford).

I should probably stop griping because it's going to be a long, boring series full of sloppy playing and gritty defense. The Bulls travel to Atlanta for the next 2 games in the series. Game 3 is on Friday night at 8:00 p.m. Hopefully the Bulls can close out this series in 5 so they can prepare for a probable matchup against the Miami Heat.

Bulls Destroy the Pacers, Win Series 4-1!

2011-04-27T06:52:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to win their first playoff series since 2007 on Tuesday night, defeating the Indiana Pacers 116-89. Derrick Rose shook off a sprained ankle to score 25 points. Luol Deng had a fantastic game with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals and 1 block. Danny Granger lead the Pacers with 20 points. With this win, the Bulls win the series 4-1 and advance to the 2nd round to take on the winner of the Atlanta Hawks/Orlando Magic series.

First of all, it was great to see the Bulls shake off the funk they were in and dominate an average NBA squad like they've done all season. The Pacers definitely turned it up and were just a few points away from having a 3-0 advantage but the Bulls have the NBA's best closer in Derrick Rose right now. I definitely think the Pacers are back but I don't think they have a shot of luring any big time free agents anytime soon. The only way they're going to improve that team is by the draft or some savvy trades. Frank Vogel was caught boasting that they're an "attractive" franchise but they're not.

Anyways, last night's game was pretty awesome. The Bulls lead the entire game and started the game off with a 10-2 lead. The Pacers tried to get back in the game several times during the 2nd and 3rd quarters cutting it to a 5 point lead. By the time the Bulls came out of halftime they pretty much decided they needed this series to be over so they could get some rest.

With the exception of Carlos Boozer, the Bulls frontline was absolutely abusing the Pacers. Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson did a great job of contesting almost everything. It should be noted that this was the first game of the series in which Kurt Thomas didn't play. In return, the Bulls put Omer Asik in the rotation with great success. The real story of the game was the defense of Joakim Noah. Noah was simply outgritting the Pacers on rebounds and getting into their heads. After a swift elbow (behind the ref's back) to Josh McRoberts throat, McRoberts retaliated and got caught. The act was considered a flagrant 2 and McRoberts was thrown out of the game. On a play several minutes later, Derrick Rose flew through the air to block a Roy Hibbert dunk and that pretty much set the tone for the rest of the game. After a few three pointers made by Rose, the lead was pushing 20.

By the beginning of the 4th quarter, Rose was hit with his 5th foul and he was removed from the game. The bench mob picked up the slack and CJ Watson & Kyle Korver continued to bury the Pacers with 3 pointers the rest of the evening. After the game, Danny Granger complained that Noah was a dirty player but don't try to tell me that Jeff Foster wasn't playing the role of the dirty enforcer on his team. Suck it up man! With the exception of the Cavs, Granger would be a 2nd scoring option on any other NBA team. Danny Granger is a second rate star, he's essentially a Mo Williams who plays SF.

While getting the win was awesome and completely satisfying for those Bulls fans who made the long drive last Saturday only to see the Bulls lose (I was one of them), you have to be worried about Carlos Boozer. His game was completely off the entire series and for a guy who's ALWAYS performed at a super high level during the playoffs, he was less than impressive against the Pacers. Hopefully with 6 days of rest, the Bulls can turn their attention to resting and practicing, while thinking of a way to get Boozer more involved.

Game 1 of the Bulls second round series against the Atlanta Hawks or the Orlando Magic tips off at 8:00 p.m. Monday night. Go Bulls!

Bulls Post 61st Win of the Season, Defeat the Knicks 103-90!

2011-04-13T06:24:00.001-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls posted their 61st win of the season Tuesday night in front of a nationally televised audience, defeating the New York Knicks 103-90. The Knicks were previously the only team the Bulls hadn't defeated at least once in the regular season.

Derrick Rose lead the way, solidifying his MVP campaign by scoring 26 points including a reverse slam and a breathtaking alley oop off a lob from Ronnie Brewer. Carlos Boozer had a monster double-double with 10 points and 22 rebounds with Amar'e Stoudemire sitting this game out. Luol Deng was also solid in posting his own double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Carmelo Anthony led the way for the Knicks with 21 points. Bill Walker came of the bench to add 18 as well.

This was a great win for the Bulls against a team they couldn't seem to get a victory against earlier in the year. Of course, half of the Knicks roster from the first two meetings of these teams are now playing for the Denver Nuggets. It's amazing how much the Knicks organization had to give up for Carmelo Anthony who just seems disinterested in any game he plays. Don't get me wrong, he's a great clutch scorer (or scorer in general) but they gave up a lot of solid players to get him and he hasn't won a damn thing since college.

Not to get overly worried or anything but Joakim Noah and Ronnie Brewer left last night's game with injuries. Brewer injured his thumb while scrambling for a ball. I imagine he'll be okay but Noah's a different story. Joakim re-tweaked his ankle going for a rebound and came out of the game late in the 4th quarter. There was no medical attention given to Noah so hopefully he won't have any swelling today. I think it's likely he'll miss tonight's final game of the season against the New Jersey Nets. The Bulls don't need to chance his health going into what will probably be a scrappy playoff series against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.

With the win against the Knicks last night, the Bulls are now tied for the best record in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs (who lost to the Lakers last night by resting their starters). If the Spurs and Bulls win tonight and they happen to meet in the NBA Finals, home court advantage will be determined by a random draw. However, I don't think the Spurs will make it to the Finals this year and for television ratings sake, I doubt the NBA wants them there. With a win tonight against the New Jersey Nets, the Bulls will match the 97-98 record when they won their last title. This is truly been a fantastic season for the Bulls organization. It's been great for the league as well.

The playoffs start on Saturday against the Indiana Pacers, get excited!

Bulls Win 2nd Laugher in a Row, Beat Hawks 114-81!

2011-03-23T06:56:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls are ridiculously locked in right now. They very well might be the hungriest team in the NBA after winning their second 30+ point win in a row last night, beating the Atlanta Hawks 114-81.

Derrick Rose proved once again why he's the #1 MVP candidate, scoring 30 points including 6-8 from downtown, also dishing out 10 assists. Luol Deng scored 27 points on 10-15 shooting. Taj Gibson had a solid night as well , coming off the bench to tally 9 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. Jeff Teague led Atlanta with 20 points, however 17 were in the 4th quarter during garbage time.

The Bulls went on an 11-2 run in the 1st quarter and never seemed to let off the gas. By half time, Chicago had shot 73.8% from the field. You can just tell, D-Rose wanted to make his old teammate, Kirk Hinrich look bad. I think everyone in the arena knew the game was already over at the half after Rose hit a buzzer beating 3 right in Hinrich's face. The Atlanta Hawks are a solid team too, they're not like the Kings who the Bulls beat by 40 the night before. Atlanta was able to come back from a 19 point deficit and win the game the last time these teams met. Derrick Rose remembers stuff like this and wanted a little revenge.

If these last two games are any indication of what's to come, the Bulls have a great shot at winning an NBA championship this year. I think everyone (including myself) kind of thought they might be a year off from being a real contender but with hard work and the whole roster buying into a defense first system, they're ready now. None of these guys are putting up stat stuffers every night other than Derrick Rose and Luol Deng but these guys don't care, they want a ring. The selfless play of Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah has been fantastic. Omer Asik could very well be good enough to be a starting center on another NBA club. CJ Watson could very well be a starter as well.

The Bulls next game is against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night. Go Bulls!

Bulls Stand Pat At Trade Deadline, Beat the Heat (Again) 93-89!

2011-02-25T05:34:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls organization did everything in their power Thursday afternoon to trade for a SG without giving up any of their bigs. Chicago pulled off a trade on Tuesday night when they shipped James Johnson off to the Toronto Raptors for Miami's 2011 1st round pick. There was a lot of speculation that Chicago would use that pick in a trade. While there were rumors of possibly snatching up Courtney Lee, Anthony Parker or OJ Mayo, the first time in years, the Bulls didn't do a thing on the day of the trade deadline. Every team wanted either Omer Asik or Taj Gibson in return for a shooting guard but in the end, it was decided that they were both too valuable to the Bulls playoff roster to give up. The Bulls bench proved last night that Gar Forman was right about not giving up the depth at the four and five.

The Bulls were able to pull off a stunning victory over the Miami Heat last night, winning 93-89. Derrick Rose proved he was the MVP by tallying 26 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds. Luol Deng had a spectacular game challenging LeBron James and eventually hitting what would be the game winning shot. Deng finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Carlos Boozer had a decent game with 16 points and 9 rebounds. Dwayne Wade lead the Heat with 34 points and 8 assists. LeBron James ended the game with 29 points and 10 rebounds.

This was a must win game coming off of a tough loss to Toronto the night before. Chicago's defense was almost flawless in the 2nd half. There was no possible way to play better than they did other than cut back on the fouls. The Bulls are a second half team and whatever pep talk Thibs gives those guys must work. They're so motivated to win at any cost.

The Bulls second unit was what really helped win the game for them and exposed just how bad Miami's bench was. Chicago's bench outscored Miami's 22-2 and out rebounded them 20-2. It's nice to have players like Eddie House and James Jones come off the bench and hit an occasional three but when it comes to big man depth, Joel Anthony and Big Z's ghost aren't going to cut it.

Gar Forman was correct to keep Asik. He's a guy who plays with as much intensity and hustle as Noah and is so big that he disrupts other team's offense on a consistent basis. Deng, Boozer and Asik kept Bosh from scoring almost anything going 1-18 from the field. Bosh didn't just have a bad shooting night either, he had a hand in his face the entire game.

The Bulls do still have a hole at the two guard spot but if they can make up for it with their defense like they did last night, they might be okay in the playoffs. It's also possible the Bulls will play the buy out market and pick someone up like Michael Redd or Tashaun Prince if they become available. The D-League is also a possibility.

The Bulls take on the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night in Milwaukee. Hopefully the Bulls can continue their winning ways. Go Bulls!

Bulls Head Into All-Star Weekend With a Win Over the Spurs, 109-99!

2011-02-18T05:01:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to pull off another upset Thursday night when they defeated the San Antonio Spurs 109-99. Derrick Rose went off, scoring a career high 42 points while tallying 8 assists, 5 rebounds and 1 block. Luol Deng had another solid outing with 19 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Carlos Boozer racked up 15 points and 6 boards. Tony Parker lead the way for San Antonio with 26 points and 4 assists.

This was certainly a great game. I think a lot of people expected both teams to come in and play some loose, sloppy ball the day before the All-Star break but they didn't. The Spurs have the best record in the NBA and had only lost 9 games before last night. You can see why they have the best record too because their defense is outstanding and they have plenty of decent bench players to help them chug along. Rookie, Gary Neal lit the Bulls up for 16 points including 4-5 from behind the 3 point line. Last night, Sam Smith tweeted something among the lines of how well the Spurs find these great players late in the draft. Last year it was DeJuan Blair, this year it was Neal. You add those kind of players around Parker, Ginobili & Duncan and you have a decent team. Tim Duncan is still awesome. He started 5-5 in the 3rd quarter and 2 of those field goals were closely guarded. He's just so fundamentally solid.

While I sort of think Derrick Rose was intentionally going for a career high towards the end of the game, he played great. He wants to win games and the MVP trophy really bad. He's taken it upon himself to show up every point guard he's played this season. In a league where about every team has a solid point guard these days, this is quite the accomplishment. It's hard to believe this guy is only 22 years old.

The Bulls defense was absolutely stifling last night. When Taj Gibson and Omer Asik are on the floor, no one's getting to the hoop. Asik's work never really shows up on the box score but he's definitely not worth giving up for someone like Cavs guard, Anthony Parker. As much as I love Brad Miller's work, I'm glad we chose Asik over re-signing B-Mill. When Noah comes back next week, the Bulls front line will be the most solid in the NBA. I have serious doubts at this point that the Bulls are going to make a trade before the deadline unless they're willing to give up draft picks and/or James Johnson. If the Bulls can get someone like Anthony Parker or Courtney Lee for JJ, go for it. If they're asking for Gibson or Asik, I'd definitely say no way. This team is built with certain pieces that keep everything going in the right direction. There is no need to fix something that isn't broken. The Bulls head into NBA All-Star Weekend with the 3rd best record in the East at 38-16.

NBA All-Star weekend starts tonight and the Bulls organization have a lot to be excited about. Derrick Rose will be participating in both the All-Star game on Sunday (as a starter) and in the Skills Challenge on Saturday night. D-Rose won the Skill Challenge in his rookie season but couldn't participate last season due to injury. Taj Gibson will be participating in the Rookie/Sophmore game this evening and is also oddly part of the NBA Shooting Stars competition. Gibson will be joined by former Bull (and 3 point shootout winner) Steve Kerr and Cathrine Kraayveld of the Chicago Sky. The Shooting Stars contest looks like a one sided battle with team Texas set up for a win with Dirk Nowitzki leading his squad. Taj Gibson, Pau Gasol and Al Horford are not really big shooters so I'll be surprised if anyone other than Texas wins that contest.

The Bulls next regular season game is next Thursday (2/24) against the Miami Heat. Bulls center, Joakim Noah is set to return. It's going to be a great game.

Go Bulls!

Kurt Thomas Tears Apart the Bucks, Bulls Win 92-83!

2011-01-25T05:35:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls added their 31st win to the season Monday night, defeating a shorthanded Milwaukee Bucks team 92-83. Kurt Thomas surprisingly lead way for Chicago scoring 22 points along with tallying 9 rebounds and 5 assists. Derrick Rose had a decent game going 10-10 from the free throw stripe, scoring 21 points on 5-16 shooting and also added 10 assists. Chris Douglas-Roberts lead the way for Milwaukee scoring 30 points.

This was another ho-hum affair that Bulls fans are getting accustomed to. Kurt Thomas held Andrew Bogut to just 8 points and with John Salmons, Brandon Jennings and Drew Gooden out, this was hardly a contest. The Bulls briefly held a 20 point lead in the 3rd quarter before slacking off and letting the Bucks cut it to 6 in the 4th. Luol Deng and Ronnie Brewer couldn't stop Douglas-Roberts but it didn't really matter. It was really nice to see Derrick Rose get to the line 5 times making up for all those missed shots. Great players always find a way to score and Rose is starting to get the calls he deserves. It should be noted that after the game, Rose admitted that he's been nursing a sore back. I'm not sure how bad it is but Rose hasn't been shooting terribly great lately. The Bulls have the next three nights off before taking on Orlando Friday night. The Bulls lost to the Magic by 29 in their last meeting back in December, hopefully the 3 days rest will help Rose and the rest of the team re cooperate.

While it's great to see Chicago rack up wins against teams, the last two months have been kind of hard to watch. After playing a series of really tough games against title contenders the first month and a half, it seems like Chicago has been taking on some rather boring, below .500 opponents. February and March will be a lot harder and the Bulls need Joakim Noah back at full strength to compete with some of the better teams in the league. Kurt Thomas just isn't going to cut it against guys like Kendrick Perkins, Dwight Howard and Tim Duncan.

The Bulls take on the Orlando Magic at 8:00 p.m. Friday night on CSN Chicago and NBA League Pass.

Bulls Win Another Ugly One, Defeat the Pistons 95-82

2011-01-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls continued their winning ways Monday night by following up their big win against the Celtics last Saturday with another win over the Detroit Pistons, 95-82. Derrick Rose lead the way for Chicago with 29 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds. Carlos Boozer absolutely abused Detroit's front court tallying 27 points and 11 rebounds. Luol Deng added a solid 17 points and 7 rebounds. Ronnie Brewer also had a great game scoring 11 points off the bench along with 6 assists including a highlight reel alley-oop pass to Derrick Rose (sick). Tayshaun Prince lead the way for Detroit scoring 15 points.

This was a really ugly game. How ugly you ask? Former Bull, Ben Wallace injured his ankle on the freakin' jump ball and didn't return. During the first half, the Bulls really let the Pistons do whatever they wanted. Detroit out rebounded Chicago and the Bulls played most of the second quarter with 2nd string unit. Only 6 Bulls even scored during this game, not that they needed much production from anyone else to beat the Pistons. Derrick Rose took over in the 2nd half and that was pretty much the end of any Detroit lead the rest of the game. Richard Hamilton surprisingly played in what will probably be one of his last games as a Piston. He had 2 points in 21 minutes off the bench.

It's kind of sad to see how far the Pistons have fallen in the last 3 years. It was a really fun rivalry back in 2006 but loyalty to older players has ruined their chances. Also, Joe Dumars blowing a ton of money on Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva in the summer of 2009 has turned out to be a huge bust as well. Those two players combined for 8 points last night...8 POINTS! I still believe Ben Gordon is a great player but it's obvious he's unhappy losing and doesn't care enough to try on such a pathetic team. The same thing happened to Hedu Turkaglu in Toronto. Hedu went for the money and once he got it, he didn't care enough to try, especially on a crappy team he knew wasn't going to make the playoffs. Miraculously, ever since Hedu was traded back to Orlando in December, he's been playing great again.

I would have loved to have seen BG and I truly believe they would have retired his jersey had his whole contract standoff not happened. I'm glad we kept Luol Deng instead. He's been absolutely fantastic this season. I really do believe, he's the 4th best SF in the NBA behind LeBron, Melo & Durant. The thing that's so great about Deng is he's averaging 17 and 6 very quietly. Deng's defense has improved as well. Thibs has done a great job using Luol in the right situations.

The Bulls will continue to add to their win streak on Wednesday night when they take on the Charlotte Bobcats before playing the Indiana Pacers Friday and their first game this season against the new look Miami Heat on Saturday.

Bulls Win 2nd Straight, Defeat the Bucks 90-77

2010-12-29T05:33:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls pulled off another victory Tuesday night when they defeated the Milwaukee Bucks at home 90-77. Carlos Boozer lead the way with 24 points and 9 rebounds. Derrick Rose had another double double with 18 points, 12 assists and 6 rebounds. Luol Deng continued to quietly be awesome by tallying 24 points and 5 rebounds. Former Bull, John Salmons lead the way for Milwaukee with 18 points and 4 rebounds.

I only watched a few parts of this game. It was one of those uneventful games where you were never really scared the Bulls would blow a lead. Carlos Boozer has been ridiculously helpful lately averaging 20 points and 9 rebounds in his first 15 games. He absolutely manhandled the Bucks defense. The Bulls' reserves were able to almost completely shut out Andrew Bogut who finished with just 4 points. It's funny because everyone was so high on the Milwaukee Bucks at the beginning of the season but they've been kind of a disappointment and I wouldn't be surprised to see Philly sneak up and grab the 8th seed from them. Sure, having Brandon Jennings out hurts but so does having about 5 or 6 wings instead of having any real power forwards.

With this win, the Bulls have won 11 out of their last 13 and improve to 20-10 for the season. This would really be something if the Celtics and Heat weren't doing so damn good. January is a very easy month for the Bulls and they're going to need to continue to play hard even against mediocre opponents to keep the 3rd seed in the east. With the Orlando Magic starting to win games again, it's imperative that Chicago can beat teams like New Jersey and Indiana on a consistent basis.

The Bulls take on the New Jersey Nets in a special New Years Eve matinee game Friday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. The game will be nationally televised on WGN America. Hopefully the Bulls can keep taking care of business until Noah returns.

Go Bulls!

Boozer & Rose Lead Bulls Past Wizards 87-80

2010-12-23T05:28:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls pulled off a win in what seemed to be a terrible game, beating the Wizards 87-80. Carlos Boozer lead the way with 30 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists. Derrick Rose tallied 25 points, 5 assists and 3 blocks. Former Bull, Kirk Hinrich lead the way for the Wizards with 19 points and 9 assists starting in place of injured rookie point guard, John Wall. New Wizards acquisition Rashard Lewis made a rather quiet debut for Washington, coming off the bench to score just 8 points.

I didn't get a chance to watch this one. I actually fell asleep for the entire duration of the game. When I woke up to watch it on League Pass replay, I saw that it was a NBATV game and was blacked out. I really think the league should do something about that. TNT, ESPN & ABC are all channels that are on every basic cable plan. NBATV is not. If it's a station owned by the NBA, you should be able to access it through League Pass, especially if you're paying $110.00 for a plan to watch games on the freakin' internet.

Anyways, after watching highlights and looking at the box score it looks like the Bulls played kinda loose the first half and then held Washington to just 30 points in the 2nd half. I'm really glad Boozer has been able to come back from that broken hand injury and play like the all-star caliber player the Bulls are paying him to be. Taj Gibson made his return after his concussion from the Clippers loss. He played only 31 seconds. I guess Thibs just figured they didn't really need to use him and to let him rest another day before they need him on Christmas against the Knicks. Kurt Thomas once again started in place of Taj and scored just 4 points but also tallied 7 rebounds and 2 blocks. It looks like Thomas will be starting against the Knicks.

The Bulls will be playing their first Christmas game this Saturday since 1997 when they beat the Miami Heat 90-80. Interestingly enough, the first Bulls game I ever watched was the 1994 Christmas game against the New York Knicks where they won 107-104 in overtime.

The Bulls take on the New York Knicks at 12:00 p.m. on ESPN this Saturday. This is a game that will really test how well the Bulls can play without Joakim Noah.

Go Bulls and Merry Christmas!

Bulls Blow Out 76ers 121-76!

2010-12-22T05:32:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls avenged their one point loss from Saturday night with a 45 point win over the Philadelphia 76er's, winning 121-76. Derrick Rose lead the way for Chicago scoring 22 points along with dishing out 12 assists. Carlos Boozer had 16 points and 11 rebounds. Luol Deng had a solid outing with 22 points but the player of the game was quite unexpected. Kurt Thomas started in place of the injured Taj Gibson and tallied 12 points, 8 rebounds and 5 blocks. Wow. Andre Iguodala lead the 76er's with 17 points and 4 rebounds. The Bulls shot a ridiculous 64.5 % from the field and at one point lead by 51 points. This was the Bulls 8th win in 9 games.

This was obviously a great win to help the Bulls regain some swagger after losing to the VDN lead Clippers on Saturday night. It's fantastic to see a veteran like Kurt Thomas step up during a starting role when he's barely played the first 2 months of the season. Thomas manhandled former Bull, Elton Brand. Ronnie Brewer has been awesome lately. He's definitely fully recovered from his injuries and is really making a case to be a full time starter. Deng looked way better than Iguodala last night. I really wish that all of those Deng for whoever trade rumors would just stop. It would be hard to even find someone who's as consistent as him. Yes, he's overpaid but he knows his role and has added a 3 point shot to it. The Bulls just need a shooting guard and they'll be considered a real threat.

The Bulls are now 17-9, currently sitting on the #3 seed in the Eastern Conference. Chicago is one game ahead of the Atlanta Hawks and 2 games ahead of plummeting Orlando Magic. I really think that the #2 seed is achievable if one of the Miami Heat's big three goes down

The trade the Orlando Magic pulled off on Saturday is going to be a complete bust. Pretending Hedo Turkoglu is still good and bringing Gilbert Arenas off the bench is just silly. Jason Richardson is the only real steal the Magic got from that deal. The Magic lost again last night actually starting Turkoglu at the 4 (WTF). This desperate move will probably have Dwight Howard heading out west in two years. Great job Otis Smith!

The Bulls start a 3 game road trip tonight against the John Wall-less Washington Wizards. Look for Rashard Lewis to make his debut with Washington. It'll be interesting to see how well he performs for the Wiz. The Bulls really need to get out there and put Washington away fast so they can concentrate on their Christmas matinee game against the now relevant New York Knicks.

Go Bulls!

Noah's Looming Surgery Overshadow's Bulls 7th Straight Victory

2010-12-16T05:14:00.001-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to pull off a 17 point victory over a shorthanded Toronto Raptors team Wednesday night, winning 110-93. Carlos Boozer absolutely manhandled the Raptors front line scoring 34 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. A hobbled Derrick Rose scored just 6 points but added 11 assists. The always solid Luol Deng scored 19 points including three 3-pointers. The Raptors were without their two best players, Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon. New Raptors acquisition Jerryd Bayless lead the way for Toronto, scoring 20 points. This was the Bulls 7th straight victory which pulled them ahead of the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference standings.

This was a nice win against an already awful team that was REALLY shorthanded. Derrick Rose just had to distribute the ball inside to Booz and the points would keep coming. It's nice to have such an efficient post guy down low who can disassemble a team's front court with even trying. The Bulls scored 63 points in the paint.

The night was overshadowed around halftime when K.C. Johnson tweeted some really bad news that the Bulls were prepared to announce surgery on Joakim Noah's thumb after the game. While Noah played last night putting up 11 points and 11 rebounds in just 26 minutes, he will undergo surgery today and be out an estimated 8-10 weeks. Noah will be back the 2nd week of February at the earliest. So what does this mean for the Chicago Bulls? Possible disaster.

The Bulls have a somewhat easy schedule over the next month or so with the exception of a few games against Boston, Miami, Dallas & New York (even though I don't want to acknowledge that they're good). While no game is ever a given in the NBA, there's about 21 winnable games before the Bulls reach the 2nd week of February.

Chicago will most likely look to start Taj Gibson at center. I don't know how I really feel about this since I think Asik would probably do well starting. He's a great defender and can throw down Turkish white boy style on any given night. Noah's injury also means more minutes for Luol Deng and Kurt Thomas. Deng's already playing too many minutes but has emerged as the most consistant Bull this season so his ability to contribute on rebounding and defense is a must.

The Bulls only have 1 game in 5 nights this week when former Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro makes his return to the United Center Saturday night with a 5-21 Blake Griffin lead, L.A. Clippers team.

Bulls Send Cavs to 6th Straight Loss, Win 88-83!

2010-12-09T05:47:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls won their 3rd straight game on Wednesday night when they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 88-83. Derrick Rose lead the way as usual, scoring 29 points and dishing out 9 assists. Joakim Noah put up another double-double with 13 points and 14 rebounds including 2 really big free throws in the last 30 seconds of the game to help seal the win. Antwan Jamison lead the Cavs with 21 points and 6 rebounds. Anderson Varejao also had a great game scoring 17 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.

I started watching this game at the beginning of the 2nd half due to me thinking the game was on at 8:00 p.m. instead of 7:00 p.m. The Bulls were up by 6 at that point but quickly lost the lead when Antwan Jamison turned it on. Coach Thibodeau went small most of the game at one point putting Rose at the 2 with C.J. Watson running the offense. Carlos Boozer only played 20 minutes after Thibs decided that he wasn't athletic enough to guard Jamison on the perimeter.

The 4th quarter was pretty exciting with Kyle Korver catching fire and hitting 5 straight shots along with a free throw before throwing up a clanker. It was funny since the Cavs broadcasting crew mentioned that if Korver gets two shots to go that he might not miss. Korver is a great shooter and REALLY needs to be promoted to the starting SG job. Bogans starting and playing only 8 minutes makes zero sense. All coaches are stubborn about at least one stupid thing and this is Thibs' glitch. Skiles' was not starting Ben Gordon, VDN had way too many to name.

Derrick Rose eventually took over the game, weaving in and out traffic and somehow finding openings and getting ridiculous layups. I'm going to have to agree with something Kelly Dwyer said on Balls Don't Lie the other day...Rose may be the fastest basketball player in the league in terms of getting from the 3 point line to the basket. He's simply remarkable and it's great to see him in a sort of MVP mode. Rose made the play of the game when he went up for a layup, was fouled by Mo Williams and willed a shot in. Noah sank two free throws after an offensive foul at the other end of the floor and the Bulls went on to win.

This game reminded me why Anderson Varejao is still my least favorite player in the league. That guy would fall down and try to sell a foul if someone threw a box of toothpicks at him. In one particular instance while going up for a shot, faded away and faked a hit to try to get an and-1 play. Varejao made the shot but no foul was called. The next instance was a few moments later when Noah put maybe 1/2 lb of pressure on Varejao's shoulder going for a rebound and he fell to his knees as if he was tripped. The refs actually bought that call. Play the freakin' game and stop falling down all the time! I do think Varejao is a solid defender and a high energy guy but let's face it, he'll always be a poor man's Noah.

In the end it was great to see the Bulls win a game that they should have won. Building up confidence before a home game against the Lakers is always a good thing. Cleveland has been in a real funk since LeBron came to town and raped their hopes and dreams with a 39 point explosion. I feel bad for the Cavs and would have much rather seen LeBron stay there than go down to Miami but like Noah said, Cleveland does suck. With this win the Bulls improve to 12-8. Chicago is now 2 games ahead of the Pacers in the Central Division after their loss to Milwaukee last night. The Bulls are only 1.5 games away from obtaining the 3 seed in the East trailing the Miami Heat.

The Bulls will be hosting the Los Angeles Lakers tomorrow evening in a nationally televised game on ESPN. The action starts at 8:00 p.m. Chicago has lost 7 straight to the Lakers and haven't had a win against them since December 19, 2006. The Bulls are dodging a big bullet since Andrew Bynum won't be making his return to the Lakers until next Tuesday against the Wizards.

Go Bulls!

Boozer Gives Thunder the Business, Bulls Win 99-90!

2010-12-07T05:33:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were finally able to dish out some payback for their opening night loss on Monday night when they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 99-90. Carlos Boozer was in full swing showing Bulls fans how awesome it is to finally have a post presence in the Windy City. Boozer put up 29 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Derrick Rose had an off night shooting 3-13, scoring only 11 points and dishing out 9 assists. Joakim Noah got into foul trouble early and only played 20 minutes but still managed to pull down 12 rebounds. Luol Deng also had another solid outing (aren't they all solid at this point?) with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Kevin Durant lead the OKC Thunder in scoring with 29 points in an otherwise uninspiring performance.

This was a game the Bulls really needed to win. After barely coming away with a win against Houston the other night, it was great to see them actually play as a functioning unit. Derrick Rose is the best player on the Bulls but tonight showed he doesn't even have to put out a great performance for the team to pull off a win. While I expect Rose to probably fall out of the top 10 in scoring this season with the arrival of Booz, Rose is still the best scorer on the team.

The OKC Thunder are a great team, everyone including myself projects them to go deep into the playoffs this season. The problem with the Thunder is Jeff Green. He's a 3 playing a 4 and it's evident that they're missing a post up guy. It'll be really interesting to see if Green's contract is extended after this season. I could see a team like the Cavs making a push for him if they can't pry Iggy from the 76ers. I've read a lot of rumors of Marcin Gortat possibly getting shipped out to OKC as well. He'd be a pretty good fit.

Also, sorry for the long gap in updates. I was on vacation for about 2 weeks in November and while the circus trip was a success, I wasn't excited enough to write about a team without Boozer. Some Bulls fan I am...anyways, hopefully blog entries will be more frequent again.

The Bulls take on the Cleveland Cavaliers tomorrow night at the United Center. With a relatively weak schedule coming up (with the exception of the Lakers on Friday night), the Bulls should be able to build up a decent win streak somewhere in there.

Bulls beat Nuggets 94-92, improve to 3-3!

2010-11-09T05:44:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to squeak out a win Monday night as they defeated the Denver Nuggets 94-92 at home. Derrick Rose was able to muster up 18 points on a terrible 7-21 shooting night along with dishing out 6 assists. Taj Gibson continued to impress scoring 16 points, grabbing 6 boards and blocking 5 shots. Luol Deng scored 17 points and grabbed 7 boards. Joakim Noah was easily the player of the game recording his 6th consecutive double-double of the season scoring 12 points, pulling down 19 rebounds and blocking 4 shots. Carmelo Anthony had a ridiculously good game for Denver scoring 32 points and grabbing 8 rebounds but it wasn't enough.

This was one of those back and forth games that lasted the whole 48 minutes. Chicago was just scrappier in the end with Joakim blocking some big shots down the stretch and Derrick Rose trying to fix what he did wrong in the first half. It wasn't a pretty game but a win is a win.

It's great to see the Bulls come out with a victory after losing 2 games they should have won this last week against New York and Boston. New York just got lucky and couldn't miss from the 3 point line and Chicago just slipped up a little in overtime against Boston. All of the Bulls games this season have been close, it's not like they're not putting in a good effort and getting blown out. Chicago comes out to play every night and once Boozer comes back and gets acclimated into Tom Thibodeau's system, the Bulls will be good. In fact, I think they'll be better than the overachieving Skiles lead, 49 win squad from a few years ago.

If Chicago was able to somehow acquire a more consistent double figure scoring shooting guard and a decent back up point guard, they'd be right up there with Boston and Orlando in terms of talent. Trading away Kirk Hinrich was a big mistake, he would have been perfect in this offense. The Bulls always make a trade mid season and it'll be interesting to see who gets shipped off at the deadline this season.

The Bulls have 2 home games left against Golden State (Thursday) and Washington (Saturday) before heading out west for the dreaded 7 game circus trip. Chicago really needs to win both games to help pad their record because the road trip is going to be really rough with games against Dallas, San Antonio & the LA Lakers.

Bulls host David Lee and the Golden State Warriors on Thursday (11/11). You can catch the game on CSN Chicago and NBA League Pass.

Game 1 of 82: Bulls Fall to Thunder 106-95

2010-10-28T05:14:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls fell to the Thunder Wednesday night 106-95 in the first of the 82 game regular season. Derrick Rose was fantastic scoring 28 points and adding 6 assists. Joakim Noah had a monster game after starting off slow in the first half scoring 18 points and grabbing 19 rebounds. Taj Gibson also played well starting in place of the injured Carlos Boozer scoring 16 points and pulling down 11 rebounds. Kevin Durant lead the Thunder with 30 points and 7 rebounds. Russell Westbrook matched Rose's 28 points and pulled down 10 boards as well.

This is a game the Bulls really could have won had Rose not been in foul trouble so early in the first half. The second unit seemed to be sort of hobbled and inefficient. CJ Watson is a better version of Jannero Pargo but has no business running an offense. Ronnie Brewer looked injured. Kurt Thomas looked old. Omer Asik barely played. Brian Scalabrine played too much & Kyle Korver only got 2 of 5 to fall. It's infuriating that the Bulls can't be efficient without Rose on the floor at all times.

I think Luol Deng is the guy that's going to need to step up. Yeah, he was being guarded by Kevin Durant and Sefolosha the whole night but he's much better than the way he played last night. Thibs is going to have to set up an offense that can get Deng and Korver open in the corners for some 3's otherwise Rose is just driving the whole game.

The effort that Taj Gibson put in was impressive. He had an absolutely terrible preseason but looked a lot better than Jeff Green did. Although, I think Jeff Green is a bit overrated and really isn't a PF, Taj should be dominating guys like him at all times.

Keith Bogans has no business starting on this team. I would love to see Korver start as the team's starting shooting guard but it doesn't really seem to be an option in Thibodeau's mind. The Bulls need scoring off the bench and Korver is the only one efficient enough to be that guy.

Oh well, the Bulls played a great game. They overachieved in my mind. The Thunder are poised to be the #2 team in the west and Chicago was tied or leading most of the game all while their new all-star PF sat on the bench in a suit. Had it not been for some silly fouls, a goaltending call against Deng (which was a clean block) and a few turnovers, Chicago would have pulled this out.

I know, it's just one game but it's depressing to see the Bulls lose a game they should have won. Chicago hosts their first home game on Saturday night against the Detroit Piston @ 8:00 p.m. EST. The game will be broadcasted on CSN Chicago and NBA League Pass (which is free until November 2nd). Go Bulls!

8 Things We Learned From the Preseason/2010-11 Season Predictions

2010-10-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The preseason is finally over...thank God. We can all finally move on to big boy, regular season NBA basketball.

The Bulls finished the preseason with a 4-4 record including 2 blowout victories over teams that Chicago needs to be blowing out on a consistant basis. Derrick Rose lead the Bulls in scoring and assists averaging 16.9 ppg & 4.5 apg. Joakim Noah almost averaged a double-double with 10.8 ppg & 9.3 rpg.

With all of the sloppy preseason action over, how much did we learn about this Bulls team? A lot actually.

1. Kyle Korver is going to be used just as Ray Allen was in Boston the last 3 seasons. He's going to be coming off screens and shooting in transition. Korver is ridiculously underrated and takes good shots. Catch and shoot baby!

2. The Bulls need a better SG. Ronnie Brewer seems like a bust. He's always injured and well, he's a shooting guard who doesn't really have much of a shot. Keith Bogans has proved to be servicable on the defensive end as well as having a reliable 3 point shot but he's not a guy that needs to be starting. I really wish the Bulls would have signed Allen Iverson or Tracy McGrady. The Bulls need shooters plain and simple.

3. Chicago doesn't have a back up point guard. CJ Watson is more of shooting guard than someone who runs an offense. Watson's going to be great when the Thibs decides to go small and play Rose alongside him but the Bulls can't do that all the time obviously. At times like these, I wish we still had C-Du.

4. James Johnson has really put in some work over the offseason. He's slimmed down, he's faster and is making decent shots including shooting .429 from the 3 point line during the preseason. This is probably what lead the Bulls to pick up his option last night. JJ is proving that he wants to be better and the organization can see that.

6. Omer Asik is not a project. This guy is NBA ready, guards the rim well and rebounds the ball. This is a guy who is going to have to match up with Noah at every practice and it's really going to help make him into a hustling good back up. I'm very excited to see he's going to probably going to get several minutes this season.

7. Luol Deng is back to being awesome...so far. He's always the guy that everyone wants to trade but he's out to prove that one season a few years ago wasn't a fluke. Deng averaged 16 ppg and shot a ridiculous .517 from the 3 point stripe. Thibs is giving Deng the green light to shoot the 3 ball and it's paying off. I'm excited to see he's back to his old self and that he really is a top 10 SF.

8. The Bulls need Carlos Boozer back soon. This is a guy who they really couldn't afford to lose for even a few games but he's out for a month or so and well, the circus trip is coming up in just a few weeks. Boozer and Noah could be the best front court in the NBA and they're going to need to be if the Bulls want to go anywhere in the playoffs this season. Taj isn't going to cut it.

2010-11 NBA Season Predictions:

The Bulls are most likely going to enjoy their best record since 1998 this season but they're still about one piece away from having an elite team. A trade (minus Noah) for Carmelo Anthony would probably push the Bulls up there with the Heat in terms of talent. I believe this is the year the Bulls make the 2nd round of the playoffs but will probably stall out there. Boston and Orlando are just way too deep.

Chicago Bulls 2010-11 record: 51-31

Eastern Conference Playoff Seeding:

1. Miami Heat

2. Orlando Magic

3. Boston Celtics

4. Chicago Bulls

5. Atlanta Hawks

6. Milwaukee Bucks

7. New York Knicks

8. Charlotte Bobcats

Note: I have a feeling the Bucks may bottom out this year. They have really high expectations this season with Bogut coming back and added some shooters but how long before they tune Skiles out? If the Nets can somehow trade for Carmelo Anthony, they may have a decent shot at making the post season.

Western Conference Playoff Seeding:

1. L.A. Lakers

2. OKC Thunder

3. Utah Jazz

4. Dallas Mavericks

5. Houston Rockets

6. San Antoio Spurs

7. Golden State Warriors

8. L.A. Clippers

Note: Denver is going to trade Carmelo Anthony and I doubt they'll have the pieces to make the post season. I also think the Suns run is finally over and agree with Sam Smith that Steve Nash will most likely be dealt before the trade deadline. I think the Clippers are gonna edge out the Trail Blazers as well. That's my bold prediction for the year. Last season it was the Timberwolves making the playoffs...boy was I wrong.

2010-11 Eastern Conference Finals:

Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics (Miami in 6 games)

2010-11 Western Conference Finals:

L.A. Lakers vs. OKC Thunder (L.A. in 7 games)

2010-11 NBA Finals:

Miami Heat vs. L.A. Lakers (L.A. in 6 games)

2010-11 MVP:

Kevin Durant (runner up LeBron James)

2010-11 Defensive Player of the Year:

Dwight Howard (runner up Joakim Noah)

2010-11 6th Man of the Year:

Courtney Lee (runner up Steve Blake)

2010-11 Most Improved Player of the Year:

Danilo Gallinari (runner up Brook Lopez)

2010-11 Coach of the Year:

Erik Spoelstra (runner up Tom Thibodeau)

The NBA Season kicks off tonight with the Heat vs. Celtics...can't wait! The Bulls regular season opens up tomorrow in OKC vs. the Thunder. The Bulls starters will be Rose, Bogans, Deng, Gibson & Noah. Get excited.

Noah Agrees to 5 Year/$60 Million Extension plus Boozer's injured 6-8 weeks!

2010-10-04T05:29:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls and center Joakim Noah were able to finally agree on a contact extension over the weekend. Sources are saying the deal is around $60 million for 5 years plus incentives. This will lock Noah up well into prime and should end any talk regarding a trade to Denver for Carmelo Anthony. Here's what Sam Smith of Bulls.com had to say:

League sources confirmed the Bulls have come to an agreement with Joakim
Noah on a contract extension.

Sources said the deal is for five
years and is worth about $60 million. It would go into effect after this season.
An announcement is expected this week.

Noah would be just the second
player from the rookie Class of 2007 along with Kevin
Durant to agree to an extension.

It would be a relief for the Bulls
to sign Noah, especially with the potential for a lockout looming after this
season with new rules that could alter dealings regarding contracts.

I love Joakim. He's easily my favorite Bull and this deal is very good news for Chicago fans fearing that he may be shipped off to Denver or stuck in a Ben Gordonesque contract standoff. You always like to see a guy play with his passion and energy and he deserves every bit of the money he's going to get over the next 5 years. Congrats to the Bulls for getting a deal done for this guy!

Unfortunately, the good news of Joakim Noah's contract extension was cancelled out earlier on Sunday afternoon. The Bulls big name acquisition of the summer, Carlos Boozer apparently tripped over a gym bag in his house on Saturday night and broke his hand. Boozer's injury will require surgery on Tuesday and will be out 6-8 weeks.

Bulls.com's press release:

Chicago Bulls forward Carlos Boozer sustained a fracture of his right hand (5th
metacarpal) on October 2, 2010. He was evaluated by team physician Dr. Brian
Cole and hand specialist Dr. Marc Cohen of Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush. The
fracture will require surgery and Carlos will likely be out 8 weeks.

This is a HUGE blow to the organization who already had ridiculously high hopes of starting off the season healthy. The whole tripping over a gym bag story has me sort of sceptical. It's a bizarre occurrence and I'm really hoping he's telling the truth and not pulling a Monte Ellis. The last thing the Bulls need is to issue a suspension on top of the 2 months Boozer will already miss.

Taj Gibson is the obvious starter for tomorrow's first preseason game of the year against the Milwaukee Bucks. Kurt Thomas will most likely be putting in some extra time at the PF spot while Boozer is out.

Also...NBA 2K11 comes out tomorrow and hopefully by Thursday I'll have a review up of what IGN is calling the "greatest basketball video game of all time".

Brian Scalabrine signs with Bulls! More Melo talk!

2010-09-22T06:35:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls signed former Boston Celtic, Brian Scalabrine to a non-guaranteed contract Tuesday evening. Apparently, Thibs has been lobbying for Gar Pax to sign Scalabrine for a while now. Scalabrine was offered some sort of non-playing position with the Celtics but turned it down at a chance to play for the Bulls. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports broke the story.

Woj's Twitter:

Tom Thibodeau has been lobbying for Scalabrine's signing this summer, sources say. Still believes Scal can contribute -- on and off floor.

Woj column:

After five seasons with the Boston Celtics, forward Brian Scalabrine has agreed to a non-guaranteed contract with the Chicago Bulls, a league source told Yahoo! Sports.
Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau wanted Scalabrine as part of his first season in Chicago and pushed hard for him with general manager Gar Forman and vice president John Paxson, sources said.
Scalabrine, 32, played sparingly for the Celtics a season ago, where Thibodeau was an assistant coach.

Scalabrine has averaged 3.3 points in nine seasons with the Celtics and New Jersey Nets. He’s gone to the NBA Finals four times – twice in New Jersey and twice in Boston. The Bulls enter training camp with 12 guaranteed contracts and sources said Scalabrine is a “good bet” to make the roster

I look at Brian Scalabrine as I did with last year's Lindsey Hunter signing, he's a good locker room guy. I'll admit I haven't been much of a Scal fan over the last few years. This is mainly because anytime he was on the floor in Boston, the already obnoxious Celtics fans went nuts. My guess is that this is a gateway position and Scal will most likely end up as an assistant to Thibs next season.

In more interesting news, the Carmelo debacle is heating up over in Denver. Over the past few days, ESPN has been flooding Twitter with trade chatter regarding the 3 time all-star. The Nets, Knicks, Rockets, Lakers, Clippers and of course the Bulls seem to still be the likeliest of destinations for Melo. Former Knicks coach Isiah Thomas has went on record to say he believes that Melo will be a Knick or a Bull by the time the dust clears. According to ESPN Over the past 72 hours, Melo has been pushing hard for a trade to happen before next week's training camp. Here's some of the more interesting tweets regarding the situation:

ESPN NBA Insider Chad Ford's Twitter:

Nets have made best offer for Melo, but he still prefers NY or Chicago. Nuggs still hoping he'll sign extension in Den http://es.pn/94yYuz

No. Nets are on his wish list. But NY & Bulls are higher RT @Nymetsfan14 so nets have no shot because melo wont sign extension with then

Dont think so. Nets have better offer if Bulls wont include Noah RT @NW_7 Does Chi have any chance to get Melo while still keeping Noah?

ESPN NBA Insider Chris Broussard's Twitter:

Sum execs baffled by CHI's refusal 2 part with Noah 4 Melo

One exec made great point that u can't pay big $ to Rose, Booz, Melo & Noah anyway, so why not move Noah

Tribune Beat Reporter K.C. Johnson's Twitter:

Carmelo can state desire to play for Bulls all he wants. Unless Denver changes mind on Deng---or Bulls find 3rd team---he won't play here.

I'll take K.C.'s word over any ESPN NBA Insider at this point. ESPN likes to spin stuff just to stir up some news. As much as I'd like Melo on the Bulls, Noah is arguably one of the biggest faces of the franchise and is on his way to becoming one of the most popular players in Bulls history. Do you throw that all away for Melo? That's a real tough decision. Melo is definitely a piece that would push Chicago into being considered an elite franchise. They'd be right up there with Miami & Los Angeles in terms of talent but losing defendors like Noah & Deng could really come back to haunt the Bulls.

After the whole free agent bust of 2010, I have little to no confidence that Melo is coming to Chicago. It's hard not to get caught up in the hype but I'd just as well land Rudy Fernandez and see what the Bulls can do with the team they've assembled. Melo wants to play in New York. That's always been his plan and he can sign there outright next season if he just plays out this last year in Denver. However, the Nuggets don't want to lose him for nothing like Toronto and Cleveland did this summer with Bosh & James (those draft picks aren't worth anything). I have a feeling that Melo will play out with Denver until the trade deadline and then be dealt after agreeing to sign an extension to the team of his choosing.

Also, on a completely unrelated note, be sure to follow the Bulltimate Warrior on twitter @ http://twitter.com/BulltmteWarrior!

Bulls considering dealing for Melo...internet goes crazy!

2010-09-10T05:54:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

I hate September. It's a month in which sports writers start to speculate and concoct trade scenarios that aren't really going to happen just to make some headlines. The last few days have been perfect examples of this with the whole Carmelo Anthony debacle that's going on over in Denver. It was only a matter of time before Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski planted the first seed with a "breaking" story two weeks ago that Melo wanted out of Denver and then Marc Spears followed with a column Wednesday night dragging the Bulls into this mess.

Carmelo is supposedly telling his peers that he prefers a trade that will send him to New York or Chicago. However, I believe Chicago's name is just being penned to this report because of their possible trade pieces.

The Bulls are more than willing to give up Luol Deng as they attempted to do so all summer with zero takers. Deng's a great SF, he's not flashy and doesn't really have a 3 point shot but is a decent defender who can post up a little and hit down the mid range shot. Teams are scared of his recent injury problems and his ridiculous contact. Is he worth the deal he was given? Probably not but that was the price you had to pay for a top 10 SF with all-star potential 3 years ago. Will Denver mind taking him back? Probably not if they can grab Joakim Noah....and that was the big story of Thursday.

ESPN first reported that the Bulls were having internal discussions on whether or not to include Joakim Noah in an offer for Melo. Bulls fans are pretty divided on any sort of scenerio where Noah leaves. It should also be noted that Hoopsworld "insider" Andy Kennedy claimed Thursday afternoon that Noah had been offered a 5 year/$60 million extension. Rumors were immediately going around that maybe Noah thought he was worth more than that and may not accept the offer. Are the Bulls preparing to trade Joakim before another Ben Gordon like situation arises?

Joakim is a top 10 center and has argueably the best motor in the NBA. He also may be the most passionate player in the professional basketball and has a devoted fan following in Chicago. Would a team of Boozer, Melo & Rose be a big enough "big 3" to pounce Miami, Orlando & Boston? Who knows but losing Noah's leadership, rebounding and defense would probably really hurt Chicago in the long run. John Paxson has always been about improving the team for years to come, he's never been interested in a win now situation.

With all this being said, I sincerely have doubts about any of this Melo to Chicago noise. I'm sure Melo wouldn't mind coming here but losing Noah would probably be too much of a defensive hit to the Bulls. Doug Thonus over at Chicago Now made a good point that Boozer needs a defensive center to be effective offensively and I agree. You take Noah away who's going to provide that? However, if the Nuggets (and Melo) were to agree to a sign & trade sending Deng, Gibson, J. Johnson & the Charlotte pick for Melo, the Bulls couldn't (and shouldn't) pass that up. Adding one of the most prolific scorers of the past 5 years and throwing him on a team with a top 10 center, power forward and point guard would make the Bulls instant title contenders.

Chicago is one really good piece away from being a power house. If they could snag Carmelo away from the Nuggets, it would be a dream scenerio. However, until this actually happens I would suggest that Bulls fans not get their hopes up too high. The whole situation sounds like bored September NBA story just to cause some Real GM forum chaos.

Rudy Fernandez anyone?

2010-08-10T05:32:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

I know it's been like 20 days since I wrote last but Chicago Bulls basketball has been super quiet. There's been absolutely nothing to write about. This dead period of Aug-Sept is usually a depressing time for NBA fans. Trades are done. Free Agents have signed. Teams are pretty much set. Yeah, the Bulls went ahead and signed Keith Bogans to a 2 year partial guaranteed deal but is that news? The guy can defend and hit the three on occasion but I'm not that excited and I doubt anyone else is either.

However, the only glimmer of semi-exciting news is that the Bulls are still in play to snatch Spanish guard, Rudy Fernandez from the Portland Trail Blazers. Over the years, Portland has overvalued their talent and have asked for an arm and a leg, draft picks and ridiculously better players in return for Rudy. With Portland's old GM out, Portland may want to go ahead and take a deal from the Bulls rather than see Fernandez disrupt team chemistry by being buried on the bench and demanding a trade or watching him bolt for Europe as soon as the season is over. The Bulls were in a similar boat last year with Tyrus Thomas and ultimately decided to trade him for a draft pick. Thomas would have left the team the following season and the Bulls would have got nothing in return.

Rudy didn't have very many suitors besides NY and Boston and they were both unwilling to give up a draft pick in return for the Spanish guard. It's rumored the Blazers really want Taj Gibson but why? They already have Oden, Aldridge and Camby & Jeff Pendergraph. Yeah, Gibson is a step up from Pendergraph but he'll end up getting reduced playing time and probably be unhappy. The Bulls also don't want to give him up after nearly averaging a double-double. He could very well be the best back up power forward in the east this year and with Boozer's shaky injury past, it's a good idea to hold on to him.

James Johnson and a first round pick "should" be enough. The Bulls can afford to ditch their pick this year anyway with a team that's poised to make the 2nd round of the playoffs for the first time since 2006.

Portland....stop overvaluing your talent and hook us up. We'll appreciate Rudy Fernandez far more than you ever will. We've been wanting an obnoxious foreign guy to fill the gap since Andres Nocioni left.

Bulls sign Ronnie Brewer and acquire CJ Watson in S&T

2010-07-20T05:12:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls signed slasher Ronnie Brewer this last week to a $12.5 million 3 year deal. Presumably, Brewer will be the Chicago Bulls starting shooting guard after the Orlando Magic matched JJ Redick's $19 million offer sheet. Ronnie Brewer averaged 8.8 ppg, 2.7 ast, 3.2 rb & 2.6 steals last season between his time with the Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies.

The Bulls also acquired their backup for Derrick Rose Monday evening when they agreed to a $10.2 million/3 year sign and trade with the Golden State Warriors for point guard CJ Watson. The Bulls will send their 2011 2nd round pick in return. Watson averaged 10.3 ppg, 2.3 ast & 1.6 steals last season for Golden State.

I'm not particularly happy with either of these signings. I know, pickings are slim at this point but signing a shooting guard who can't really shoot and a point guard who doesn't really pass puts us right back where we were late last season. Ronnie Brewer is a dunk specialist. Yeah, those are fun, I was a Tyrus Thomas fan but Chicago could have taken a risk with someone like Tracy McGrady.

JJ Redick would have been perfect for the Bulls. It's a real shame that Orlando matched his deal. Redick was surprised himself. He wanted to be a Bull, he wanted to start. Orlando overpays for their bench and are really deep into the luxury tax now because of this. The Magic knew that Redick would thrive in Chicago and they didn't want him going to a team who might be able to knock them out of the playoffs next season.

The CJ Watson signing completely caught me off guard. I was skimming through YouTube videos just to see who in the f*ck CJ Watson is. He looks like a more athletic version of Flip Murray. I never liked Flip Murray last season and I'm glad we didn't look into re-signing him but now we have this younger, faster incarnation of him backing up our star player. I was really hoping Chicago would lure Jason Williams. Williams is a decent veteran and knows how to run an offense. I know Tom Thibideau likes this Watson guy for his defense but the Bulls are going to be set defensively, they need shooters. Right now, we have one guy who can shoot the ball. I'm sorry but James Johnson isn't going to miraculously develop a 3 point shot this season.

I really hope the Bulls wise up and offer a contract or trade for a decent shooting guard. My gut tells me they're done with moves but I really hope they're not.

Bulls ink Kyle Korver and Omer Asik

2010-07-14T05:40:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls officially signed three point specialist Kyle Korver and 2008 draft day acquisition, Omer Asik on Tuesday.

Kyle Korver will rake in $15 million over the next 3 seasons. Euro league player, Omer Asik will make $4 million over the next 3 seasons. If Asik turns out to be a good gamble, the 3 year deal will have been a good choice because they will have Bird rights on him.

Neither signings are of huge significance but Korver does bring some great bench scoring to a team who ranked 29th in 3 pointers last season. Ever since, Ben Gordon bailed for Detroit, the Bulls have struggled taking 3 pointers. Luol Deng has started to slowly incorporate the 3 point shot into his game but with the exception of him, the recently traded Kirk Hinrich and the once in a month James Johnson garbage time attempt, the Bulls barely used the 3 pointer as a weapon. With Carlos Boozer and Derrick Rose drawling double teams, they should be able to use Korver in kick out situations.

Omer Asik is still a bit of a mystery. With the exception of a few poor youtube clips, I haven't seen much of his game. He seems to be able to rebound and pass but seems to be like most Euro centers, kind of soft. The Bulls gave up 3 future 2nd round picks for him so I'm assuming they saw something they really liked in Asik. It's also a mystery if the Bulls will attempt to bring back Brad Miller next season with the signing of Asik. Are they confident enough that Asik can take on the load that Brad Miller did last season off of the bench? Brad averaged 9 points and 5 boards a game, a fantastic passer and a great locker room guy.

It's going to be really hard for a rookie Euroleaguer to bring everything that Brad did. With that being said, I'd love to see Brad Miller sign a final 2 year contract with Chicago. That gives the Bulls 2 years to mold Asik into a permanent, cheap back-up for Noah.

In other Bulls news, Orlando Magic restricted free agent, JJ Redick was signed to a 3 year $20 million offer sheet by Chicago last Friday night. Orlando's GM Otis Smith has until this Friday (7/16) to match the offer. The Magic would likely go into luxury tax if they matched the deal after giving swingman Quintin Richardson a multi year contract.

Although, a lot of fans assume that Q-Rich was picked up to replace JJ Redick, he's more likely going to be taking over the position Matt Barnes occupied last season. Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy and Otis Smith have both made indications that the Bulls deal will be matched but the choice is ultimately up to the owners and if they want to pay the tax for a back up guy like Redick. A similar situation like this happened last season when the Dallas Mavericks threw out a ridiculous contract to Magic center Marcin Gortat. The Magic surprisingly matched the deal wanting to keep the bench core together after making the NBA Finals that season. ESPN analyst Ric Bucher has indicated that the Magic will most likely match the deal and make Chicago wait until Friday to find out. If the Bulls strike out with Redick, they'll most likely set their sights on signing former Utah Jazz starting SG, Ronnie Brewer.

Personally, I want JJ. We'll see what happens though.

LeBron chooses Miami, ruins NBA.

2010-07-09T05:41:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Well, it's over and I'm glad.

LeBron James made his big decision last night and pissed off a good 90% of fans worldwide. Miami? Did anyone see this coming 2 years ago when everyone started talking about the summer of 2010? I didn't.

The whole buildup with a television special was ridiculous. Yes, I would still think it's ridiculous if he had chose the Bulls. While I've always hated LeBron James, I would have welcomed him to Chicago, just like any Bulls fan would have. You can't argue the guy is a machine but it's REALLY easy to hate him, even more so now. Having something to hate is good in my book. I hate the Miami Heat. I hate Pat Riley and I hate Wade, James & Bosh. I hope they all get injured and LeBron still never wins a title. It would be hilarious but I'm fairly sure 2011-20 will be the decade of the Heat. Did the Heat build a dynasty? No, they gave everyone away their whole team to sign 3 of the greatest players of the the last decade.

Where does this leave the Chicago Bulls? Well, it's safe to say we might be able to win the division for the next 5 seasons but going any further than the conference finals would be a stretch. Yeah, we got Boozer, I'm excited but what about having a shooting guard? Mike Miller announced he's going to the Heat for 5/$30 mill. That leaves us with Ashton Kutcher....I mean Kyle Korver. I like Korver but he's hardly an upgrade from Kirk or Ben Gordon. Do the Bulls submit and trade for Rip Hamilton or Michael Redd and their terrible contracts? One thing's for sure, we need to lock up Brad Miller before the Heat do. The last thing I want to see is B-Mill playing for the dark side.

The Bulls have $19 million to spend. How they will spend it is a complete mystery.

Carlos Boozer signs with the Bulls!

2010-07-08T05:47:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls made a huge move in the right direction last night as they signed all-star PF Carlos Boozer to a five year contract. Boozer will receive around $75 mill over the next five seasons. While it's a big contract, it is not a max and it still leaves the door open for LeBron if he chooses to sign a max deal with Chicago. Although Boozer has been injury ridden over the last few seasons, while healthy he's averaged 17 points and 10 rebounds a game over his career. Averaging a double-double over 7 seasons is quite an accomplishment. Boozer also fills a need the Bulls haven't had since Elton Brand left, a good (great) post threat.

The Bulls swooped in and landed Boozer right after Chris Bosh confirmed he was headed to the Miami Heat. The Nets who also have been flirting with Boozer over the last few weeks were stunned by Boozer's signing to Chicago. According to ESPN's Ric Bucher, Chicago was Boozer's top choice long before free agency began last Thursday. Adding Boozer to the mix makes Chicago the best frontcourt in the NBA next to the Lakers' Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol.

Also, in the LeBron front, it's been reported by several sources that LeBron will be joining the Miami Heat. This now seems like his most likely destination on the day of his big announcement and I'm going to give ESPN the benefit of the doubt that their report is correct. This was first mentioned by Fox Radio host and former ESPN Insider Stephen A. Smith. ESPN's Chad Ford wrote a piece back in November about the possibility of it happening as well.

While Miami can offer a dynasty, it also will give him a tarnished legacy. LeBron James will be forever known as one of the best players to never be able to win a title on his own. He's came close over the last few seasons with the Cavs, why not go back and try again? Miami is Dwayne Wade's town. Wade won a title with a supporting cast, not a superstar entourage. Does LeBron really just want to be a sidekick and make the same money as two players that aren't as good?

LeBron's best possible situation just got better last night with the adding of Boozer. A team with a great young center, a former all-star PF and a budding Derrick Rose would give him a title with Chicago that wouldn't damage his legacy. He'd be top dog in Chicago as well, which he won't be in Miami.

LeBron will be announcing his signing with Miami* at 9:00 p.m. tonight on ESPN. The whole world will be watching.

Report: Bosh & Wade Teaming in Miami....Plan B?

2010-07-07T04:53:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

According to ESPN's Chris Broussard Chris Bosh will be joining Dwayne Wade in Miami. This ends a year and a half of speculation that Bosh would be leaving Toronto for the Miami Heat or Chicago Bulls. Bosh will most likely be dealt to Miami for Mario Chalmers, 2 or 3 future first round draft picks and a trade exception. It's also likely that Michael Beasley is included and Jose Calderon is also sent to the Heat.

6 days into free agency and we're only down to 3 big name free agents. LeBron James, Carlos Boozer & David Lee. LeBron James is reportedly going to announce his decision tomorrow night live on ESPN in an hour long press conference. The Cavs, Bulls & Nets are still his most likely suitors. Over the last few days, Cleveland has gained the most steam in their quest to re-sign James. The Cavs recently hired former LA Lakers player and NJ/New Orleans coach, Byron Scott. Although it is widely speculated that LeBron will return to Cleveland, insiders in the LeBron camp were caught off guard by the announcement of the press conference. Those close to LeBron aren't even sure what he's going to do.

With World Wide Wes being kicked out of LeBron's inner circle, whispers of LeBron to Chicago have quieted. The Bulls have almost completely fallen out of the picture in their quest to sign a top notch, max contract free agent. With LeBron, Bosh & Wade out of the picture, it's most likely the Bulls will go after Carlos Boozer and possibly JJ Redick or Ray Allen to fill out their roster. Boozer and Noah would most likely be the top rated defensive front court in the NBA. Will Boozer be enough to get the Bulls past Cleveland, Boston, Orlando or Miami? Will David Lee be the Bulls top free agent aquisation of the offseason? David Lee is decent also but I see him joining another squad. Perhaps a trade to Cleveland is in order?

The next 48 hours should be interesting.

After 2 years of anticipation, July 1, 2010 is finally here

2010-07-01T05:17:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Here we are....July 1st 2010. Hopefully by this time next week, all the free agent deals will be worked out and these ridiculous rumors can finally end.

LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Amar'e Stoudemire, Joe Johnson and Carlos Boozer remain the most coveted free agents this offseason and from what everyone is saying....most of them will probably remain with their current teams.

Every one of these free agents can sign a 6 year max deal with their current team and rack up an additional $30 million they wouldn't be able to obtain if they signed elsewhere. Most athletes are going to take $30 million over a championship ring any day and wouldn't anybody? 30 million is a lot of money. However, when 50% or more of your income is from endorsements like LeBron's is, a better chance at a title might be more of an incentive than the extra $30 mill.

According to ESPN analyst Ric Bucher, Cleveland is now the favorite to land LeBron & Atlanta is the favorite to land Joe Johnson. Next to Dwayne Wade, Joe Johnson is the best shooter in this free agency and while I don't think he's worth the max, he's going to get it. He'd also be stupid to pass it up because this will be his last big money deal in his career.

If LeBron James stays in Cleveland, this whole fiasco was a waste of time. Granted, it would make him look like a good guy if he came back to his home town, but the Larry King interview, the WWW rumors, the condo hunting in NY...free agency will have been a complete sham and will make LeBron look like the biggest attention whore in all of sports.

Last night the Bulls were at Chris Bosh's doorstep at 12:01 a.m. While it's widely believed that a deal is already in place to send CB4 to Miami, the Bulls still might have a chance.

We need two free agents that are going to at least help the team get to the conference finals. Who they will be is a complete toss up. The Bulls need LeBron. They are also the only other team that I think has a real shot at landing him. Let's break down the teams vying for James services and their current assets.

Chicago: Rose, Noah, Gibson, Deng, J. Johnson (cap space to almost sign 2 max free agents)

Miami: Wade (he'll re-sign no doubt), Beasley, Chalmers, Joel Anthony (cap space to sign almost 3 free agents if players take a pay cut and Beasley, Chalmers & Anthony are traded)

New York: Wilson Chandler & Danilo Gallinari (cap space to sign 2 max free agents)

New Jersey: Brook Lopez, Devon Harris, Derrick Favors (space to almost sign 2 max free agents)

L.A. Clippers: Chris Kaman, Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Blake Griffin (cap space to sign one max free agent)

Cleveland: Varejao, Mo Williams, Jamison (Cap space to sign one max free agent)

New York has nothing. LeBron won't go to the Clippers because they're the Clippers. He's not going to go to Miami because he wants to be top dog. This leaves Cleveland, Chicago & New Jersey as his top suitors.

Where will LeBron go? Check our twitter feed for updates throughout today. This things gonna get crazy.

Thibodeau introduced! NBA Draft Tonight! Deng Trade Rumor!

2010-06-24T05:11:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls introduced Tom Thibodeau as their 18th head coach on Wednesday.

While his introduction wasn't as smooth as Vinny Del Negro's, Thibs did a pretty good job of letting the press know what he was all about. Defense first and then easy baskets. He also mentioned his family was his support system mentioning his siblings and nieces/nephews but leaving out any wife or children. I'm assuming he's not married and may just be all about his job.

I'm down with all of that and I'm pretty sure the organization and Bulls fans have a lot to be excited about. If Derrick Rose can improve defensively, this team is going to be DAMN good. I don't really feel like writing out the entire press conference but you can view the whole video at Bulls.com.

Tonight, the real excitement begins. The 2010 NBA Draft will take place tonight live on ESPN @ 7:00 p.m. Are you excited? You better be.

While the Bulls own a rather mediocre pick at the #17 spot, there may be some hidden gems hanging out around there. Whether the pick is Avery Bradley or James Anderson, it doesn't really matter. The Bulls are in a great spot (the best spot) to land a top notch free agent this summer. Speaking of free agents, LeBron James to Chicago rumors were in full effect yesterday after former NBA player and current ESPN analyst, Jalen Rose posted this on this Twitter account:

"my sources say that it is almost CERTAIN that LEBRON JAMES WILL NOT be returning to the CAVS! (Bulls/Heat/Clips)"

"as of 2day the Bulls have the best chance of landing LBJ...Miami would need to make more roster moves...Clips have a punchers chance! "

While I'm a firm believer of not reading into rumors posted on Twitter, you can't help but wonder how legit ESPN analyst's sources are. I would imagine pretty legit, especially a former player like Jalen Rose. I'm not getting my hopes up but I'm certainly excited.

There was also a major trade rumor that was posted last night by Chris Broussard and Chad Ford at ESPN that the Clippers and Bulls were talking a trade that would send Luol Deng and the 17th pick to Los Angeles for the #8 pick. I'm assuming we would attempt to draft Xavier Henry if we had this pick which was something I was pretty okay with about 3 or 4 months ago. This would also save the team a ton of money and put the Bulls in a position to be about 2 million short of a 2nd max contract. Would Chris Bosh take a pay cut? Doubt it, but it would definitely look appealing to LeBron if the Bulls possibly get David Lee or Joe Johnson first.

With the Miami Heat trading away Brian Cook & their draft pick to the Thunder yesterday, I put them in a slightly better position than the Bulls. They now how the cap space to re-sign Dwayne Wade, sign LeBron James along with a 2nd tier kind of player such as Joe Johnson or David Lee. It'll be interesting to see how the Bulls respond to that this evening. It should be noted that Bulls may draft a player at #17 for another team to package in a Luol Deng or Kirk Hinrich trade. However, I'm still standing by my word that Kirk will never be traded.

Draft at 7:00 p.m. on ESPN! It's gonna be a trade crazy night and you know some sort of blockbuster completely out of left field will happen. Very exciting indeed.

Lakers Win the 2010 NBA Championship!

2010-06-18T06:34:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Lakers for closing out the Boston Celtics and winning the 2010 NBA Championship. It was an UGLY game (REALLY ugly) but the Lakers got lucky in the end and Ron Artest hit a big 3 to seal the game. This was also the last game with Boston for newly hired Bulls head coach Tom Thibideau. His defensive sets got his team this far and I'm really anxious to see what he can do for the Bulls, Joakim Noah & Taj Gibson especially. Thibideau will be introduced to the media on Monday morning so Bulls fans get excited!

I think it's really awesome that Ron Artest has a ring now. I also think it's awesome that the Celtics were taunted by Artest's entourage after the game. That's what you get Boston for having the WORST fans in the NBA. I hope Phil Jackson returns but I want the Bulls to win the whole thing obviously. I'm hoping this Laker win prevents them from wanting to trade away Andrew Bynum for Chris Bosh.

Adam Morrison 2 rings....D.J. Mbenga 2 rings....LeBron James 0 rings.

If LeBron comes to Chicago....the next 3 seasons are ours.

Why the Lakers need to win game 7

2010-06-16T06:04:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Los Angeles Lakers miraculously forced the first NBA Finals game 7 since 2005 last night when they blew out the Boston Celtics 89-67. Kobe Bryant had 26 points and 11 rebounds. Pau Gasol was one assist shy of a triple double tallying 17 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists.

For Chicago Bulls fans, this was a game that needed to be won.

While our new coach is the main assistant for the Celtics, that doesn't mean we need to root for him until next week when he's introduced to the media. Bulls fans should root for a Los Angeles Lakers championship. A Lakers loss Thursday night could force ripple effect throughout the NBA and a huge shakeup in LA. The most likely scenario being that our original free agent target, Chris Bosh would be traded to LA for Pau Gasol or Andrew Bynum. Bosh is really the key to free agency. He's the sidekick that every great player wants. While it's hard to pinpoint where exactly he'll go next season, the Bulls need him more than LeBron or Dwayne Wade do.

Bosh is most likely going to want to participate in a sign & trade situation which will give him a max deal that includes an extra 30 million he couldn't get from any other sort of deal. The Bulls can offer Taj Gibson, Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng plus multiple draft picks (which isn't bad). Miami doesn't have the goods for a trade. If Pat Riley couldn't get Keyon Dooling for Beasley, he's surely not going to get Chris Bosh. New York has zero assets. New Jersey could offer Devon Harris plus some filler if they're feeling crazy enough. The Rockets & Mavericks have some tradeable pieces but when it comes down to it, the Lakers have the best package to offer.

Andrew Bynum or Pau Gasol along with Ron Artest & Luke Walton for Chris Bosh & Hedu Turkoglu would work. This is a trade that could become a reality if the Lakers lose game 7. Jerry Buss is going to be pretty angry if he's paying for a team that's underachieving and he's going to have to re-load. While I'm not sure if Pau Gasol & Chris Bosh could co-exist, it would be worth a shot to get the often banged up Andrew Bynum out of town. This trade would keep the Lakers as contenders for the next five seasons. It would also ruin 2010 free agency.

As much as I respect Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson, the Pau Gasol trade was bizarre and changed the Lakers into title contenders. Pau was a guy the Bulls were in active trade talks with for almost 2 seasons. The Bulls would have offered one of their core players for Gasol (Deng or Gordon) plus some garbage and probably multiple draft picks. The Grizzlies wanted both Deng & Gordon and at the time that wasn't a good deal (however, if Pax could have done that last season he would have pulled the trigger in a second). Instead, the Grizzlies took the contracts of Jarvis Crittenden & the rights to Pau's brother Marc. The Bulls were offering better talent yet the Lakers still got him for tooth picks and a few happy meals. A Bynum for Bosh trade would be the 2nd screwy trade the Lakers had pulled off in 3 years and this time, Bulls fans will be legitimately mad about it. We're not going to be happy with Joe Johnson. We want Bosh....and that LeBron guy seems pretty decent too.

Go Lakers.

Bulls hire Tom Thibodeau for head coaching gig

2010-06-08T05:25:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

First of all, sorry for the lack of updates this week. You'd think that when the Bulls finally make a HUGE move like hiring a new coach, we'd write something about it as soon as it happens. Blogger was down most of yesterday and I was unable to post anything. That and we keep finding ourselves checking the plays on our Bulltimate Warrior video which has left us completely baffled. It was a shoddy effort at best but somebody out there must be spreading the word about it or else it wouldn't have 35,000+ views in a week. Expect a less rushed follow-up in HD if this continues.

Anyways, let's get to the real excitement. The Bulls hired a coach and it's not even July! Instead of going through a full stable of interviews like 2 years ago, John Paxson and Gar Foreman flew out to Los Angeles on the eve of Finals Game 1. With a 3 year offer already on the table from New Orleans, the Bulls had to act fast if they wanted a shot at Celtics defensive specialist Tom Thibodeau. After news broke of a semi-secret Pax-Gar interview, New Orleans pulled their offer and gave it to Portland assistant Monty Williams. Thibodeau agreed to become Chicago's new head coach.

Tom Thibodeau wanted the Bulls job over anything else that was offered to him and can you blame him? The Bulls are in the best position they've been in for a long time. They have Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and a bunch of possible trade chips along with enough room to sign one max contract free agent. Thibodeau is a defensive guru which totally fits the philosophy of the Bulls organization. Del Negro was a holdover until this season and everyone knew it. This is really the guy we wanted to takeover from where Scott Skiles left off.

The most curious perk about Thibodeau is that he's signed to William Wesley's agency, the same as LeBron James. Thibodeau was rumored to swear to never join an agency but he did. It also wasn't until after he signed with Wesley's CAA, that the Bulls became serious about signing him to a 3 year $6.5 million dollar deal. Thibodeau is expected to keep Bulls' Pete Myers on his staff along with former Bulls assistant Ron Adams and possibly Mo Cheeks to fill out his bench.

While I was leading the Kevin McHale bandwagon over the last month, Thibodeau was the best hire possible for Chicago. I'm glad the Bulls actually got what they wanted this time and didn't just interview everyone and settle with a no-namer. The NBA Draft is 16 days away, and July 1st, 2010 is 22 days away. This is becoming an exciting summer, I hope everything pans out in Chicago's favor.

The Bulltimate Warrior

2010-06-02T06:12:00.001-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Here's our submission for Waddle & Silvy's "Bring Bron to Chicago" video. While we only mention LeBron a few times, this is more of a plea to the Bulls to make some moves. Give Alex credit for being a good sport.

The Washington Wizards win the 2010 draft lottery

2010-05-19T05:54:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Yesterday, I was expecting to wake up on Wednesday to numerous LeBron to New Jersey rumors. Thank God this wasn't the case.

The Washington Wizards were given a glimmer of hope when they won their first draft lottery since 2001 on Tuesday evening. Washington overcame 10.3 % chance over the favored New Jersey Nets to land the #1 pick. New Jersey owner Mikhail Prokhorov was fairly confident the Nets would win but dropped to #3 in a two man draft. The 76ers moved up to grab the #2 pick. Here's the order for the first round of next month's NBA draft:

1.Washington Wizards
2.Philadelphia 76ers
3.New Jersey Nets
4.Minnesota Timberwolves
5.Sacramento Kings
6.Golden State Warriors
7.Detroit Pistons
8.Los Angeles Clippers
9.Utah Jazz
10.Indiana Pacers
11.New Orleans Hornets
12.Memphis Grizzlies
13.Toronto Raptors
14.Houston Rockets
15.Milwaukee Bucks
16.Minnesota Timberwolves
17.Chicago Bulls
18.Miami Heat
19.Boston Celtics
20.San Antonio Spurs
21.Oklahoma City Thunder
22.Portland Trail Blazers
23.Minnesota Timberwolves
24.Atlanta Hawks
25.Memphis Grizzlies
26.Oklahoma City Thunder
27.New Jersey Nets
28.Memphis Grizzlies
29.Orlando Magic
30.Washington Wizards

While I'm sure the fan's of Washington are excited they have a great player in John Wall to replace Gilbert Arenas, I feel kind of bad for John Wall. I think it would have been way more beneficial for the league and for Wall if the 1st pick had fallen to the 76ers. The 76er's have a great legacy and could use someone to overshadow the failures of Allen Iverson. Washington has always kind of been a boring franchise, especially after Michael Jordan was kicked out of town. I also really hate that their the Wizards and not the Bullets. Changing their team name and their colors has kind of destroyed that franchise for me.

Regardless, I was ecstatic that the New Jersey Nets didn't land the #1 or #2 pick. Plus, the picks went to teams that will have little to no relevance in the eastern conference next season. The rumors would have been flying all night and morning regarding LeBron going to the Nets. While he still may end up their in 3 years, last night's draft may have prevented him from going there for a while or ever.

The mock drafts are all over the place today. ESPN NBA Insider, Chad Ford has Patrick Patterson falling to #22 (Portland) and Xavier Henry to #19 (Boston). On other mock drafts, both players are in the top 12. After pick #2, it really is going to be interesting to see where everyone goes. The NBA draft combine is coming up soon along with an onslaught of private workouts, so I wouldn't take any mock draft too seriously at the moment. The only thing that's for certain is that Wall is going to be a Wizard and Evan Turner is going to be a 76er.

Regardless, the Bulls still have the #17 pick and I'm still hoping they can land James Anderson from Oklahoma State.

The 2010 NBA Draft Lottery is tonight!

2010-05-18T05:44:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The defining moments of the summer of 2010 begin tonight with the NBA draft lottery. With rumors swirling on where LBJ and other free agents will land, tonight's lottery could have a huge impact on the future destinations of players.

For those unfamiliar with NBA Draft lottery procedure, the draft machine has approximately 1,000 balls with team logos on them. The team with the worst record has 250 balls in the machine. The New Jersey Nets are sitting in the best seat in the house tonight with a 25% chance to land the number one pick. The Minnesota Timberwolves (19.9%), Sacramento Kings (15.6%) & Golden State Warriors (10.4%) follow. It is noted that the team with the worst record in the NBA hasn't won an NBA Draft Lottery since 2004 when the Orlando Magic won and later selected All-Star center Dwight Howard.

League consensus has every team regardless of already having a franchise point guard in place, picking UK freshman John Wall. Most analysts and mock drafts have Ohio State guard Evan Turner being picked second. After that, like almost every year, your guess is as good as any. This draft is slightly deeper in the big man field as opposed to last year's draft which was more guard oriented.

The reason this draft lottery is so ridiculously important this year is because of LeBron James. After his team's uneventful meltdown last week against the Celtics, the whole world has been talking about where LeBron is going to go next season. While the most popular choices among NBA nerds and analysts are Cleveland, Chicago, New York & Miami, the NJ Nets could pull ahead of the pack after tonight. The New Jersey Nets are partially owned by rapper and friend of James, Jay Z and and also by Russian billionaire, Mikhail Prokhorov. The Nets are scheduled to move to Brooklyn in a few years, Prokhorov is determined to spend big money, they have a future all-star center in Brook Lopez and a great trading chip in Devon Harris. It isn't hard to believe if they get John Wall or Evan Turner that they'll have some serious leverage on other teams also trying to covet the King. If LeBron doesn't bite, you have to think a player like Amare Stoudemire or Carlos Boozer would also take a good hard look at the Nets as a possible 2010 destination.

Another interesting scenero would be if the Timberwolves won the draft. They would HAVE to take John Wall and that would open up the door to trade Ricky Rubio's rights to New York or L.A. It would be sort of nice to see that happen since the Knicks' draft pick goes to Utah this year due to the Tom Gugliotta trade that happened way back in 2004. They've been screwed over by terrible trades over the last 10 years and this is one of them.

As a Bulls fan though, you have to hope a team like Golden State or Sacramento wins the draft and New Jersey drops to #3 or #4 so that the Nets won't look any better than the already stellar package GarPax has put together in Chicago. Wall going to Golden State and Sacramento also aren't isn't going to hurt the Bulls Eastern Conference playoff race either.

Personally, I'm willing to bet the Detroit Pistons win tonight's draft. Why? Because it's completely ridiculous and the oddball always rolls away with a win. I'll be tweeting during the draft lottery @ www.twitter.com/chicagobullsky . Follow us for up to the minute Chicago Bulls and NBA rumors/news.

Born Here. Raised Here. Plays Here. Fails Here.

2010-05-14T06:47:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

We may have witnessed LeBron James' last game in a Cleveland jersey on Thursday night as the Boston Celtics finished off the Cavs 94-85 to win the best of 7 series 4-2. The Celtics will meet the undefeated Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals Sunday afternoon.

After LeBron James' terrible almost triple double performance in game 5, the Cavs tried to rebound from 2 days of bad press but couldn't seem to put it together. Mo Williams had almost 20 points at the end of the half and only trailed by 2 points. Every time the Cavs tried to make a run, the Celtics handed it right back to them on the other side of the floor. LeBron finished with a triple double with 27 points with 10 assists, and his 19 rebounds. It's safe to say, the elbow wasn't a factor.

After last year's controversy with not shaking the Orlando Magic's hands, this year, LeBron took the time to congratulate the Boston Celtics. LeBron was also the last person to speak at the post game press conference as ESPN waited on air for almost an hour for his appearance. LeBron was vague about his plans for the offseason but said that winning would be the most important factor.

While New York can offer bright lights and possibly another semi top tier player, New Jersey can offer Brook Lopez and possibly John Wall or Evan Turner (if they hit it big in the draft) and Miami can offer a team that has Dwayne Wade, the best possible situation for LeBron has seemingly become the Chicago Bulls.

Chicago is loaded with a team already built for the King. Derrick Rose is a top 5 point guard, Joakim Noah is a top 10 center and Taj Gibson has a great future in front of him. The Bulls also have two huge trade pieces in Luol Deng and Kirk Hinrich. The Bulls are also one of the hardest, workman like teams out there. They overachieve and REALLY want to win. This is a team that's not going to lay down the way the rest of the Cavs did in the last two playoff games against Boston.

ESPN analyst Chad Ford sent out this tweet after the game last night:

"Most of you think Knicks or Bulls. I just heard from 3 GMs. All said
Bulls."

followed by

"Note to all of you bemoaning no Kobe vs. 'Bron Finals: If LBJ joins the Bulls this summer, you won't be waiting long"

And then the interweb erupted with LeBron to the Bulls with sign and trade scenarios that involved Luol Deng. It's crazy how much LeBron owns the NBA right now. As much as I detest LeBron James, I would welcomingly accept him as a Bull. While it would be way more ideal for Derrick Rose to tear apart a LeBron lead squad with Chris Bosh at hand, the Bulls would win the titled immediately with James.

However, I still think he's going to sign a 3 year deal with the Cavs, see how things go. Regardless of if he wins a title there in that time or not, he'll bolt for the Brooklyn Nets after that contract is up. Stay tuned for any developments via the Chicago Bulls KY twitter feed www.twitter.com/chicagobullsky . The next few months are going to be nuts, and just as it has all season, the 2010 free agency frenzy has already overshadowed the outcome of the 2010 NBA playoffs.

Vinny Del Negro officially fired, UK coach John Calipari possibly interested.

2010-05-05T06:08:00.001-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Vinny Del Negro's 2 year tenure as head coach of the Chicago Bulls ended Tuesday when the Bulls announced that Del Negro was relieved of coaching duties during an hour long press conference. Bulls general manager Gar Foreman was the first person to speak. Gar acknowledged that Vinny did a good job with the development of players and remaining professional but in order to improve, a coaching change needed to be made.

Foreman tiptoed around a lot of questions and assured the media that he was in charge (until John Paxson said the same thing later on) and he was the one who initially decided to fire Del Negro. He claimed that the incident on March 30th with John Paxson had no effect on his decision. Gar mentioned that money was not going to be a factor in finding a new coach.

Vice president of basketball operations, John Paxson was the 2nd person to speak and finally apologized to Vinny, the organization and the fans regarding his behavior on March 30th. Pax went on to say that Vinny was a great guy, a hard worker and he wishes him luck. He also went on to say that Vinny didn't fail and helped the organization.

Vinny Del Negro also surprisingly made an appearance but didn't take any questions from the media. He thanked Jerry Reinsdorf and the Bulls organization for the opportunity they gave him and said he was proud of his accomplishments with the team and his players.

VDN is a classy guy and I liked him a lot. It's a shame the Bulls aren't retaining him for his final year but he's getting paid $2 million to sit at home so I don't feel that sorry for him. He put up with an organization who never stood behind him and the media while Pax laid low after the March 30th incident. He'll get another job and he'll do well. Pax did a good job of clearing the air saying that Vinny and him were competitive individuals and just got caught up in the heat of the moment. It happens.

According to a report that broke Tuesday evening by Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo Sports, University of Kentucky coach John Calipari would be interested in the Bulls head coaching job. Calipari coached Derrick Rose 3 years ago when he was still at Memphis. Calipari is also said to have close ties to LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. Although these reports have yet to be debunked, Calipari insured fans on his Facebook that he was happy at UK. Reports have also broke this morning saying that UK is scrambling to revise Calipari's contract to make it more appealing for him to stay. A report from the Daily Herald claimed that the Bulls have a short list of candidates for the head coaching job including former player/coach of the Philidephia 76ers, Mo Cheeks, former Boston Celtic and Timberwolves general manger/coach Kevin McHale and former NBA coach and current broadcaster Jeff Van Gundy.

Kevin McHale was a guy that I mentioned earlier this season as a decent replacement for VDN when talks of him being fired back in December surfaced. While McHale's coaching track record isn't that great, he's the best post player in the history of the NBA. His knowledge would especially help Joakim and Taj . He's also a dirty player of the game and the Bulls need a guy who can fight since it seems every other team plays that way. Mo Cheeks was a terrible coach for the 76ers and Jeff Van Gundy has zero interest so I'd have to think McHale is the top option if this short list is accurate.

I'll be posting tidbits on the Chicago Bulls KY twitter feed (www.twitter.com/chicagobullsky) regarding rumors and news for next few months regarding the search for a new coach, draft and free agency probably more than the actual blog. Sign up and follow us by phone for quick Bulls news updates! The draft lottery is 13 days away and is something that will definitely shape free agency. If the Cavs lose (which I hope they do) and the New Jersey Nets get the number 1 pick, I have feeling LeBron may actually consider leaving. With Brook Lopez, John Wall and Devon Harris as trade bait along with the move to Brooklyn, the Nets may look like an attractive stop for a free agent such as LeBron. I'm still sticking with my prediction that the Magic will win the title this year. Go Magic!

Bulls 09-10 season is over. Cavs win series 4-1, VDN likely to be fired this weekend.

2010-04-28T05:49:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls put in a valiant effort last night in their final game against the Cavs, losing 96-94. Derrick Rose was fantastic, scoring 31 points and adding 6 assists. Luol Deng also played well with 26 points. LeBron James was once again one assist shy of a triple double. With this loss, the Bulls fell to the Cavs 4-1 in the series. This marks the first time the Bulls have ever lost a season series to the Cavs. The Cavs go on to the second round to face the 2008 NBA Champion Boston Celtics.

Last night's game was very poorly officiated. It proved how much the NBA is banking on a Cavs-Lakers finals. The 3 consecutive fouls called on Brad Miller and Joakim Noah in the 4th quarter were completely unjust. One of those calls may have been a foul but how else do you guard Shaq? Those 3 calls along with an overturned continuation play from Derrick Rose did the Bulls in.

The treatment the Cavs get is unlike anything I've ever seen before. If the Bulls so much as breathed on them they would call a foul or if the Cavs fouled, they would still call it on the Bulls. At this point, I would rather have any team other than the Cavs win the title this year. For the last time ever, I'm throwing on my old Boston Celtics t-shirt and cheering a team I hate. I hope they give them hell.

It's safe to say that last night's game probably marked the end of the Vinny Del Negro era in Chicago. A decision is expected to be reached this weekend on whether or not to let VDN finish the last year on his contract. Most insiders believe that VDN will be fired especially after the scuffle that was reported a few weeks ago regarding him and John Paxson.

The first post I ever made on this blog was regarding the hiring of this man. I always was a supporter of Vinny, especially this year. He was instrumental in the development of Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. He also got the team to work hard through a season despite constant trade/firing rumors. He was treated poorly his whole tenure in Chicago and despite having zero support from the whole organization and the odds stacked against him, he still posted two consecutive .500 seasons. VDN will eventually coach again and it'll be interesting to see where he goes next. I wish him good luck.

The Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics and LA Lakers have my support. Someone please beat the Cavs.

We will not be swept! Bulls beat Cavs 108-106.

2010-04-23T05:24:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to squeak out a win after blowing a 21 point lead against the Cavs Thursday night, winning 108-106. Derrick Rose was sensational (again) scoring 31 points and dishing out 7 assists. Joakim Noah had his usual double-double with 10 points and 15 boards. However, the player of the game award would have to go to Kirk Hinrich who scored 27 points on 9-12 shooting including going 4-4 on three pointers. This game further proves how effective the Bulls would be on a consistent basis if they had a reliable shooting guard every night. With this win, the Bulls cut the series to 2-1.

This was a great game and LeBron James proved that he's pretty much unstoppable again. He hits shots that no one is suppose to make. Chicago built up a 21 point lead coming out of the half and started to make this look like it would be a blowout. Charles Barkley claimed at the half that even though the Bulls were up by double digits, they would blow the lead and the Cavs would win. The Bulls did blow the lead and missed 4 straight free throws late in the game but the Cavs never tied or took the lead during the second half. The Cavs looked visibly annoyed towards the end of the game and switched to a small lineup that had LeBron James playing center for the team. LeBron also was immediately switched to defend Derrick Rose which was in all honesty was Mike Brown scraping the bottom of the barrel of his "coaching" ideas. While Derrick Rose didn't score with LeBron defending him, the damage was already done. The Cavs eventually ran out of time outs and had to throw the ball in from the other side of the court with 3.7 seconds remaining. Instead of getting the ball to LeBron (who is a great half court shooter), the ball fell into the hands of Anthony Parker who missed and the Bulls won.

All and all, LeBron is great, however, I think his team full of spare parts still needs to be better for him to win a title. If the Bulls can figure out a way to beat this team, I'm pretty sure Orlando and L.A. can. They're both teams who have consistent shooters on the floor at all times. Regardless though, LeBron was able to score 39 points, pull down 10 rebounds and dish out 8 assists on the Bulls, stats he could have against any team on any night with 2 broken fingers and one eye opened.

I have a feeling the Cavs are going to try to blow the Bulls out of the water early on Sunday so Chicago is going to need to turn it on for 4 straight quarters if they want to tie this thing. I'm talking to you Kirk Hinrich.

Bulls down 2-0 to Cavs after LeBron catches fire in the 4th

2010-04-20T05:27:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls fell to 2-0 in their first round series against the Cavs Monday night with a 112-102 loss in Cleveland. LeBron James buried the Bulls late in the 4th quarter with 15 points down the stretch. While Cleveland got the win, the Bulls got closer to actually figuring out how to beat the Cavs.

Luol Deng had a great night finishing with 20 points. Although LeBron still scored 40 points, Deng was able to turn him into a jump shooter most of the game. Deng was able to get the best of LeBron a few times during the game. At one point after a frustrating LeBron basket, Deng took the ball coast to coast for a slam. Later on, Deng squared up and knocked down a three right in LeBron's face.

Joakim Noah was able to ignore an entire evening of loud boos scoring 25 points and grabbing 13 rebounds after a series of Cleveland bashing interviews. My personal favorite quotes were the "I never heard anyone say I'm going to Cleveland on vacation" and "I look out my hotel room window and all I see is....factories". The man's got a point, Cleveland's a shit town. They've got the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum and the Christmas Story house. Chicago's a real city, Cleveland is known for LeBron, that's it. It would probably bankrupt the whole city just for the paint to cover up that gigantic LeBron James Nike ad on one of their buildings downtown if LeBron left. Actually, they'd probably just leave it there and bask in the glory days of when LeBron was there and let it get old and nasty looking....like everything else.

Anyways, Derrick Rose had a great game as well with 23 points and 8 assists. He was cutting in and out of defenders and hitting decent looks as usual. Overall the Bulls played fantastic, LeBron just hit some crazy shots towards the end sealing the win. I loved the 8 man rotation VDN stuck with. Not playing Pargo or Warrick was a good choice.

The Bulls head back to Chicago on Thursday night for Game 3. Chicago needs to take advantage of this and steal a few at home if they want any chance in this.

Bulls vs. Cavs: 2010 1st Round Series Preview; Playoff Predictions!

2010-04-16T06:10:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

This is what we've all been waiting for. The 2010 NBA playoffs are here! There's some great opening round match ups this year and there's sure to be some upsets. The thing that's great about the NBA playoffs is that they're the most efficient of any sport. You have to win 4 out of 7 games. It's hard to argue who was the better team overall after someone wins 4 games in a series. Although a lot of naysayers will argue that the NCAA Tournament is the most fun to watch, it's hardly the most efficient, same with the NFL Playoffs. Two years ago the New England Patriots went undefeated the entire season, but lost in the Super Bowl. Had there been a best of 7 series, the Patriots would have probably won. No wonder Tom Brady boycotted the Pro Bowl, I'd be mad too. It would be terrible to be perfect and then lose the ONE deciding game that makes you a champion. The UK Wildcats had 5 NBA caliber players this season. They lost just 2 games throughout the year but ended up losing to West Virginia in the tournament. I'd like to argue UK would have won the whole thing this year had there been a best of seven series, or even 3 of 5. However, an NCAA tournament with best of 5 or 7 series would be terribly time consuming and stretch 3 months long. The NBA Playoffs take about 2 months to get through but their fun to watch nonetheless.

The Chicago Bulls will begin their opening round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday afternoon. While the Bulls are pegged by many to lose the series within 5 games, I still feel that anything is possible. The Dallas Mavericks meltdown of 2007 proved that upsets can happen. The Bulls tied the season series with the Cavs 2-2. The first win was by 1 point with a fully healthy Cavs team and a hobbled Bulls one. The 2nd win was last week while LeBron was resting. The two Cavs victories were by a combined 21 points which isn't much. Cleveland will now have Shaq and LeBron activated and also have a legit PF and former all-star in Antwan Jamison to work with. The Cavs really have no reason to lose any series this year but I have a feeling that the Orlando Magic will be able to handle them. Orlando just has too many good shooters and the best center in the world. LeBron is the Cleveland Cavaliers. They proved this last week that they can't beat anyone without him. Regardless, the Cavs have way more depth than the Bulls and that's what will eventually topple this Chicago team. Had the Bulls kept Salmons and Thomas, this series would be a whole lot more complicated. While Flip Murray and Hakim Warrick are nice pieces, they're really not 2nd and 3rd guys off the bench. Let's take a look at the depth of each roster.

Chicago Bulls 2010 playoff roster

C - Noah/Miller/Richard

PF - Gibson/Warrick

SF - Deng/Johnson/Alexander/Kurz

SG - Hinrich/Murray/Brown

PG - Rose/Pargo/Law

Cleveland Cavaliers 2010 playoff roster

C - O'Neal/Ilgauskas

PF - Jamison/Varejao/Williams/Powe

SF - James/Hickson/Moon/Green

SG - Parker/West

PG - Williams/Gibson/Telfair

As you can see the Cavs have a lot more weapons than the Bulls. Hinrich and Gibson are both going to have to turn it up to 11 if they want to have any chance of winning this thing. Deng and Johnson are taking on the the toughest task in the basketball world, guarding LeBron James. In the Bulls first win against the Cavs this season, Chicago was somehow able to make LeBron James a jump shooter and while he's one of the best at that, he wasn't hitting contested shots. I'm hoping that VDN will trust James Johnson a little more this series and let him guard LeBron some. He's proven throughout the year that he's capable of playing defense so it'll be interesting to see if he's played a whole lot although my gut tells me he won't be. The Bulls anchor stars Rose and Noah will have to be spectacular this series if they want any chance of stealing some games. Look for the Cavs to get Noah and Gibson in foul trouble early, but also look for Derrick Rose to score 25-30 points a night. Will it be enough? Probably not but anything can happen.

Sean's prediction: Cavs over Bulls 4-2

Below you see a playoff bracket of sorts along with my predictions of who will win them. Andrew over at http://www.dabullz.com is having a contest. Head on over to his site, register and post your playoff bracket in the "contest" section for a chance to win a Derrick Rose t-shirt and a basketball encyclopedia. Good luck to the Bulls and follow our twitter feed at www.twitter.com/chicagobullsky for up to the minute updates during the upcoming playoff games.

Bullieve.

Eastern Conference

1st Round

(1) Cavs over (8) Bulls (4-2)

(2) Magic over (7) Bobcats (4-1)

(3) Hawks over (6) Bucks (4-1)

(4) Celtics over (5) Heat (4-2)

2nd Round

(1) Cavs over (5) Celtics (4-1)

(2) Magic over (3) Hawks (4-1)

Eastern Conference Finals

(2) Magic over (1 ) Cavs (4-3)

Western Conference

1st Round

(1) Lakers over (8) Thunder (4-2)

(2) Mavericks over (7) Spurs (4-1)

(3) Suns over (6) Blazers (4-0)

(4) Nuggets over (5) Jazz (4-3)

2nd Round

(1) Lakers over (5) Nuggets (4-2)

(3) Suns over (2) Mavericks (4-2)

Western Conference Finals

(1) Lakers over (3) Suns (4-2)

Finals: Magic over Lakers 4-3

2010 NBA Champion: Orlando Magic

Bulls beat Bobcats, make the playoffs!

2010-04-15T05:17:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

It took all 82 games, but the Bulls still snuck into the 2010 NBA playoffs last night with a win over the Charlotte Bobcats. The Toronto Raptors ended up winning their last game of the season as well, so it was imperative that the Bulls beat the Bobcats. Chicago took the lead early and never really let up. Although it was kind of a sloppy game, the Bulls seemed focused the entire night and were able to reach their 5th playoff appearance in 6 years.

Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah were sensational once again. Coming off a career high 39 points the night before, Rose scored 27 points and also added 5 assists. Joakim Noah had another monster game with 21 points, 13 rebounds and 4 assists.

Taj Gibson had his 18th double double this season with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Gibson ended the season leading all rookies in double-doubles, rebounds, field goal percentage and blocks. While Gibson had more opportunities than most rookie big men this season due to injuries and the inconstant play of Tyrus Thomas, only a few past NBA all-stars have lead in all four categories. In the end, Taj turned out to be a pleasant surprise, especially after I predicted he would be D-League fodder. He's almost a lock for the 2009-10 All-Rookie Team and will probably end up 4th in the running for NBA Rookie of the Year.

Despite Ben Gordon leaving for Detroit, trading away John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas, injuries and recent controversies regarding management, the Bulls were once again able to post a 2nd consecutive 41-41 record. A huge achievment giving all of the circumstances proving that Chicago may just be 1 or 2 pieces away from being a solid contender in the East. The win last night pushed Toronto out of the playoffs, leading to even more speculation that Chris Bosh has played his last game in a Raptors uniform. VDN should probably buy Antwan Jamison a fruit basket or something for that sick elbow to the face he delivered to Bosh last week.

The Bulls begin their 1st round series playoff series against the league best Cleveland Cavaliers Saturday at 2 p.m. on ABC. Joakim Noah is predicting to "shock the world" once again and if this series is anything like last year's opening round, the Cavs are in for a fight.

Bullieve.

Bulls win over Celtics overshadowed by VDN/Pax scuffle

2010-04-14T06:59:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were finally able to hand a healthy Boston Celtics team a loss this year winning on Tuesday night 101-93. Derrick Rose was sensational, scoring a career high 39 points while adding 7 assists, 5 rebounds and 3 blocks. Kirk Hinrich was also on fire scoring his season high 30 points. Joakim Noah was a beast down low (like always) pulling down 16 rebounds. With this win, the Bulls pull ahead 1/2 game of the Raptors for the 8th and final playoff seed in the east. The loss for Boston keeps them locked for the 4th seed, they will now have to play the Cavs in the 2nd round of the playoffs (if both teams make it that far).

Chicago's victory was completely overshadowed by a story that broke an hour before tipoff by Adrian Wojnarowski over at Yahoo Sports. According to sources, after a loss to the Phoenix Suns in late March, VP John Paxson allegedly stormed into coach Vinny Del Negro's office, pulled his tie, struck his chest twice in a provoking manner and challenged VDN to a fight. Assistant Bernie Bickerstaff had to restrain Paxson before the incident escalated any further. Del Negro failed to retaliate in fear of voiding his contract. Paxson was reportedly angry with Del Negro regarding the handling of Joakim Noah's minutes.The incident was known throughout the Bulls inner circle and by Chicago Tribune beat reporter, K.C. Johnson however Johnson declined to break the story. Adrian Wojnarowski is a friend of Johnson's so it's safe to say he probably spilled the beans and gave the story to Woj.

While no Chicago Bulls fan has been a true fan of Vinny's coaching, Paxson definitely crossed the line. It's safe to say Vinny Del Negro is gone after this season. From day one, VDN has been a 2 year holdover coach. He's fought on through critisism from fans, management, and got a VERY mediocre (at best) Bulls team to the the playoffs last season and helped them take a defending champion Boston Celtics team to 7 games in the first round. This year, without the help of star Ben Gordon, he's managed to get his team within one game of last year's record and could get them into the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row with a win in Charlotte this week.

I'm hoping that the Bulls rally after last night's win, beat Charlotte and give the Cavs a fight in the 1st round just to stick it to John Paxson.

Bulls win a REALLY ugly, LeBron-less game.

2010-04-09T05:11:00.001-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls scrapped out a win last night, edging the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-108. An hour before tipoff, it was announced that LeBron James was listed as inactive. While having LeBron out definitely helped out the Bulls, the Cavs came to play.

Mo Williams had 35 points, 10 assists and 3 rebounds and generally outplayed Derrick Rose most of the night. Not to say Rose wasn't any good, because he had 24 points and 10 assists himself. However, the hero of the game was Bulls center Joakim Noah who tallied 17 points and 15 rebounds along with the game changing jumper late in the 4th quarter. The Bulls however missed 4 free throws in the last minute of play that would have given them a 5 point lead.

I turned the game off at halftime. Although it was relatively high scoring, the defense was sloppy on both sides. It's sad that I feel that way but the Bulls have been playing so uninspired over the last few games. Let's face it, the Bulls got lucky last night with LeBron sitting out and Jamison twisting his ankle midgame. Regardless, the Bulls needed a win and well, they got a big one that they were expected to lose. With the win last night, the Bulls are now tied with Toronto for the 8th and final playoff spot.

Chicago plays the New Jersey Nets tonight at 8:00 p.m. on CSN and NBA League Pass. The Bulls were able to pull out a 20+ point win against this team two weeks ago. Toronto plays the Atlanta Hawks tonight without star Chris Bosh.

Raptors lose to Celtics, Bulls 1/2 game out of 8th seed.

2010-04-08T05:49:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Toronto Raptors fell to the Boston Celtics 115-104 last night. This loss put the Raptors just 1/2 game ahead of the Bulls for the 8th and final playoff spot. It was announced after last night's game that Toronto's leading scorer Chris Bosh will miss the rest of the regular season with a facial fracture he sustained in a game against Cleveland on Tuesday. Although the odds should be in the Bulls favor, they're not.

Chicago failed to capitalize at home on Tuesday night with a Milwaukee Bucks team who was without their star center, Andrew Bogut . The Bulls were absolutely terrible in the 2nd quarter and scored a season low 9 points. After Milwaukee took the lead, the Bulls tied it later in the 4th quarter before collapsing completely.

The Bulls finish out the season with games against Cleveland (tonight), New Jersey, Toronto, Boston and Charlotte. With the exception of maybe the NJ game, this is going to be a tough last 5 games for the Bulls. The Toronto game on Sunday will probably dictate who's going to the playoffs. If you remember back to last season, Toronto beat the Bulls in one of the last games of the season, forcing Chicago to play the Boston Celtics in their epic 7 game series. Had the Bulls won that game, they would have been playing the Magic, who of course went on to the NBA Finals. Not to say the Bulls would have done any better in a Magic series but it would have made things very interesting. Once again, this year, the Bulls fate lies in a Toronto Raptors game.

The Toronto Raptors have a considerably easier schedule than Chicago does with games against Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit and New York. With exception of maybe the Atlanta and Chicago games, Detroit and New York are very winnable.

The Bulls play the Cleveland Cavaliers on national television tonight live on TNT @ 8 p.m.

Chicago's big chance to gain ground on Toronto....TONIGHT!

2010-04-06T05:24:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls have 6 games remaining in the regular season and they're currently sitting on the 9th seed looking in on Toronto. Neither team's schedules are that promising for the last 6 games but the Bulls may have a slightly easier route. Tonight, the Bulls are taking on the surging Milwaukee Bucks at home. The Bucks were dealt some terrible luck two nights ago when their star center, Andrew Bogut landed awkwardly after a dunk breaking his right hand, spraining his wrist and dislocating his elbow. Kurt Thomas will be starting in place of Bogut for the rest of the season and the playoffs.

While I sort of feel bad for the Bucks, this could mean great news for the Bulls tonight. With Noah and Gibson playing great, they may be able to dominate the Bucks frontline and pull out a win. Toronto on the other hand has to play the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight. Over the last week, LeBron James has been hinting he'd like to rest the last few days of the season before the playoffs. Hopefully he plays tonight and decides to take Thursday's game off against the Bulls.

Either way, the Bulls are going to probably need to win 4 or 5 of the last 6 (including a win over Toronto on Sunday evening) if they wanna sneak into the playoffs.

Bulls play the Bucks at home tonight at 8:00 p.m. on CSN or NBA League Pass.

Bulls lose a tough one at home 111-105, playoff hopes fade.

2010-03-31T04:58:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls blew a really close one on Tuesday night, losing to the Phoenix Suns 111-105. Rose was fantastic with 23 points, 10 assists and 5 rebounds. Noah and Gibson both had great games as well, also racking up double-doubles. The Bulls held a 3 point lead early in the 4th but after a few bad possessions and a three from Channing Frye, the game was over.

This loss put the Bulls 1.5 games behind Toronto. The Bulls would have to be near perfect for the next 9 games or Toronto and Charlotte would have to have an epic collapses if they want to attempt to sneak into the playoffs. Toronto has an easier schedule for the next 4 games making it even more unlikely the Bulls can catch up. Toronto plays an LA Clippers team that has dropped 14 of the last 17.

I hate this time of the year.

It's not over yet! Bulls 1/2 game out of the playoffs!

2010-03-29T06:05:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls pulled out two desperately needed wins this weekend against the New Jersey Nets and the "rival" Detroit Pistons. After losing a ridiculous blowout to the Miami Heat last Thursday night, Chicago was able to rebound blowing out the Nets by 23 points and the Pistons by 7. While all this was going on, the Toronto Raptors were continuing their downward spiral out of the 8th seed losing a nail biter against the Denver Nuggets on Friday night and blowing a 15 point lead and losing to the Miami Heat Sunday evening. The two wins for the Bulls, and two losses for the Raptors put Chicago 1/2 game out of the 8th and final playoff seed in the East.

Although both wins this weekend were against some of the worst in the league, they were must wins considering Chicago has a week of games that includes the Phoenix Suns and the red hot Charlotte Bobcats. With Luol Deng out indefinitely, it's hard to say if Chicago will be able to limp into the playoffs with James Johnson as their starting SF. James Johnson was also injured Saturday night and didn't play against the Nets. Although the Bulls won with a lineup that started Pargo, they're going to need JJ healthy if they want to attempt to compete for that last playoff spot.

It's generally believed that knocking out Toronto would give assurance that Chris Bosh would leave his team for a contender this offseason. Ideally the Bulls are thought to be one of the few teams that Bosh would consider signing with this summer. If the Bulls themselves could push the Raptors out of the playoff picture it may help Chicago's cause to sign Bosh. Although a win against Toronto on April 12th would help the Bulls in the standings, the Raptors own the tiebreaker and could sneak into the playoffs if the records match. Toronto plays Charlotte tonight, if Charlotte wins, the Bulls will be tied for the final playoff spot. The Bulls play Phoenix Tuesday at home.

Hopfully Deng will get back soon, the Bulls can get into the playoffs and give LeBron some hell. Go Bulls!

Wow, that was embarrassing.

2010-03-26T05:20:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

I usually don't like to blog about losses this late in the season. Every time I watch the Bulls get blown out, I get real sad and it generally puts me in a bad mood for at least half of the morning after. The Bulls got REALLY blown out last night at home by the Miami Heat 103-74. Naturally, I'm kind of pissed off about the whole thing considering I was looking forward to the game the entire day. That whole loss I witnessed in Indianapolis a month ago took the wind out of my sails and well, now I'm even less enthused. It's weird how something as trivial as a basketball game could do that to someone but with a team with so much potential it's hard not to over think things. Things like "why didn't the organization wait until AFTER the season to trade John Salmons" or "why did they trade Tyrus Thomas for a draft pick in 2013 that's probably going to end up in the 20's instead of having him help the team make the playoffs THIS season".

The whole night I kept waiting for someone to come off the bench and step up. I was looking for John Salmons, I was looking for Tyrus Thomas. The Bulls have this glaring hole in their roster without those two players. They had depth with those guys. Hakim Warrick and Flip Murray are decent 3rd and 4th guys off the bench but they're not as good as the guys the Bulls gave away.

Let's face it, Chicago isn't going to lure any decent free agent this summer. Why would Bosh come here when he can go to Miami? The Bulls will most likely hit the panic button like they did this trade deadline and end up overpaying someone like Joe Johnson. I like Joe Johnson, but $20 says as soon as he arrives in Chicago, he'll be on the decline.

That whole swapping draft picks with Milwaukee is looking pretty stupid right about now.

Bulls play the Nets on national television tomorrow night in a must win situation. They lose that game, I'm throwing in the towel.

Heat @ Bulls Tonight on TNT at 8 p.m.!

2010-03-25T07:15:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The plan to possibly tank and get the lottery pick back from Milwaukee has been thrown out the window. There's no chance of the Bulls having a worse record than the Clippers unless L.A. wins every single remaining game. The Bulls have 12 more games to go in the regular season. With all this being said, the quest for the playoffs begins today against the rival (according to D-Wade) Miami Heat. The Heat currently lead the season series 2-1.

The Bulls have won the last two games and Derrick Rose is playing his heart out but with Noah just coming in for sporadic minutes at a time and Deng possibly out for the rest of the season, the next 12 games are going to be tough. Chicago will be taking on Charlotte twice and Toronto once during these 12 games, these are obviously going to be the most important games to win since those teams are currently occupying the 7th and 8th seeds. Charlotte's going to make the playoffs for the first time without a doubt, they're playing REALLY solid basketball. Toronto is the team we're after. If the Bulls can finish 8th (or even possibly 7th) and Bosh is denied the playoffs, everyone can seriously start believing that he'll be signing elsewhere. Whether that team is Chicago, Miami or New York is something that will be speculated about until July 1st.

So tonight, put on your best Jason Caffey or Luc Longley jersey (what you don't have one?), skip the pussy NCAA tournament, and watch some real men compete for seeding that matters.

Lamenting on the Past Month of Bulls Basketball

2010-03-24T15:58:00.000-07:00

By Alex Derickson

It's come to this. A ten game losing streak has been weathered and we are riding high on a current two game romp. Now, this is nothing to celebrate, but we are only 2 1/2 games out of being swept by the Cavs. It's come to this. I'm getting excited over a two game win streak and the potential of a Cleveland Steamer in the playoffs.

After the trade deadline, the team seemed to be making a push. The "problem" players that "didn't understand their roles" were replaced for two career role players and two players, one being a former lottery pick who just came out of the D-league. Shockingly, the team seemed to play as good, if not better than they were pre-trades. I stood there and thought, "man, they are making another late season push to the playoffs." Then, Indiana happened.

Sean and I traveled to Indianapolis to see the Bulls, sans Noah, front court depth, etc. take on the Pacers. During this fiasco, I saw the unthinkable. I watched Pargo chuck up more shots than anyone else on the team and play 29 minutes. In the same nightmare, Rose injured himself and left the game in the fourth.

Injuries happen. But when Rose, Noah and Deng went down, the losing streak took hold. Vinny tried to find lineups that work, but the Bulls couldn't match up against a series of tough opponents being led by a "team" that I wouldn't even cast in a rag-tag-bunch-of-no-name-players-thrown-on-a-sports team movie.

To make matters worse, John Salmons is saving Milwaukee's season by leading them to a 14-2 record in the first 16 games with the team. Goddammit. To top that off, if the Bulls finish anywhere between eleven and any-draft-pick-better-than-the-Bucks, the Bucks get their pick and two second rounders.

I feel cheated. I do. I feel like Gar PaxDorf has set the franchise up for failure. Will it get rid of Vinny? Sure! Will this team make the playoffs? Maybe! Will a 4-0 sweep in the first round by the far superior Cleveland LeBron's be fun to watch? Never! And the most important question, if LeBron sweeps the Bulls, would he really want to leave Cleveland to play with a team that's worse than the one he's on?

I'm Close to Giving Up.

2010-03-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Four of the Bulls starters were out (Deng, Rose & Noah injured, Hinrich suspended) making room for a 3 guard lineup that included Acie Law, Flip Murray & Janerro Pargo when they took on the Grizzlies last night. This is a starting five that would have probably lost to 1999's opening day starters that consisted of Toni Kukoc, Ron Harper, Brent Barry, Mark Bryant & Andrew Lang. Beat reporter KC Johnson joked on Twitter that he kept thinking that Marcus Fizer was going to be coming off the bench....it was that bad. To make matters worse, James Johnson would have most likely started over Acie Law but was late to practice on Monday and was benched. I never understood the benching of a guy who's been playing well for something so trivial. The Bulls were once down by 21 then decided to fight back to cut the lead to 4 but ended up losing 104-97.

This is the 8 straight loss for the Bulls and they're only trailing 1.5 games behind the Raptors for the last playoff spot. It's important for either Chicago to heal quickly and steal the last spot from the Raptors or tank the rest of the season and pray they do worse than the Clippers so they can keep their lottery pick. If the Raptors don't make the playoffs this year, it's pretty much a sure bet that Chris Bosh will want to leave. He doesn't want to make the same mistake Garnett made and continue playing for a mediocre team that has no chance at the playoffs every year. Bosh, Rose and Noah would be a dominant force and an immediate playoff contender in the East.

Then there's the unlikely plan B....lose the rest of the season and hope to fall into the draft lottery. If the Bulls landed in the top 10, they wouldn't swap picks with the Bucks but it's HIGHLY unlikely. Althought the dream of drafting Evan Turner and then picking up Chris Bosh would make any Bulls fan happy.

Either way, the Bulls need to decide what they're gonna do. Deng & Noah are probably going to be out for at least a few more weeks and if Brad Miller goes down or Taj Gibson's foot problems emerge, kiss the 2010 playoffs goodbye.

Trade Deadline Day Deals

2010-02-19T06:09:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

Chicago finally ended it's 4 year long relationship with Tyrus Thomas on Thursday trading him to the Charlotte Bobcats for Flip Murray, Acie Law & a future 1st round draft pick. This deal was more or less to get the negative vibe out of the locker room for two expiring contracts and a bonus pick a few years down the line. Also, the John Salmons to the Bucks deal was finalized. The Bulls take back Hakim Warrick (spelled his name wrong yesterday) & Joe Alexander. The Bucks also have the right to switch picks with the Bulls in this years draft. My hopes of trading up to pick up a decent guard or forward in the 2010 draft seem kind of slim now.

Essentially, Chicago had to get rid of John Salmons to ensure he wouldn't opt in this summer, making it impossible to give a high caliber free agent a max deal. The Tyrus Thomas trade was made just to get something out him rather then just let him walk this summer. If you look at it clearly, all we got for Salmons & Tyrus was a future draft pick and 3 months rental of Hakim Warrick. Derrick Rose is going to have to pick up scoring even more if the Bulls care to make it to the playoffs and actually put up a fight in the first round. Tyrus Thomas' defense off the bench will be missed. Although he was brilliant at times, he never could do anything consistently and had spats with VDN on a regular basis.

The Bulls made the right moves to ensure they can still play well this season and possibly impressing a free agent to come this summer. A solid core of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich & Taj Gibson should help their cause.I honestly think only Carlos Boozer, Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire & possibly Chris Bosh will leave their current teams. Any of those guys would help Chicago but the addition of Chris Bosh would make the Bulls a contender.

The Knicks made a major move yesterday that allows them to sign 2 max free agents next summer. They also get to rent the ghost of former all-star Tracy McGrady for the rest of the year. If all of the free agents decide not to go there, NY's whole last 5 years of losing will have been a complete waste and will cement them as a permanent laughing stock of the NBA. Why two players would want to join forces with Chris Duhon & Galinari is beyond me. They have nothing to offer other than New York being considered a "big market" for basketball. The Knicks are also screwed in the draft for several years to come. John Wall could very well end up in Utah next season because of a deal they did from a few years back. It's LeBron or bust.

The Bulls play the Minnesota Timberwolves tonight at 8:00 p.m. on CSN Chicago and NBA League Pass. I'm not sure how many (if any at all) of the new guys will be suited up for tonight's game. Should be interesting none the less.

Salmons traded to Bucks for Kurt Thomas/Francisco Elson or Joe Alexander/Hakeem Warrick

2010-02-18T05:23:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls made their first big move of the trade deadline late Wednesday evening by trading swingman John Salmons to the Milwaukee Bucks for either Kurt Thomas & Francisco Elson or Joe Alexander & Hakeem Warrick. Which ever deal the Bulls are dealt with, they'll be picking up expiring contracts and getting rid of a guy who had a player option that could have ruined the chances of signing a big name free agent this summer.

John Salmons was a great addition to the Bulls last season and was easily the biggest steal of the trade deadline last year. His ability to create his own shot and hit down a rather consistant 3 pointer was very helpful in the already famous 7 game series with Boston.

The Milwaukee deal also put all Tracy McGrady rumors to rest last night as Salmons was said to be one of the center pieces of a New York/Sacramento/Chicago three way deal. Tracy McGrady was later dealt along with Carl Landry & Joey Dorsey to the Kings for their star shooting guard Kevin Martin along with Kenny Thomas, Hilton Armstrong & Sergio Rodriguez. Landing Kevin Martin is HUGE for Houston. They got an all-star caliber player for a guy who wasn't even playing. Playing the waiting game paid off for the Rockets and they got a much better deal than what the Knicks or Bulls were offering.

The Cavs also made a decent 3 way trade earlier yesterday for forward Antwan Jamison. The trade sent Zydrunas Ilgauskas, a 2010 first-round draft pick and the rights to Emir Preldzic, who was selected in the second round of last year's draft to the Wizards for Jamison. The Clippers shipped off Al Thornton to the Wizards along with Sebastian Telfair to the Cavs and received Drew Gooden. Drew Gooden is expected to receive a buyout along with Ilgauskas who will most likely return to Cleveland.

In lesser calliber deals, recent dunk champion, Nate Robinson was shipped off from the Knicks to Boston for Eddie House. The deal gives the Boston Celtics a solid but undersized back up guard. In a rather uninspired deal, the Knicks traded Darko Milicic to the Minnesota Timberwolves for forward Brian Cardinal.

The trade deadline is at 3:00 p.m. today. Everyone's eyes will be on a possible Amare Stoudemire to Miami trade. It was said last night that Amare met with the team owner and is most likely to stay with the Suns the rest of the season but anything can happen if Miami decides to finally throw Michael Beasley in a deal. Look for the Bulls in a last ditch effort to try to trade Tyrus Thomas & Jannero Pargo (who has requested a trade) to the Knicks for Al Harrington. The Bulls lost a solid bench scorer in Salmons and his double digit points will be missed unless another scorer is brought in.

Also, completely overshadowed by the trade deadline last night was the Bulls/Knicks game. The Bulls won 115-109 after coming back from a 15 point deficit. The Knicks were given a chance to tie in the last 20 seconds of the game but came up empty 3 times in a row from downtown instead of going for the easy 2 and fouling. Rose finished the game with 27 points and 6 assists. Taj Gibson had 14 points & 16 rebounds and Deng quietly had a solid game with 23 points and 7 rebounds. Al Harrington had 27 points for New York.

Bulls Destroy Knicks/Rumors Are Getting Crazy!

2010-02-17T05:28:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

In their first game back from All-Star break, the Bulls proceeded to annihilate the Knicks 118-85 Tuesday night. Derrick Rose played with some true all-star swagger scoring 29 points on 14-18 shooting, dishing out 6 assists and pulling down 4 rebounds. All this was done while sitting out the entire 4th quarter due to a ridiculous 30 point lead. Hinrich had a solid 14 points, 6 assists and 8 rebounds. Joakim Noah once again sat out with a plantar fasciitis related injury. With this win the Bulls improve to 26-26. The Bulls play the Knicks again tonight at 8:00 p.m. on CSN Chicago and NBA League Pass.

Although, it was great to see the Bulls finally tear apart a team at will, the whole game was overshadowed by league wide trade rumors. The Bulls have been said to be very active this year. They've been rumored to be in talks for Tracy McGrady, Amare Stoudemire, Al Jefferson, Al Harrington and most recently, Chris Bosh.

Tyrus Thomas is most likely to be dealt by Thursday's trade deadline at 3:00 p.m. I rumor via Yahoo Sports has indicated that the Spurs are the most interested in Thomas. A combination of probably Roger Mason (who has requested a trade) and another expiring contract or draft pick would probably be the most likely package. Other proposals have had him being shipped off to the Houston Rockets along with Brad Miller, John Salmons and/or Kirk Hinrich for former All-Star Tracy McGrady. There's also the popular scenario of Tyrus going to the Knicks for Al Harrington.

Supposedly, just yesterday the Bulls were said to have offered Luol Deng & Tyrus Thomas to the Timberwolves for Al Jefferson but the offer was immediately refused. That's one trade I would have LOVED to have seen happen. Noah, Jefferson, J. Johnson, Hinrich & Rose, a lineup that could have probably lured Dwayne Wade back home.

However, last night the most interesting of all Bulls related trade rumors came from Tech 9 at Rumor Press. The proposed deal would have Joakim Noah & Luol Deng being shipped off for All-Star forward Chris Bosh. Although, ideally it would be best for Noah & Bosh to play together, if this is what the Bulls have to do to secure Bosh, they need to do it. Chicago may be able to draft a solid center such as Cole Alrich to compliment Bosh later on. The Bulls also still may be able to just clear some more cap space and sign Bosh this summer. It all depends whether or not Gar/Pax think they have a chance of luring Bosh to Chicago this offseason.

By 3:00 p.m. tomorrow afternoon, we'll be able to get a glance at what direction the Bulls are taking going into the summer of 2010 free agency lottery. Very exciting!

Rose injured, Bulls get crushed, Tyrus is as good as gone

2010-02-11T05:13:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were defeated at home last night 107-87 by the defending Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic. Luol Deng lead the team with 23 points and 7 rebounds. Derrick Rose was injured and had to exit the game after being hacked hard going up for layup by Dwight Howard. However, Rose made the shot and sank the free throw before leaving the game with a bruised hip from the foul. X-rays have been negative but but a fracture is still possible yet unlikely according to team specialists. Rose is scheduled to appear on NBA All-Star Saturday Night to defend his Skills Challenge title along with the actual NBA All-Star game on Sunday night. It is unknown whether or not Rose will be able to participate in the festivities.

It seems trade rumors are floating around everywhere on the web regarding Tyrus Thomas inevitable departure from Chicago. The Denver Nuggets seemed to have made the first offer for Free Money 2 days ago with a proposed deal that would ship Renaldo "he's a sleepa'" Balkman, Joey Graham & former Bull Malik Allen. Since yesterday, Yahoo Sports writer Adrian Wojnarowski has reported that the Bulls have received several other offers including one from Charlotte that would send Acie Law, Flip Murray & a first round draft pick (which Doug Thonus of Bulls Confidential has called out as impossible since Minnesota owns the pick) and an offer from Portland that would send Steve Blake or Travis Outlaw plus two 2nd round draft picks.

The Bulls organization has made it clear that they're looking for expiring contracts and a 2010 or future first round draft pick. What Chicago gets for Thomas will probably be unknown until the day of the trade deadline but one thing is for certain, by this time next week, Tyrus Thomas will probably no longer be a Chicago Bull.

Report: Derrick Rose Makes All-Star Team!

2010-01-28T10:52:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

It has been reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that Derrick Rose will be named to his first NBA all-star game this evening when the reserves are announced tonight on TNT. Rose will be joined alongside Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace & Al Horford and previously announced starters Allen Iverson, Dwight Howard, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett & Dwayne Wade to complete the 2010 Eastern all-star squad. Western reserves include Chris Paul, Paul Gasol, Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, Zach Randolph and Brandon Roy.

Derrick Rose is the first Chicago Bull to be chosen for the all-star team since Michael Jordan in 1998. Congrads to him and the Bulls for finally having an all-star. As previously announced, Rose will also be starting in the rookie/sophmore game and defending his Skills Challenge title.

The only real snub this year is Chris Kaman who rightfully should have been chosen over Pau Gasol. New York fans are also probably a little upset that David Lee was left out, but who cares? Derrick Rose is in and that's all that matters :)

Is that 4 (Road Wins) in a row? Bulls finally at .500 again!

2010-01-28T05:23:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls won their 4 straight road game last night with a 96-86 victory over the OKC Thunder. Derrick Rose was fantastic pouring in a total of 26 points and 7 assists. Rose took over in the 4th quarter and pounded dagger after dagger to the Thunder including a ridiculous slam dunk in the final 2 minutes. Taj Gibson was insane on the glass with 15 rebounds, Luol Deng had 17 points going 3-4 from downtown. Joakim Noah had another double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. New Bulls guard Devin Brown sat out after not being able to participate in the morning shootaround. VDN wanted him to understand the "system" and get him properly acclimated before throwing him into an actual a game. Look for Brown to make his season debut with the Bulls against his former team, the New Orleans Hornets on Friday night.

With this win the Bulls improve to .500. A month ago, this was thought to be impossible. At this point last season (after 44 games) the Bulls were 18-26 so the Bulls are already off to a decent start even without Ben Gordon. 19 more wins and the Bulls will match last years record. Chicago is currently sitting as the #7 seed in the East. If the playoffs started today, we'd have an epic rematch of last years series with the Bostons Celtics.

While winning is great, the only downside to the Bulls doing this well on a roadtrip is that the front office might be reluctant to pull the trigger on a blockbuster trade. The Bulls have been winning games with Hinrich starting and Salmons coming off the bench. My gut feeling is that Salmons will be dealt by the end of February. Hinrich is overvalued and I doubt will never be traded. With Devin Brown coming off the bench, Salmons looks very expendable. I could also see Brad Miller leaving if an all-star like NBA big is brought in or just another expiring big.

The Bulls look to extend their win streak to 5 when they visit Aaron Gray and the New Orleans Hornets Friday night @ 8 p.m. on CSN-Chicago and NBA League Pass.

Rose & Gibson Heading to the Rookie/Sophmore Game!

2010-01-27T09:17:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The NBA All-Star reserves won't be announced until tomorrow but it appears Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson will be competing against each other in the 2010 Rookie/Sophomore game at NBA All-Star weekend. Rose is currently averaging 19.6 points & 5.9 assists per game. Taj is averaging 8.5 points & 6.3 rebounds per game. Derrick had 4 points and 7 assists in a loss to the Sophomores last year.

The Amare Stoudemire rumors are starting to flair up just as they did at this time last year. It was revealed today by Mike McGraw of the Chicago Tribune that the Bulls turned down an offer last season which would have sent Tyrus Thomas, Thabo Sefolosha & multiple draft picks to the Suns for Stoudemire. The multiple draft pick request was what apparently killed the deal and I'm okay with that. That was way too much to give up for a player who's had micro fracture knee surgery.

Mike McGraw also confirmed that Kirk Hinrich's name has came up in discussions between Chicago and Los Angeles. The Lakers would be able to offer a package of Adam Morrison & Sasha Vujacic. The only problem with that deal is that Vujacic has another year on his contract. If the Bulls are going to clear roster space for 2 free agents, they're going to need to get expiring contracts for Kirk. Personally, I don't believe the Bulls will ever trade Kirk Hinrich. He's the franchise's golden boy and a personal favorite of Reinsdorf. Plus over the last few weeks, he's helped the Bulls turn their season around. However, I could see Salmons getting traded if a decent expiring contract comes up.

New acquisition, Devin Brown makes his debut as a Bull this evening when Chicago visits the Oklahoma City Thunder @ 8 p.m. on CSN Chicago & NBA League Pass.

Report: Aaron Gray traded to Hornets for Devin Brown

2010-01-25T12:40:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

Holy crap! The Bulls made a trade!

The Bulls are shipping the "White Flag" Aaron Gray to the New Orleans Hornets for 6th man, Devin Brown. This is an interesting trade since I believe A-Gray had a no trade clause. This guy has been a fan favorite since day 1 but never got the chance to develop into the low post threat the Bulls wanted him to. He's been a cheerleader most of this year since he was injured and VDN's been on the hot seat.

Devin Brown recently lit the Bulls up for 22 points back on 12/26 shooting 6-7 from the 3 point line. According to Blog a Bull, Brown has a 10% trade kicker, which puts the Bulls over $200k more in 2009-10 committed salary.

I have a feeling that this was a lateral move but I'm sure it's the beginning of a bigger deal looming. Does this mean Salmons and/or Hinrich are on their way out? By this time next month, we'll know for sure.

Also, sorry for the lack of updates. The Bulls are sooooo average right now. They win 2 or 3 games, then lost 2 or 3 games and can't get over .500. I just can't get excited about it. The Bulls need a shake up. I'll be way more into this season when one actually happens.

Bulls Convincingly Beat the Celtics!

2010-01-15T05:43:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

I know, I know. Garnett and Wallace were out, but a win's a win, and that's 3 in a row. The Bulls beat the Celtics 96-83 last night and it was nice to see the Bulls defensively manhandle the Celtics for 4 whole quarters. Luol Deng played great and shelled out 25 points on 8-13 shooting and went 9-10 from the free throw line. Derrick Rose was huge in the 4th quarter and after sitting most of the first half while in foul trouble, he added 17 points and 8 rebounds. The bad side of a win like this shows just how much of an effort is needed to beat a team even when their defensive anchor is out. However, the Celtics are still a much better team than the Bulls being that they have 3 legitimate all-stars on the floor even when Garnett and Wallace are out. Not to mention, Kendrick Perkins is one of the most solid center's in the NBA at this point and Noah matched him the entire evening with 15 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks.

Speaking of Noah, I'm starting to seriously believe he's the 2nd best center in the east at this point. He's hand's down the fastest center in the NBA, he chases rebounds like crazy, he blocks shots like a maniac and he really is the heart of the Chicago Bulls. The problem that's going to loom during these next few trade happy months is that every team is going to want Joakim Noah included in any trade and the Bulls aren't going to budge. The idea is to find a post player who compliments Noah's defensive abilities but if the Bulls were to trade for a player like Bosh or Stoudemire, the other team isn't just going to want Hinrich, Salmons and Thomas, they're going to want Joakim. While he's a crowd favorite and a team favorite, if the opportunity to finally grab a post up legit big man comes up, the Bulls are going to have to decide whether giving up Joakim is worth it. My instinct says the Bulls aren't going to trade Noah for anything. He's 2nd most important piece of this core group.

Taj Gibson is also coming into his own and leads all rookies in double-doubles. The whole picking him over D. Blair is starting to look pretty good about now. Taj however, is not a starting NBA power forward. He's a bench guy, but a damn good one. If Chicago can lure Bosh, Stoudemire or Boozer, they can use his energy off the bench. At his current rate, he'll be one of the best if not the best of all back up PF's in the NBA throughout the few years.

Interestingly enough, the Bulls are 1 win better than they were at this time last season when they had Ben Gordon. Chicago has won 7 of the last 10 games and Vinny's job appears to be safe at this point. After a quick stop at home tonight for a game against the Washington Wizards, the Bulls head west for a 7 game road trip. If they can come out winning 3-4 of those games, they'll be in good shape.

Bulls vs. Wizards @ 8 p.m. tonight on CSN & NBALP.

Bynum For Bosh?

2010-01-11T06:29:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls beat the Timberwolves Saturday night yada yada yada....nobody cares. The big news (rumor) in the NBA over the last two days was an article that Peter Vescey released for the NY Times reporting that a source believes that the LA Lakers are going to offer (if not already offered) Andrew Bynum to the Toronto Raptors for all-star Chris Bosh.

A move this big would solidify the Lakers as championship contenders for roughly the next 5-6 years. It would also throw away Bulls fan's pipe dream of signing the best of available post threat this summer. Three years ago, the Lakers stole Chicago's dream of acquiring Pau Gasol when they swooped in and traded a scrub and the draft rights to Pau's brother, Marc when the Bulls refused to trade Ben Gordon and Luol Deng.

A trade like this would make things almost unfair. I would rather see Bosh go to Miami than to the Lakers just to keep some balance in the East. I love the Lakers and I understand their importance in the league but this would make them unstoppable and the best front court in the NBA. If the Bulls have to give up Joakim Noah to get Bosh, they need to now. I love Joakim but they need help ASAP. I know the front office is hellbent on dragging Dwayne Wade up from Miami but Chicago needs a post player more than anything. The Bulls can probably pick up a halfway decent shooting guard in the draft. If this whole Lakers report is true, they need to make a move fast for the sake of the future of the team.

Report: Del Negro Firing Imminent

2009-12-28T07:06:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

ESPN is reporting that Chicago Bulls head coach Vinny Del Negro will be fired. However, the front office has not decided on a replacement at this time and Del Negro will continue to coach for the team until a suitable replacement is agreed upon. Reports have indicated that John Paxson has considered coaching the team but decided against it. Former Bulls coach Doug Collins was also contacted but reportedly turned down the offer. Chicago has also done some background work on former Nets coach Lawrence Frank.

With all this being said, I feel kind of bad for Vinny Del Negro. He was a temporary fix from the beginning and everyone knew it. The coach that the team hires is going to be the guy who leads the team into the 2010-11 season in which the Bulls are banking on getting a big name free agent. I think Reinsdorf needs shell out some cash and get someone like Avery Johnson or John Paxson needs to come down from his office and coach the mess he's made.

Hopefully more on this later.

The Bulls blow 35 point lead, lose to Kings.

2009-12-22T05:15:00.001-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls did the impossible last night. They blew a 35 point lead only to go on to lose 102-98 to the Sacramento Kings....The KINGS!

Words can't describe how frustrated and confused Alex and I were with this one. We joked that even though the Bulls had 80+ points at the start of the 4th quarter, the Bulls wouldn't break 100 and they'd lose. I can't believe it really happened though. I just can't believe it.

Chicago looked phenomenal the first half. Deng, Rose, Salmons & Hinrich were hitting all their shots making the Kings look terrible defensively. Then after the start of the 3rd quarter, Sacramento started to chip away at the deficit until the final minute in the 4th when they took the lead.

I fully blame Vinny Del Negro for this one. At the beginning of the 2nd half, Vinny should have ran his starters for a few more minutes and then turned the game over to Aaron Gray, James Johnson and Pargo. Those guys would have given the starters some well deserved rest. Usually when a team is up by that much, it's hypes the bench up and they come out with a ton of energy. Not last night, VDN ran the same 7 man lineup the entire game....THE ENTIRE GAME. That was poor rotation lead to the starters getting tired and well, by the end of the 3rd, they didn't care if they won or lost.

Christmas Eve is Thursday. If the Bulls lose to the Knicks tonight, it's safe to say that VDN will be joining the likes of Scott Skiles & Tim Floyd as the 3rd Bulls coach in the last 10 years to be fired on that day. Merry Christmas Vinny Del Negro!

The Bulls suck. Is it too early to be thinking about the 2010 NBA Draft?

2009-12-09T06:19:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

They suck, they really, really suck. How bad? Losing to the New Jersey Nets at home by two points after a 31 point fourth quarter kinda bad. Andrew Wamboldt of Dabullz.com said it best last night on twitter:

"Vinny will probably be fired soon, but I think he would have a winning record if the Bulls had just kept BG. Management is the failure here."

I agree.

The Bulls should have done whatever in their power to re-sign their star player. You know, the guy who put the points on the board every night. The guy who led the Bulls in scoring for 4 years. The guy who passed Scottie freakin' Pippen on the all-time three points made by a Bulls player....yeah, that guy. Dude would have had his jersey retired by the team too had he played another 5 years, he was that good.

I think Reinsdorf and Paxson have put all their eggs in the 2010 free agency basket but who in their right mind would want to come here to play? It's pretty safe to say that Chris Bosh is going to Miami, I don't blame him either. Wade, Beasley and him will dominate the Eastern Conference for the next 5 years. Sun, beautiful women and championship runs? Hell, I'd go there in a second. Why would I go to an organization who everyone in the league knows is a joke and cares more about selling Michael Jordan throwback memorabilia than it does spending money to be title contenders?

I don't blame Vinny Del Negro at all though. The Bulls are a mess and they'll still be a mess after he's fired this season and the Bernie & Pete show takes center stage. Vinny's done a decent job for a guy who hasn't coached, the organization is at a total fault but they're going to need a scapegoat and Vinny is going to be that guy.

Salmons will probably not opt out (because he's not going to get a good deal at his age and how he's been playing) and we'll have to trade him during the off season so we can try like Hell to sign Bosh or Stoudemire. If they don't bite, I'm sure Joe Johnson will which means the Bulls will look to draft another big guy. Whether it's Kentucky's Patrick Patterson, Kansas' Cole Aldrich or if we really luck out in the lottery, Georga Tech's Derrick Favors, it'll be a big if we decide to go the Joe Johnson route.

Patrick Patterson has been solid the last three seasons for KY, he's currently averaging 16 points and 10 rebounds a game. This would probably be more inflated if that John Wall guy wasn't playing. Cole Aldrich is a solid center from Kansas. He's also averaging a double double but he's not super athletic and has kind of a funny release although not as funny as Noah's. In all honesty, Aldrich would probably be more of a project center than anything. Georgia Tech's Derrick Favors is talented and athletic yet he screams Tyrus Thomas 2.0 to me. I could be wrong about that one but he's definitely a guy who could benefit from another year in college.

Bulls play the Hawks tonight, oh joy.

Rumor: Bulls and Knicks Talking Trade For Tyrus Thomas

2009-12-04T05:46:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls are reportedly shopping injured power forward Tyrus Thomas. According to Yahoo Sports, Chicago is currently talking to New York regarding a trade that would ship Tyrus Thomas and Jerome James to the Knicks for power forward Al Harrington. Thomas, James and Harrington are all in the last year of their contracts. The Bulls and Thomas ended any sort of contract extension talks earlier this summer and are now apparently looking to move Thomas sooner rather than later.

Al Harrington is currently leading the Knicks in scoring averaging 19 points and 6 rebounds coming off the bench. Pairing Harrington with a defensive minded Joakim Noah could help the Bulls get through the rest of the 09-10 season before concentrating on luring a big name free agent this summer. Tyrus Thomas would provide an energetic spark off the bench for the Knicks and seamlessly fit in with Mike D'Antoni's run and fun offense.

I like the idea of this trade and it would be a temporary but very helpful solution to get some much needed scoring out on the board for the rest of the season. I'm hoping something actually materializes from these talks.

Finally....the Bulls win a freakin' game!

2009-12-03T05:12:00.001-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls ended a 5 game losing streak by notching a win over a depleted Detroit Pistons team and their former leading scorer Ben Gordon. John Salmons led the Bulls with 22 points on 7-12 shooting. Derrick Rose looked decent coming up with 19 points and 6 assists and Joakim Noah continued his best impression of Dennis Rodman by racking up 14 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks. Ben Gordon led the Pistons with 18 points shooting a poor 6-16 from the field.

This was a must win game, especially with Ben Gordon coming back to the United Center. Of course, the win kind of has an asterisk by it though since Villanueva, Hamilton and Prince were all absent but we'll take it. The win bumps up the Bulls to the 7th seed in the Conference and 2 wins below 500.

After watching the game, I came to the conclusion that neither Ben Gordon or the Bulls are better without each other. It's a shame that we couldn't just give up Kirk Hinrich and re-sign our best player. It's also a shame that he's playing for a team that makes absolutely no sense for him to be on. He had a starting spot on the Bulls and if he was re-signed, I'm sure John Salmons would be coming off the bench. Instead, he's coming off the bench behind Rodney Stuckey and Chucky Atkins. I'm assuming Hamilton and Prince will be moved at the deadline for big post up player which would be great for them (cough Chris Kaman). I'm sure they're not going to play Rip and BG simultaneously for very long when he does come back from his injury. It wouldn't make much sense keeping him when Will Bynum is coming off the bench and doing such a great job.

I would personally love to know what's going on with James Johnson. I wish VDN would start him a few games so we could see what this guy can do. Taj Gibson has a decent mid range jumper and fights for rebounds but the guy drops so many passes that it's ridiculous. Is Chicago going to just use him as a trade piece? Is he going to be unleashed mid-season they can take teams by surprise with his dynamic skill set? I'm so confused why he was drafted at this point.

Thinking ahead to the summer of 2010, with Chris Bosh probably going to Miami, the Bulls options for a post up player are going to be limited to Amare Stoudemire (who will probably re-sign with the Suns or go to the Knicks), Carlos Boozer or in a worse case scenario there's always David Lee. Signing another shooting guard like Joe Johnson just puts us in the same place we were with Ben Gordon last season. The Bulls can scrounge around and find a semi-decent shooting guard or re-sign Johnny Salmons and we'll still have Hinrich who can shoot decently from the perimeter. I just think having a big guy draw a double team down low would create more opportunities for Rose and Deng.

The Bulls play another nationally televised game Friday night against the Cavs. Check it out on ESPN at 8 p.m.

Dreaded Circus Trip Starts Tonight With Sacramento

2009-11-16T05:58:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls start their annual west coast road trip tonight as the circus takes over the United Center. The Bulls have a combined record of 9-24 record over the past five seasons on this particular road trip. Chicago will face off against Sacramento, followed by a nationally televised game against the defending champions, the LA Lakers, then Denver, Portland, Utah & Milwaukee.

This year, it appears that 3 of these games are fairly winable. A 3-3 record would be more than acceptable. The win against the Sixers the other night was another unconvincing ugly win. The offense is terrible but the defense is winning the games....barely. John Salmons isn't scoring well and Rose is slowly starting to drive to the basket. If both of those guys were more efficicent the team would be winning by more than 5 points every night.

We need a scorer and a post up guy soon.

Miller's Miracle Shot Doesn't Count, Bulls Lose 90-89

2009-11-11T05:16:00.001-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Nuggets won, then the Bulls won, then the Nugget won again Tuesday night 90-89. Confusing? Yes. The Bulls initially lost the game 90-89 then the refs put 0.3 back on the clock. With 0.3 seconds remaining on the clock, Brad Miller threw up a prayer that went in near the 3 point line. The score then changed to 91-90, the crowd went crazy, the Bulls went crazy, VDN was smiling, it was great. Then after about 5 whole minutes of the refs reviewing the shot, they decided that the ball didn't leave Miller's fingertips before the buzzer went off. Nuggets win 90-89. The refs said it was just too close to call giving the Nuggets the benefit of the doubt.

The general reaction was that the shot was good. When you change the score, have a home crowd going crazy and it's too close to call, you should leave the call be. Had I been there, I would have been throwing my coke cup onto hardwood. Hell, I was on the floor pounding my fist into the rug watching the game on my laptop via a very poor, pixelated p2p site (once again, thanks Bulls and Nuggets fans for making the Bulls/Nuggets your fan night game so it would be blacked out to us paying LP Broadband customers).

Regardless, it was a great game, the Bulls offense sucks but their defense is ridiculously good this season. Deng held Carmelo to just 20 points and scored 21 points himself. Derrick Rose heated up in the 4th quarter and finished with 22 points and 5 assists. Noah had another monster game with 12 points, 21 rebounds and 2 blocks. Why his name was left off the all-star ballot has left many Bulls fans puzzled and outraged. Feel free to write his name in as I did, it couldn't hurt.

The Bulls play the Raptors tonight, a team they were 1-3 against last season. Maybe the Bulls will be mad enough to win.

Bulls Squeak by Cavs 86-85

2009-11-06T06:06:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

Savor this moment and say hello to your Central Division leading Chicago Bulls! The guys in the red jerseys were able to win another ridiculously close game Thursday night when they beat the Cleveland LeBrons 86-85. Luol Deng posted a solid 15 points and 7 rebounds and Derrick Rose had a solid double-double with 14 points and 11 assists.

It was another low scoring affair, but I was happy to see the win. LeBron James was denied a call in the last second claiming he was fouled going up for a layup. The refs amazingly didn't give him his usual star call and the Bulls won by just 1 point.

The Bulls defense has been fantastic and while a lot of columnists and bloggers will be quick to discredit Vinny Del Negro, I believe he actually is coaching the team now and the players are buying into his system. While their brand of basketball is a little on the boring side, they're winning and keeping opposing teams scoring WAY down. The Bulls still are lacking a scorer and a player to score in the post but until then, maybe their scrappy ways will get them the 49 wins it got a very similar 2006 squad. Derrick Rose is obviously going to have to take over much like he did late in last nights game if they want any chance of making it to the playoffs and passed the 1st round. It would also be nice to show that this group can get 50 wins without having a star player, making it an attractive option for a high profile free agent next season. Wade or Bosh would make this team a high profile contender.

Although, it's a little off topic, I've came to the conclusion that LeBron James is playing on a terrible team right now. The addition of Shaq has done nothing but help sell a few more Adidas jerseys. There is no rhyme or reason to their offense, just give the ball to LeBron and let him create. If this continues, Mike Brown's job is going to be in serious jeopardy come the holidays. LeBron and Shaq looked completely uninterested the entire game and so did the rest of their sad cast of jackass's. LeBron has taken this team as far as he can, they need to get him a Scottie Pippen or I could seriously see him leaving for New Jersey or Miami.

Bulls play the Bobcats tommorrow night on WGN America, hopefully they can continue their winning ways. Go Bulls!

Bulls vs. Bucks....TONIGHT!

2009-11-03T09:01:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

Sorry for the lack of updates, the last two losses took a lot of the wind out of my sails. Fridays masacre in Boston was almost unwatchable and Sunday's game against the Heat was a complete bust. I would really like to see Derrick Rose become the superstar the whole NBA is making him out to be very soon but he's obviously still hurting. Deng, Noah and Miller have played solid throughout the first 3 games. The Bulls are setting up perfect wide open shots for John Salmons, the only problem is that he's not Ben Gordon and can't knock down the open looks on a consistant basis.

Oh well, we're 1-2 and tonight the Bulls play a depleted Bucks team at home without their leading scorer, Michael Redd. Brandon Jennings has looked fantastic so I'm not looking this as a no brainer win......although it should be.

2009-10 Chicago Bulls Season Starts Tonight! Season Predictions!

2009-10-29T05:06:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Finally, after a 4 month hiatus, the Bulls are back! Tonight Chicago will open up the season at home and in front of a nationally televised audience against the new look San Antonio Spurs.

Derrick Rose will be starting after playing only one preseason game way back on Oct 2nd. Tony Parker was injured late in the 3rd quarter and never returned during last nights 17 point victory over the New Orleans Hornets last night. He is however expected to start tonight.

Tonights game is going to be tough after watching how San Antonio played last night. They have a very deep bench now that includes Antonio McDyess and rookie sleeper Dejuan Blair. Blair had 14 points and 11 rebounds last night coming off the bench. Thomas and Gibson are going to have to out hustle him if they want the ball or 2nd chance opportunities.

Anyways, I'm SUPER excited for this tonight's game and tomorrow's rematch with the Celtics. Tonight's game will be on TNT and tomorrow's on ESPN. Here are my predictons for the 2009-10 season.

Final Standings for the East:
1. Orlando Magic
2. Boston Celtics
3. Cleveland Cavs
4. Atlanta Hawks
5. Chicago Bulls.
6. Washington Wizards
7. Toronto Raptors
8. Miami Heat
----------------------
9. Philly 76ers
10. Detroit Pistons
11. New York Knicks
12. New Jersey Nets
13. Milwaukee Bucks
14. Charlotte Bobcats
15. Indiana Pacers

Final Standings for the West
1. LA Lakers
2. San Antonio Spurs
3. Denver Nuggets
4. Portland Trailblazers
5. Utah Jazz
6. New Orleans Hornets
7. Dallas Mavericks
8. Minnesota Timberwolves
-----------------------------
9. Phoenix Suns
10. Golden State Warriors
11. Memphis Grizzlies
12. OKC Thunder
13. LA Clippers
14. Houston Rockets
15. Sacramento Kings

Finals Prediction: Lakers over Magic (4-2)

MVP: Lebron James
Defensive Player of the Year: Lebron James
Coach of the Year: Stan Van Gundy
Sixth Man of the Year: DeJuan Blair
Rookie of the Year: Blake Griffin
Most Improved Player of the Year: Brook Lopez

Bulls Fall To Magic 101-98, Free Money is Upset

2009-10-20T06:48:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls preseason record fell to 5-2 with a loss to the Orlando Magic on Monday night. The Bulls were without Derrick Rose (Achilles injury) and Lindsay Hunter (flu-like symptoms).

During the first quarter, Chicago was matching Orlando shot for shot. Noah got 2 fouls early on and was taken out and thankfully, so was Dwight Howard. With Rashard Lewis out, Michael Pietrus played a lot of unnecessary time at the 3 spot and was taking some horrible shots. This alone kept the Bulls into the game throughout the entire 1st half. At one point the Bulls were up by 9. Chicago stayed in the game until the final seconds when Vince Carter made two free throws to put the game away.

I was only able to watch the first half on one of those poor quality peer to peer sites that wouldn't enlarge to full screen until I passed out at half time. The Bulls defense was fantastic and I couldn't have been happier to see them stay in a game with the defending Eastern Conference Champions. Noah and Miller did their best against the NBA's best center but there's not much you can do with a guy who's that quick. Miller even took Dwight Howard off the dribble showing how deceiving his quickness is when he decides to use it.

The story of the night was how Taj Gibson started over Tyrus Thomas after putting up that monster double-double against Minnesota the other night. After the game, Thomas voiced his disgust to the press about not starting. "I don't think it should even be questionable from what I contributed to this team last season and what I did throughout camp, but like I said, he (Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro)is the guy that makes the decisions. Whatever decision he makes I still I have to go out and play,".

In Tyrus' defense, he is the starting PF for the Bulls and can only be consistant if he's starting and given the minutes. He was noticeably sour after coming off the bench and what VDN has against him is beyond me. Then again, in VDN's defense, it's only the preseason and he needs to see what his best option is at the PF spot to help win more games and keep his job.

Overall, the Bulls put in a great effort against one of the best teams in the league and almost won without their star player. The Bulls have one last preseason game left against the Washington Wizards on Friday before the nationally televised season opener against the San Antonio Spurs next week. Derrick Rose is unfortunately questionable for both games.

Preseason Win Over Indiana , Rose, Salmons & Thomas Out for Today's Game and NBA 2K10!

2009-10-06T06:37:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls were able to pull out a win in their first preseason contest against the Indiana Pacers, 104-95. Rookie Taj Gibson led the way with 19 points and 9 rebounds. Derrick Rose had a solid game with 17 points and 3 assists and Luol Deng returned to the starting lineup with 15 points, going 9-9 at the free throw line. Salmons also chipped in a decent 15 points, going 6-8 on shooting.

Alex and I were in attendance for the first preseason game and I came to the conclusion that I feel really bad for Indiana fans. Literally, 1/3 of the arena was full and they have even less to be excited about than we do. I understand they're in a rebuilding stage but they need some lotto luck to get John Wall or something so they can start going in the right direction. Danny Granger is fantastic but he's really the only scorer they have. Then again, the Bulls don't really have a designated scorer either but I at least think we're going somewhat in the right direction. Taj Gibson looked decent. He's a hustler and seems like he really puts in an effort on every play. James Johnson looked lost and he couldn't get decent look the entire game.

Anyways, today the Bulls are playing the Utah Jazz, a team they were 4-0 against last season. The game is part of the NBA Europe Live Tour and they'll be playing in Luol Deng's hometown, London. The Bulls will be without John Salmons, Derrick Rose and Tyrus Thomas . Salmons is with his wife welcoming their second child, Rose is out with a sore right Achilles and ankle and Thomas is out with right hip contusion. Who in the hell VDN will start is completely up in the air, here's my projected starters of the game:

PG: Kirk Hinrich

SG: Derrick Byars

SF: Luol Deng

PF: Taj Gibson

C: Joakim Noah

PG: Deron Williams

SG: Ronnie Brewer

SF: Paul Millsap

PF: Carlos Boozer

C: Mehmet Okur

I'll be posting a web feed of the game via our Twitter account if one becomes available through Justin TV later today.

Also, in other news, NBA 2K10 comes out today! This is the 11th installment in the NBA 2K series. My Xbox 360 unfortunately crapped out with the "Red Ring of Death" about a week ago so it won't be until next week that I'm able to play it....sad face. This year's game boasts the inclusion of the D-League and the NBA Draft Combine (purchased separately through Xbox Live or the Playstation Network). If they could just include All-Star Weekend (3 point contest, dunk contest, skills challenge) like NBA Live does and actually change where the all-star game is every year in Association mode, the game would be perfect. I can't stand how you can go 7 seasons into association mode and still play the all-star game in the same location with the same coaches (even though the coaches have retired in the game). Talk about a continuity error. Regardless, you should pick up the game! It's hands down the best one out on the market and the one Alex and I would endorse....if we endorsed things. NBA Live hasn't been great since 2003 and this year's version is even more arcade-like than in year's past. They do however have a great NBA All-Star Weekend feature though.

Preseason Starts Tomorrow in Indiana!

2009-10-01T08:22:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Finally, after a 5 month wait, the Chicago Bulls are back! The boys in red will be taking on the Indiana Pacers at the Conseco Fieldhouse tomorrow night at 7pm in the first of 8 preseason exhibitions. I didn't think I would be this excited with Ben Gordon leaving us for the dirty Pistons, but I have some faith that Chicago can make it to the playoffs this year. With a new emphasis on defense, the Bulls will look to shut teams down then run the ball. I like that idea but can the Bulls actually play defense? Well, we'll get our first glance at the team tomorrow night and see how well they do against a team they "should" be blowing out by 20 on a regular basis. Here's a look at the projected starters:

PG: Derrick Rose
SG: John Salmons
SF: Luol Deng
PF: Tyrus Thomas
C: Joakim Noah

PG: TJ Ford
SG: Brandon Rush
SF: Danny Granger
PF: Troy Murphy
C: Roy Hibbert

Chicago's A-Gray is going to be out for 6-8 weeks with an injury and Indiana will be without rookie Tyler Hansbrough and SG Mike Dunleavy. Overall, the Pacers starting five is terrible. Granger's a great player but he can't shoulder that kind of load.

Things to Watch For:

1. James Johnson - The biggest question mark in the 2009 NBA Draft, will he succeed?

2. Joakim Noah - Worked on post moves and put on 5 lbs of muscle. The man is ready to bang.

3. Luol Deng - Out for most of last season, will he return in top form?

4. John Salmons - Can he compensate for the loss of Ben Gordon?

5. Derrick Rose - All-star material? You bet.

Alex and I will be in attendance towards the nosebleeds for this colossal battle of crappiness sporting our ridiculous 1990's Champion jerseys and heckling Pacers fans.

2009-10 Bulls National TV Broadcast Schedule Released!

2009-09-09T05:26:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls 2009-10 National TV Broadcast Schedule was finally released yesterday afternoon. This year, the Bulls have 27 national television appearances between TNT, ESPN and WGN America. This is two more appearances than last season yet it still doesn't top the 2006-07 season's 36 nationally televised games. I once again chose not to include the NBA TV games on this listing since us Northern Kentuckians do not get NBA TV unless we have a subscription to Direct TV or Dish Network (which I don't). This will also be the first time since the infamous Miami Heat ring night massacre, that the Bulls first game of the season will be nationally televised. With that being said, I'm hoping for a 50 point win over the Spurs.

Here's the listing:

Thursday October 29th vs. San Antonio Spurs, 8:00 p.m. TNT
Friday October 30th at Boston Celtics, 8:00 p.m. ESPN
Thursday November 5th at Cleveland Cavaliers, 8:00 p.m. TNT
Saturday November 7th vs. Charlotte Bobcats, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Thursday November 19th at Los Angeles Lakers, 10:30 p.m. TNT
Thursday November 26th at Utah Jazz, 10:30 p.m. TNT
Friday December 4th at Cleveland Cavaliers, 8:00 p.m. ESPN
Tuesday December 15th vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday December 19th vs. Atlanta Hawks, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday December 26th vs. New Orleans Hornets, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday January 2nd vs. Orlando Magic, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday January 9th vs. Minnesota T-Wolves, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Thursday January 14th at Boston Celtics, 8:00 p.m. TNT
Friday January 22nd at Phoenix Suns, 10:30 p.m. ESPN
Saturday January 23rd at Houston Rockets, 8:30 p.m. WGN
Friday February 5th at Atlanta Hawks, 8:00 p.m. ESPN
Saturday February 6th vs. Miami Heat, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Tuesday February 16th vs. New York Knicks, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday February 20th vs. Philadelphia 76ers, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Monday March 1st vs. Atlanta Hawks, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Thursday March 11th at Orlando Magic, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday March 20th at Philadelphia 76ers, 7:00 p.m. WGN
Thursday March 25th vs. Miami Heat, 8:00 p.m. TNT
Saturday March 27th vs. New Jersey Nets, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Saturday April 3rd vs. Charlotte Bobcats, 8:00 p.m. WGN
Thursday April 8th vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, 8:00 p.m. TNT
Tuesday April 13th vs. Boston Celtics, 8:00 p.m. TNT

Chicago Bulls 2009-10 Schedule Released!

2009-08-04T06:26:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls 2009-10 schedule was leaked today onto the Real GM forums. The Bulls open up their season on Thursday, October 29th against the San Antonio Spurs. The following night we get our playoff rematch against the Celtics on their home turf. Since it's on Friday, it seems like everyone assuming this one will be broadcasted nationally on ESPN. The schedule also features a disgusting set of 22 back to back games and a circus trip that will probably end with a 2-4 record (at best). February is going to be our one (semi)easy month with a ton of games against sub par teams.

Not to say I don't have faith that the Bulls can't win 45 games this next year, because they can but I'm just not that optimistic yet. I'm still very sceptical on how James Johnson will fit into the system and how well Deng is going to play at the 4 spot. However, a full season with a better Derrick Rose, John Salmons and a healthy Deng just might be enough to be as good, if not better than last year's team. Below you will see the schedule along with the link of the forum post on Real GM so you can talk back with the nerdiest of Bulls fans.

http://www.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=934842&p=20449755#p20449755

October:

29th - vs San Antonio Spurs
30th - @ Boston Celtics

November:

1st - @ Miami Heat
3rd - vs Milwaukee Bucks
5th - @ Cleveland Cavaliers
7th - vs Charlotte Bobcats
10th - vs. Denver Nuggets
11 th - @ Toronto Raptors
14th - vs Philadelphia 76'ers
17th - @ Sacramento Kings
19th - @ Los Angeles Lakers
21st - @ Denver Nuggets
23rd - @ Portland Trail Blazers
26th - @ Utah Jazz
30th - @ Milwaukee Bucks

December:

2nd - vs Detroit Pistons
4th - @ Cleveland Cavaliers
5th - vs Toronto Raptors
8th - vs New Jersey Nets
9th - @ Atlanta Hawks
11th - vs Golden State Warriors
12th - vs Boston Celtics
15th - vs Los Angeles Lakers
17th - vs New York Knicks
19th - vs Atlanta Hawks
21st - vs Sacramento Kings
22nd - @ New York Knicks
26th - vs New Orleans Hornets
29th - vs Indiana Pacers
31st - @ Detroit Pistons

January:

2nd - vs Orlando Magic
4th - vs Oklahoma City Thunder
5th - @ Charlotte Bobcats
8th - @ Milwaukee Bucks
9th - vs Minnesota Timberwolves
11th - vs Detroit Pistons
14th - @ Boston Celtics
15th - vs Washington Wizards
18th - @ Golden State Warriors
20th - @ Los Angeles Clippers
22nd - @ Phoenix Suns
23rd - @ Houston Rockets
25th - @ San Antonio Spurs
27th - @ Oklahoma City Thunder
29th - @ New Orleans Hornets

February:

2nd - vs Los Angeles Clippers
3rd - @ Philadelphia 76'ers
5th - @ Atlanta Hawks
6th - vs Miami Heat
9th - @ Indiana Pacers
10th - vs Orlando Magic
-- ALL-STAR BREAK --
16th - vs New York Knicks
17th - @ New York Knicks
19th - @ Minnesota Timberwolves
20th - vs Philadelphia 76'ers
22nd - @ Washington Wizards
24th - vs Indiana Pacers
26th - vs Portland Trail Blazers
27th - @ Indiana Pacers

March:

1st - vs Atlanta Hawks
4th - vs Memphis Grizzlies
6th - vs Dallas Mavericks
9th - vs Utah Jazz
11th - @ Orlando Magic
12th - @ Miami Heat
16th - @ Memphis Grizzlies
17th - @ Dallas Mavericks
19th - vs Cleveland Cavaliers
20th - @ Philadelphia 76'ers
22nd - vs Houston Rockets
25th - vs Miami Heat
27th - vs New Jersey Nets
28th - @ Detroit Pistons
30th - vs Phoenix Suns

April:

2nd - @ Washington Wizards
3rd - vs Charlotte Bobcats
6th - vs Milwaukee Bucks
8th - vs Cleveland Cavaliers
9th - @ New Jersey Nets
11th - @ Toronto Raptors
13th - vs Boston Celtics
14th - @ Charlotte Bobcats

Bulls Waive Linton Johnson and Demarcus Nelson...Odom Re-signs with Lakers!

2009-07-31T06:48:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls finally decided to cut ties with Linton Johnson and Demarcus Nelson yesterday. Johnson was here on his 2nd stint as a Bulls player and after being signed to a 10 day contact, was kept for the remainder of last season. I don't think Demarcus Nelson even saw a minute of playing time last season. This now puts the 2009-10 Bulls roster at 13.

You can tell it's a pretty slow news day when I'm even mentioning something as pointless as that.

The somewhat notable NBA news of the day comes from LA. Lamar Odom is re-signing with the Lakers!

Why am I excited you ask? Because Pat Riley couldn't lure him to Miami therefore not improving his rather mediocre team. I think Riley is gonna have a hard time trying to bring in a high quality player to South Beach this year by the trade deadline. If he does land someone, it's gonna be Amare, Boozer or Bosh. This would be disastrous for the Bulls who are expected to make a push for Mr. Dwayne Wade next summer. So, lets keep our fingers crossed that Riley is tradeblocked (yep, new term i made up) from making any moves that are going to improve his squad and satisfy his star player.

ESPN NBA analyst, Ric Bucher tweeted last night that the Odom's supposed meeting with Riley and Wade never even happened. Who the hell is making this shit up and who's telling the truth?

The Lakers are my favorite team in the west so I'm glad they got their 6th man locked down for the next few years. I also can't wait to see how Ron Ron is gonna work out. I hope he beats up Celtics fans this year instead of white trash from Detroit. "Boston Brawl"....gotta nice ring to it right? I think so.

Also, Ricky Rubio is said to have a 50/50 chance of playing for the T-Wolves this season. I don't really particularly care for how he or his family have handled this whole debacle but I'd like to see him play this year. It'd be good for the league and for Minnesota who are building a decent club. However, I'd rather see Bill Laimbeer be the coach as opposed to Mark Jackson but if it gets Mark out of the broadcast booth, than so be it. I hate that guy. Why he was selected to call the NBA Finals is beyond me. I would have rather had Isiah Thomas back behind the desk.

That is all for this week, have a great weekend!

I Hate This Time of Year

2009-07-30T09:06:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

By this time every summer, the draft, summer league play and free agency have ended and it leaves me very bored. The Bulls seem to be set with their 2009-10 lineup which has left just about everyone wanting more. This organization seems to pull this shit every year. We're teased all summer by trade rumors but nothing ever comes of it, then we draft 2 guys that we're all scratching our heads about. I love the Bulls but living in Northern, KY and liking a very average (at best) NBA team makes me want to start following another sport or team. Yeah, I like the Magic and the Lakers but unfortunately I'm an emotionally tied down Bulls fan.

I'm also gonna go out out and say this......I'm getting really tired of Twitter. Everyday, some analyst or 2 bit sports talk show host sends out a tweet that says the Bulls were/or are involved in trade talk. Of course, any rumor is denied by the organization and sources are never given leading us fans to ask who's telling the truth and who's pretending their Sam Smith.

Today's rumor came from a feed that I follow called "Sports Unplugged". The update said that the Bulls were in Vegas last week discussing a three way deal involving Tyrus Thomas, JR Smith and Carlos Boozer with the Nuggets and Jazz. I believe they might have talked about it but it probably wasn't a conversation that got very far. This is just an instance of someone saying something because there's nothing remotely going on in the NBA right now. When the biggest news is who Lamar Odom is gonna sign with or whether David Lee/Nate Robinson will re-sign with the Knicks, you know the offseason has cooled down.

Late next month or early September we'll finally get to see what the TV schedule looks like. I'm hoping that my cable company will start offering League Pass so I can watch the games on the big screen as opposed to my 22 inch computer monitor. I'm not complaining that I had to watch games on my computer last year through NBA League Pass Broadband though. Before that, all we got in Northern, KY was about 30 televised games a year spread out between WGN America, TNT and ESPN. Yuck!

I don't know about you, but I'm starving for some Bulls games. This offseason has already been too long.

Johnson and Gibson Make Their Pro Debuts....And They Actually Do Well!

2009-07-15T07:49:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The 1st Bulls game of the Vegas Summer League was last night. The Bulls unfortunately fell to the Golden State Warriors 95-83 with Anthony Randolph lighting up the boys in red for 43 points and 3 blocks.

I caught most of the game on a p2p site. The stream wasn't the best but it beats paying $15 to watch a bunch of scrubs run up and down the court. The game time was also changed at the last minute from 6pm to 8pm which threw me off but I still had an opportunity to watch most of the contest.

The story of the night wasn't that the Bulls lost, but it was how well both of the two draft picks did. James Johnson came out to play and had 21 points and 8 rebounds. Taj Gibson also had a decent game with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Johnson showed excellent ball handling along with a few sweet moves down low. For being a big guy, I was suprised at how fast he is. The announcers who were joined by VDN were saying that they thought he could stand to lose about 10 lbs but the Bulls need a meaty guy. A lot of guys have made various comparisons but who he reminds me the most of is former Hornets star Larry Johnson. He's a big guy who's gonna be able to play 3 different positions. I can actually see this dude working his way into the starting lineup eventually if Tyrus doesn't have a good start to his season.

Taj hustled the entire game but had 9 fouls in the end. He's so ridiculously long that he barely had to jump to get rebounds. Once this guy can control his fouling, he's going to be very good defensively.

Regardless of the score at the end, I was pretty excited to see the two rooks perform so well. The Bulls take on Brandon Jennings and Jodie Meeks of the Milwaukee Bucks tonight at 6pm EST. Be sure to check the game out for free at
http://www.myp2pforum.eu/nba-basketball/40250-nba-summer-league-10th-19th-july.html

Bulls Summer League Starts Tonight in Vegas!

2009-07-14T06:50:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls decided to buy out Mr. Tim Thomas' contract yesterday to make room to re-sign Pargo and L. Hunter. Lets hope that this will be the last stint with Chicago that Thomas ever has. Now lets get to the fun stuff....

The Chicago Bulls Summer League kicks off tonight against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors. This is one of the only things us truly nerdy Bulls fans have to look forward to during the offseason.

I guess the league decided that they would cash in this year on the summer league games by charging $15 to stream the games live on your computer. In the past, the coverage for these games has been pretty crappy to say the least. I can remember in 2007, watching the games on my computer that had no commentating or score box on the screen. The camera would occasionally pan up at the scoreboard in the gym yet you wouldn't know which team was which since they were just marked home and visitor. During halftime they would just leave the camera pointed at the scoreboard. Last season they decided to add some announcers who weren't very good but at least they told you the score and distinguished players who made decent plays. Needless to say, these games were streamed free on the Orlando Magic's website.

This year the Bulls made the switch from Orlando to the Vegas and these games will not be filmed with public cable access cameras, instead these will look like real games with real announcers and a score box on the screen. I suppose their new setup is the reason for their $15 fee this year. Since I don't feel like shelling out the cash like I did for NBA League Pass this last season, I'm going to be heading over to the seedy but rather useful myp2p.com. Below is a link to their site and all the summer league games so you won't have to waste your money to watch some bench guys and rookies play. You might have to search through the pages but their should be a link up just before 5pm when the Bulls play. Below you will also find the Bulls summer league roster and game schedule. Be sure to check out James Johnson and Taj Gibson tonight as they make their debut as Bulls players tonight at 5pm EST!

BULLS SUMMER-CAMP ROSTER:

No. Player Pos Ht Wt DOB College/Country Exp.
2 Bryan Mullins G 6-2 190 01/13/87 Southern Illinois R
3 Josh Shipp G 6-5 215 02/14/86 UCLA 1
5 Anthony Roberson G 6-2 180 02/14/83 Florida 4
6 Chris Davis G 6-1 185 01/26/86 Southern R
11 Taurean Green G 6-0 185 11/28/85 Florida 3
14 Lorenzo Mata-Real C/F 6-8 230 02/27/86 UCLA R
16 James Johnson F 6-8 245 02/20/87 Wake Forest R
21 DeMarcus Nelson G 6-4 200 11/02/85 Duke 1
22 Taj Gibson F 6-9 225 06/24/85 USC R
25 Julius Hodge F/G 6-7 210 11/18/83 North Carolina State 4
32 Brandon Costner F 6-9 230 07/21/87 North Carolina State R
35 Tyrell Biggs F 6-8 235 08/07/86 Pittsburgh R
40 James Augustine F/C 6-10 240 02/27/84 Illinois 2
42 Nick Lewis F/C 6-11 240 04/20/83 San Diego R
44 AD Vassallo F/G 6-6 215 04/21/86 Virginia Tech R
50 Luke Zeller C 6-11 240 04/07/87 Notre Dame R
54 Linton Johnson III F 6-8 205 06/13/80 Tulane 6

HEAD COACH: Vinny Del Negro
SUMMER LEAGUE HEAD COACH/ASSISTANT COACH: Bob Ociepka
ASSISTANT COACHES: Bernie Bickerstaff, Pete Myers, Mike Wilhelm, Nick Nurse (Iowa Energy)
ASSISTANT COACH/PLAYER DEVELOPMENT: Dave Severns
ADVANCE SCOUT: Chris Thomas
HEAD ATHLETIC TRAINER: Fred Tedeschi
ASSISTANT ATHLETIC TRAINER: Jeff Tanaka
STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING COACH: Erik Helland
ASSISTANT STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING COACH: Joshua Bonhotal
EQUIPMENT MANAGER: John Ligmanowski
VIDEO COORDINATOR: Adam Tatalovich

2009 CHICAGO BULLS NBA SUMMER LEAGUE SCHEDULE
Date Time Opponent Location

July 14 5:00 p.m. Golden State Cox Pavilion
July 15 3:00 p.m. Milwaukee Cox Pavilion
July 17 5:30 p.m. Oklahoma City Thomas & Mack Center
July 18 3:00 p.m. New York Cox Pavilion
July 19 3:00 p.m. Minnesota Cox Pavilion

WATCH THE BULLS SUMMER LEAGUE GAMES HERE FOR FREE!
http://www.myp2pforum.eu/nba-basketball/40250-nba-summer-league-10th-19th-july.html

Boozer to Bulls? Not Likely.

2009-07-10T05:29:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Well, here we are, one week into free agency and we've lost our best player and ridiculous trade rumors are swirling left and right.

So far, the Chicago Bulls summer is off to a very rough start. From drafting James Johnson & Taj Gibson to letting BG walk away to re-signing Pargo, this is quickly turning into a disaster of 2009. No one really knows what the intentions of the Bulls front office are at this point. We're all left scratching our heads wondering whether or not they're intentionally trying to piss off fans and players alike. If they are, Reinsdork and Gar Forehead are doing a fantastic job!

The Bulls are a 9th seed at best this season. Every team in the east is getting better except for us all while making JR look like the biggest cheapskate in the NBA.

Late yesterday, a report surfaced from a Utah radio station that the Jazz, Blazers and Bulls were discussing a 3 team deal that would send Carlos Boozer and Steve Blake to Chicago. The report was then confirmed by ESPN but later shot down via Yahoo Sports twitter that the Bulls hadn't had ONE conversation regarding the Boozer trade.

If ESPN is just running with rumors started by local FM radio stations, their credibility is really going down the toilet. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo has broke most of the big trade stories of the summer so far with ESPN scrambling to follow them up on their network's Sports Center program. It's getting pretty sad when the "world wide leader in sports" is being beat to the big stories and having rumors rightfully shot down on a daily basis by the more and more respected Wojnarowski. ESPN needs to get their shit together or pick up Wojnarowski so they'll stop looking idiots reporting on a story that was shot down an hour before by a more reliable source.

Boozer to the Bulls would be nice but only if Ben Gordon hadn't bailed for Detroit one day into free agency. It's the kind of move that would have made Chicago a contender but not having a main scoring option leaves us with a big hole at the 2 spot. I'm not sure trading Kirk Hinrich at this point would be the best thing to do since it would leave the team incredibly shallow at the 1 & 2 positions. Boozer would also want $12 million for an extension. This is something I doubt Reindorf would be okay with therefore making his time here useless other than giving fans false hope that we're building a contender.

From what I've read, the recent re-signing of Jannero Pargo puts the team just at or over the luxury tax meaning that some sort of money saving deal is imminent. Whether its trading Tyrus for a future pick so they don't have to offer an extension or packaging him and Kirk for an expiring contract. And for what? To pretend that the team has ANY chance at signing Chris Bosh or Dwayne Wade on July 1st 2010. I love how the only goals are to get one of those two superstars. So I ask this......what's the back up plan guys?

An Open Letter to Joe Dumars, the Bulls Front Office & Ben Gordon

2009-07-02T05:27:00.000-07:00

By Alex Derickson

I would like to start by saying that I'm glad this three summer long fiasco has come to a close. While I'm not happy with the result, this is not about how I feel, this is about what I've taken from all of this. This is about why I hate being a sports fan.

To Mr. Dumars:

Congratulations. You've exacted your revenge. The Bulls took a Ben from you and you took a Ben from us. The significance however is alarming. They took your best defender. Your anchor. However, they also stole from you an aging player on the decline of his career. They got the last good year our of Ben Wallace but at the same time overpaid for what would end up being a tumultuous tenure with the Chicago Bulls.

You have managed to lure away their best player coming off of his best season. With Ben Gordon you are getting an absolute monster on offense. A man who can score against anyone and is perhaps one of the best one-on-one players in the league. You are getting their best player since Michael. A favorite amongst the fans, the team, and the city of Chicago. I ask you this though, at what price?

Yes we've heard the report of the five year deal at around 11 million annually, but what does this do to the core of your team. A core you already began to dismantle earlier by trading away Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson. A trade that on paper, made you a force in the Eastern Conference, but it didn't pan out exactly as planned.

Only a few days ago you relieved Michael Curry of his coaching position, a move rumored to have been done to appease your veteran shooting guard, Richard Hamilton. Hamilton was said to have been upset about former coach Curry moving him to the bench to start Iverson, who as noted earlier, turned out to only be a rental for roughly half the season due to injury and the decision for him not to return this upcoming season. What does this say to Richard and where does this put Ben in your plans? Both players are scorers, neither of which are great on defense. Both do not like coming off the bench and have been public about it. You've replaced an undersized shooting guard with a me first attitude on offense and wants to start (Iverson) with an undersized shooting guard with a me first attitude on offense who wants to start (Gordon). This leaves Hamilton, one of the best at scoring without the ball and one of the best team players in the league, and who was probably pleased with the dismissal of Curry to wonder where he stands. Will the new coach put him on the bench? Is he getting traded?

The most logical explanation is running Ben at the point because of his size. As stated earlier though, Ben wants the ball in his hands, he wants to be the one taking the shots, not the one finding his teammates for scores. Plus, it's well known that you believe in Rodney Stuckey and his ability to run your offense, not to mention the emergence of Will Bynum during the playoffs. The rest of the summer will be interesting to see how you deal with the guard glut you have created for yourself and how the rest of the team gets situated for this season.

Finally, I want to thank you for rejuvenating the Bulls-Pistons rivalry that has lacked for the past two seasons. It may never reach the same heights as it was during the Bad Boys era, but the bar has certainly been raised from the past few years.

To the Bulls Front Office (Jerry Reinsdorf, Jon Paxson, Gar Forman) review what has transpired with the Ben Gordon contract situation..

2007 Offseason: Luol Deng and Ben Gordon are offered contract extensions. Both decline your offers.

2008 Offseason: Luol Deng aggrees to an extension of six years and 71 million dollars guaranteed. Ben Gordon is offered an extension which is initially declined and then accepted only to be told it was no longer available to him. He settles for the one year qualifying offer.

2008-2009 Season: Luol Deng suffers two major injuries, one being season ending. Ben Gordon leads the team in scoring for the fourth straight year, and has his best season since 2006 in which the team won 49 games.

2009 Offseason: Ben Gordon signs five year 55 million dollar deal with division rival Detroit Pistons on the first day of free agency.

Naturally, a lot of people are going to call you out. A lot of people are going to tell you about all the mistakes you made. A lot of people are going to want your jobs for this. I think you guys deserve some slack. Here is why:

You initially offered him an extension two years ago that he turned down. That season statistically he dropped in every category with the rest of the year that year.

You locked up Luol Deng to a long term deal the following year and then continually drug your feet with Gordon. Once you offered him a deal, he felt it wasn't enough money and turned it down. He eventually caved and agreed to your offer and you told him it was no longer available. Essentially, you low balled your best player and he caved and said he would take it only it was your turn to turn him away.

This was your biggest fault right here. Yes, everyone on the team had a terrible 2007-2008 season. At the same time, that gives you no reason to jerk around a player, your best player, they way you did. I understand your faith in Luol Deng, he posted a stat line of 18.8 points and 7 rebounds the previous year. I also understand that his poor follow up season could have been contributed to an injury that caused him to miss 13 games. At the same time though, Gordon also missed 10 games that year due to an injury. You had an opportunity to keep your entire core of players that you worked so long to build for the long term, stay under the dreaded luxury tax, AND add the number one pick in the draft on top of it. You made a huge, glaring, and downright unprofessional error gentleman.

As I said however you deserve some slack. You are human, you do make mistakes, and naturally some players do get overvalued. Teams generally will side with the small forward with a very reliable mid range game who can take it to the hole and also pile up rebounds in the process over the undersized guard who, yes, can score in bunches on whoever he wants whenever he wants but overall has a one dimensional offensive minded game. How were you to know that Deng was going to actually be injury prone? How were you to know that Gordon's low numbers the season prior would only be a fluke. How were you to know that Derrick Rose was going to blossom into the player he became and play so well alongside Gordon and not as well around Deng? This is all intangible, you can't foresee these occurrences.

Gar Forman made it clear when he was introduced as the new General Manager, that bringing back Gordon was the team's top priority. Even during the draft they didn't pick up any guards, or anyone to fill in a void that potentially would be left by Gordon on offense. It was almost as if they expected him to resign with the team, or at least let them get him an offer (I will address this in the next section). As I said earlier though, both parties had their chance to get a long term deal hammered out and both jerked the other around.

Unfortunately, Paxson and Forman work for the biggest penny pinching owner in the league. A man who is known to care more about the money than the legacy of the team in which he owns. Jerry Reinsdorf is a baseball man. He loves his White Sox, the other team he owns. The Bulls are his other team. He doesn't care if the Bulls win as long as they stay amongst the leagues most profitable teams. This has created problems in the past seeing as how all trades, contracts, really anything financially has to go through him before any deals get finalized. I don't blame Paxson. I don't blame Gar Forman. Jerry Reinsdorf is the culprit for being notoriously stingy when it comes to this team.

And finally to you, Mr Gordon:

For four years you've been the team's best player. For four years you have been their offensive spark. For four years you've been the cornerstone of this team, one of the major pieces that were going to lead this team back in the title hunt. You've said that you want to retire a Chicago Bulls. You've said that your dream is to play 15 years in Chicago, to win a few titles with the team. You've been involved in the community and you've given the fans reason to believe that behind you, that one day they'll be back in the finals.

At the same time, you've always said, "it's a business." Little did any of us know exactly how to take that statement. Sure there was always the idea that you would walk to another team this offseason, but at the same time you sounded like you wanted to stay which begs the question, why jet to another team the first day of free agency before they could even give you an offer? It just shows that you never intended to stay and almost as if this entire season was a mutual lie between you and the Bulls management.

You've reminded me that regardless of how you view a situation, that there are always two sides to it. A lot of times you don't hear the whole story and I'm sure that there are a lot of pieces to this situation that we don't know about. Operating under what we do know, what we've heard, and what we've seen, you never had the intention to stay with the team that you said you wanted to retire with. You cared more about the money and took the first deal given to you, even after you said that there was no secret agreement between you and Detroit about going there for a five year 55 million dollar deal which oddly enough, was exactly what you signed for on the first day you could.

You may have wanted to stay in seasons past, but this for you was all about the money. This was all about Ben Gordon.

Free Agency Starts at 12:00 a.m. TONIGHT!

2009-06-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The 2009 free agency frenzy begins tonight at 12 a.m. Granted, a year from today will be FAR more interesting than tonight will be, Bulls fans beg to differ.

Joe Dumars of the Detroit Pistons will be delievering his pitch to our beloved star Ben Gordon probably as soon as the clock strikes 12. He's gonna tell him about his 2 championships with a backcourt of two small guards and how he wants BG to do the same.

We all know that secretly Dumars wants his revenge for us stealing his 3 time defensive player of the year Ben Wallace from him 3 years ago. Ben Wallace was the glue that held that team together and after he left, the Pistons were unable to advance out of the Eastern Conference Finals. Of course, Ben Wallace played one decent season for the Bulls before becoming a distraction and being shipped off to Cleveland for crap. Ben Gordon is in the prime of his career and him signing with a division rival would be a disaster for Chicago.

There's also talks about BG going to his hometown New York Knicks along with the OKC Thunder. The Pistons however remain the biggest threat with the money they can throw at him. There have been rumors that Ben Gordon has an under the table agreement with Dumars already in place and by the end of the week, the Bulls high scorer for the past 4 seasons will be gone.

No one really knows what Ben Gordon is going to do but Bulls fans have to be a little scared. I'm sure he's gotta be a little angry that the Bulls obviously value Deng as the better player (which he clearly isn't). BG found the $50 million offer insulting after Deng was given $80 million. While he's publicly said he loves Chicago, the fans, the organization and wants to retire here, his intentions will probably not be clear until later this weekend, if not before that.

Losing Ben Gordon would be 10 steps backwards for young team trying to advance out of the first round of the Eastern Conference. We need BG.

James Johnson? Taj Gibson? Really?

2009-06-26T05:19:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Well, it's over. We can all blink now.

The 2009 NBA Draft came and went Thursday evening with the Bulls settling on Wake Forest Forward James Johnson with the 16th pick and USC Forward Taj Gibson at the 26th.

Like most Bulls fans, I'm a little confused. Is this what we wanted? To me, it feels like the whole 2007 NBA draft all over again. Why the team passed on DeJuan Blair TWICE is mystery. We've heard his knees are bad blah, blah, but really? The man has been projected as a top 16 pick since March. I'm sure Greg Popovich is laughing his ass off someplace because he was the only one with the balls to actually draft him and he'll do well there in their system. You know....the one where the Spurs are the most fundamentally sound team in the NBA? Well now they have a fantastic rebounder. Since he's now playing for my 2nd least favorite team, I hope he ends up like Clarence Weatherspoon.

I'll have to admit, I was a little heartbroken when the Indiana Pacers selected Tyler Hansbrough with the 13th pick. According to Chad Ford, the Bulls were also heartbroken. I would have been totally cool if they moved up to get him but now it's over and Larry Bird has the only starting lineup in the NBA with 3 white dudes. Where does he think he is? Indiana?

The only thing I am glad about is that whole BJ Mullens guarantee was all BS. I'm sooo glad we didn't invest time in another project like him. Plus, having another strikingly ugly dude tread up and down the United Center is something I just can't bare.

I'm honestly hoping we trade Johnson and Gibson and get a decent post up player because these guys aren't going to do anything for us. Nothing.

Hopefully, when December rolls around and Johnson is averaging a double-double, I'll be eating my words, but I doubt it.

NBA Draft 2009.....TONIGHT!

2009-06-25T06:02:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The time has finally arrived, the one day of the NBA offseason that actually excites people. The 2009 NBA Draft is expected to be unpredictable and filled with cost cutting trades. What the Bulls will do is still completely unknown. There have been rumors of Chicago taking Gerald Henderson, DeJuan Blair and James Johnson. None of these scenarios really seem that appealing since I'm hopping on the Tyler Hansbrough bandwagon. Blair, Henderson, Mullens & Johnson were all called back for a 2nd workout, Hansbrough wasn't on the list of callbacks so I'm assuming any shot of him coming to Chicago is slim to none at this point..

There's also a bunch of trade rumors floating around. Since Shaq was traded to Cleveland last night and it appears the Suns may be cleaning house, and Amare may be on the block. If the Bulls have any shot of landing him, give Kerr what he wants. Give him a combo of Tyrus, Deng, Salmons, Miller....whatever (just not Noah, I'm a fan). The Kirk Hinrich to Portland rumors started back up the other day with a "source" saying that Kirk has been telling his friends he thinks he'll be in a Portland uniform soon. The rumor was then shot down.....but how do even shoot down a rumor like that? I don't believe any of the speculation but you've got to wonder who started it and why.

Regardless, after tonight, the Bulls roster will probably look at least a little bit different. I just hope that Gar and Pax don't make any boneheaded moves that steer the franchise in the wrong direction.

Chad Ford's Mock Draft 6.0

2009-06-22T11:17:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

We're 3 days away from the 2009 NBA Draft! The suspense is killing me! Bulls fans and analysts alike are stumped on what Gar and Pax are planning on doing. There's been talk of the Bulls moving up to steal the 11th pick in the draft from New Jersey but nothing is for certain. Over the last few weeks we've seen DeJuan Blair and Tyler Hansbrough's draft stock rise and fall. The one man I (semi)trust when it comes to mock drafts is ESPN's Chad Ford. This guy has a great feel on what's usually going on behind the scenes so here's what he had to say today with his new Mock Draft 6.0 ESPN Insider column:

Analysis: The Bulls have been working the phones this week trying to move up in
the draft.

They've talked to the Nets, Bobcats and Pacers about swapping
the 16th and 26th picks to move up a few spots.

Who are they after? I've
heard everything from Johnson to Blair to Hansbrough to Williams to Mullens
here. To be honest, I can't get a terrific handle on which way they are leaning.
In this scenario, Williams and Blair are gone, which leaves Johnson, Mullens and
Hansbrough.

Hansbrough is the most NBA ready. Mullens has the most
upside. Johnson is somewhere in between. I'm not sure exactly how Johnson fits
in Chicago with Luol Deng on one side and Tyrus Thomas on the other, but there's
no question about his upside.

James Johnson? Really?

Give me Hansbrough.

Rumor: Pistons Offering BG $11 Million Annually

2009-06-17T05:01:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

According to a Real GM wiretap, Ben Gordon's agent, Raymond Brothers is telling people that his client has a $11 million annual guarantee from the Detroit Pistons.

Considering that the Pistons are also rumored to be shopping Rip Hamilton, there's probably a lot of truth to this. The Bulls offered $9 and $10 mill to BG last season and this is obviously going to be his best offer on the table this offseason. However, I'm not convinced that a team devised of Rodney Stuckey, Tashawn Prince (who will probably be dealt), BG and possibly Carlos Boozer is a team that's going anywhere. I'm very curious as to what Joe Dumars' other plans are.

With all this being said, the Bulls probably aren't going to offer Gordon the same number. Reinsdorf is a well known cheapskate and well, there aren't a whole lot of takers for Kirk Hinrich with Minnesota out of the picture now.

Ben Gordon is detrimental to this Bulls team succeeding, losing him would be a huge step backwards. John Salmons is great and all, but he's 30 years old this year and has had one breakout season. There's no guarantee that he's going to come back and make the kind of impact BG has. Luol Deng is also a big question mark. He played decently in the games he actually played and showed improvement in his rebounding but is he gonna live up to that $80 mill contact....you know the one we PROBABLY should have offered Gordon? Most likely not but I'm willing to give him one more chance.

The Phoenix Suns were reported to be interested in Deng but according to sources close to the Bulls, he's still for some reason untouchable. Deng/Thomas/Other Player for Shaq? I'd do it in a heartbeat. Sam Smith with Bulls.com has argued that Shaq doesn't play any defense and that Chicago wouldn't be interested but isn't that what we have Noah for? It would just be for one season, then we could use all the money we saved to throw at Bosh, Wade or....Lebron (yeah, I said it) next summer.

The other big rumor of the week was a twitter post by Ohio State draftee BJ Mullens that stated that he had a guarantee from MJ town. His agent also shut down a workout with New Jersey and stated they had a promise from a top 16 team in the draft.

Since Tyler Hansbrough (the guy who I want) and DeJuan Blair will probably be off the board by the time #16 rolls around, this is probably the Bulls best option. He's a guy who's athletic and quick on the throw downs but has problems defending and has low level post skills. In other words, a total project. However, his size and quickness might work well in VDN's fast paced offense. Frankly, to me he looks like a high flying version of A-Gray. If the Bulls draft Mullens, it also probably means that T-Time is over in Chicago.

In other NBA news, Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves leaked via twitter that Kevin McHale is out as coach. Bill Laimbeer randomly resigned as the defending WNBA champion Detroit Shock's coach two days ago. Coincidence? I think not.

The 2009 NBA Draft Is Only 3 Weeks Away, Plus Other Meaningless Rumors

2009-06-04T05:23:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The NBA Draft is three weeks from today. Who the Chicago Bulls will be picking at #16 and #26 is still completely up in the air. Every mock draft that I've been keeping track of including NBAdraft.net's and Chad Ford's has had the Bulls picking different guys almost every week. The only real no brainer in this draft is that Blake Griffin is going to be a Clipper, anything can happen after that. Unlike last year's rather uneventful draft, I suspect that this one is going to be very heavy on trades. Teams are trying to cut corners every way possible to make room for the 2010 free agent sweepstakes and are willing to do anything just to be able to make a pitch to Wade or LeBron.

Nobody with the exception of possibly DeJuan Blair is going to make a decent enough impact for the Bulls at the PF spot. Mock drafts over the last few weeks have had the Bulls picking Ty Lawson, Earl Clark, Tyler Hansbrough, James Johnson, Tyler Smith and the dreadful BJ Mullins.

It's been made pretty clear over the last few weeks that Kirk Hinrich will be traded no matter what. It's a sad truth but his contract is just way too ridiculous for the Bulls if they want a shot at re-signing Ben Gordon. Maybe Chicago will revisit the Hinrich to Wolves trade by possibly getting the #6 pick out of it, that way we could get Blair and make a decent offer to BG.

I personally wouldn't mind seeing the Bulls pick up Tyler Hansbrough with the 16th pick. He did very well at the NBA Draft combine in Chicago last weekend. He's a guy (although goofy like Noah) who's going to give you everything he has out on the floor and will be hellbent with forever improving his game. A Noah/Hansbrough combo would give us possibly the most hated front court in the NBA. They could also compare infamous offseason pictures too! Noah's bar pics with topless women vs. Hansbrough's insane jumping from a balcony into a pool at a frat party pic. Putting all this aside, Psycho T also fits the classic John Paxson mold of picking a proven college winner. The guy can rebound and steal balls but he's not much of a post up guy. If Noah can put on say 30lbs of muscle this summer, the Bulls should leave the posting up to him.

I sincerely doubt that Chicago is giving a whole lot of consideration for BJ Mullins. Yeah, he's worked out with the team and stuff but picking a project center up this late in the game would just be ridiculous. I have a strong feeling that the 26th pick will be traded somewhere with another deal for Kirk Hinrich or possibly Tyrus Thomas. If they are gonna keep it and actually draft someone, they'll probably have to chose from Tyler Smith, Derrick Brown or DeJuan Summers....yuck.

Onto to the rumors that have absolutely no legs (yet).....

On Wednesday, July 1st at 12:00 a.m., you can bet that representitives from the Detroit Pistons and the OKC Thunder will be on the phone trying to get through to Ben Gordon to offer a pitch for the 5 year guard to jump ship. Both teams are not so privately expressing that they want BG so this is something to worry about. Chicago doesn't want to lose this guy for nothing but they're gonna have to pay him a lot to stay. Reinsdorf either needs to sign off on a trade for Hinrich to clear up room or go over the cap and into the luxury tax....it's just for one season and they're gonna be paying teams that don't matter anyway so why not?

The Chris Bosh rumors were just starting to heat up but are temporarily being put to rest by Toronto saying they plan to build around Bosh again. To me, this means nothing and that Bosh does want out of Toronto. He's recently expressed that he'd "love to play with Wade" down in Miami. Plus, I'm sure that he'd like to get out of the cold weather and be near South Beach, who wouldn't? They could trade Beasley, Haslem and James Jones straight up and get him. A Wade, O'Neal & Bosh starting lineup would be pretty hard to cover.

Now with Cavs being unceremoniously elimated by the Magic this last week (congrads to Orlando by the way), it's hard to say what LeBron is going to do next. Does he bail for Brooklyn and join up with Devon Harris and Brook Lopez in 2010? Who knows. The only thing that's for certain is that he won't be signing an extension this summer, Dwayne Wade on the other hand might.

Hopefully by this time next week we'll have possibly a better idea of what Chicago's game plan might be, until then, we'll just have to wait and speculate.

Season Ends....Where Do We Go From Here?

2009-05-04T07:40:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls season ended Saturday night with a rather average 109-99 loss in Boston. I don't really even know what to say about the loss other than it was very disappointing. I honestly don't even want to talk about it. So there.....they lost in the first round to a rather average team without their star player, we move on.

Chicago's main priority this offseason will obviously be trying to re-sign Ben Gordon. The man has lead the team in scoring for the last 4 seasons, he's hit clutch shot after clutch shot. Give the man his money regardless if you go over cap. Unless you're going to be getting Chris Bosh, I don't think you can put all your chips in one bucket with John Salmons. Yeah, he's awesome, he was a great steal but Ben Gordon is consistently good every night. You just know that Joe Dumars is gonna be picking up that phone the first minute he can on that morning in July and he's gonna try to lure Gordon over to the dirty motor city.

Ben Gordon is our all-star player who's never been an all-star. If we have to get rid of Hinrich, we have to get rid of him. You make sacrifices for your best player. The fans love him, his teammates love him, he's worth going over the cap for if Reinsorf wants to keep Hinrich that bad.

Derrick Rose is gonna be working on his game the entire summer and Noah has already said he's gonna work to put on more muscle instead of traveling the world and smoking pot. This team is headed in the right direction. But we still need that one guy who can play in the post.

Do we get this post guy in the draft? Do we trade away Tyrus Thomas, the draft picks and Hinrich for Bosh if he doesn't re-sign with Toronto...or maybe try for Amare again?

It's going to be very interesting to see the team's lineup come August. The draft is 52 days away, less than two months, the question is what will the Bulls do?

Bulls Blow It....KG Possibly Out For The Playoffs!

2009-04-16T06:56:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Last night's game was terrible. Chicago fell to the Toronto Raptors 109-98 I don't know who to hate more, the Bulls for not playing hard from the get go or Mike Brown for cowardly benching his starters out in Cleveland.

All I kept thinking about was that playoff changing, last game of the season 2 years ago against the New Jersey Nets where the Bulls fell and ruined their chances of advancing. Instead of a preferred playoff match up against the Orlando Magic, the Bulls now face the defending champion Boston Celtics in the first round.

The only bright speck of light for the Bulls today is the news coming out of Boston . Kevin Garnett was yanked out of practice early this morning by coach Doc Rivers after watching the big guy run down the court a few times. It is now presumed that he will probably miss the entire 2009 NBA playoffs. There has been a lot of speculation from insiders that this injury has been a lot more serious than the Celtics organization has lead on in the recent weeks. There's talk that KG is going to need surgery to repair his knee in the offseason.

If John Salmons can turn it on again, Boston has a reason to be scared.

Game 1 is Saturday at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN.

Bulls Beat Heat, Just Like Old Times 106-87

2009-03-27T06:18:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls continued their winning ways in front of a nationally televised audience blowing out the Miami Heat 106-87.

John Salmons was once again the deciding factor, he had 27 points, 5 assists and 2 steals. Of course the dudes on Blog-a-Bull had to once again demean the win by saying he can't play defense and can't rebound. The man's a shooting guard, he's there to score the ball. We have Thomas, Noah and Miller for defense.

Tyrus Thomas had yet another double double, ending with 15 points, 12 rebounds and 3 blocks. Love that man. Noah also played a solid game as well with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

Derrick Rose was listed as a game time decision. He ended up coming off the bench which was a smart move by VDN since Hinrich is a better D-Wade defender. Derrick led the run in the 3rd quarter to help put away the Heat for good, he ended the game with a respectable 9 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds.

Ben Gordon scored a quiet 18 points adding 4 rebounds along the way.

Not a bad game at all. I love VDN's current 7 man rotation. These guys are playing good and looking good. The team's passing has become pretty decent and they're learning to close out games.

With this win and the Pistons loss to the Lakers, Chicago pulled into the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference and 2nd in the Central Division. The Bulls have a well deserved night off this evening but play two matinee games this weekend. They play Saturday afternoon against the dream crushing, nothing to lose Indiana Pacers and a nationally televised WGN Superstation appearance against the Toronto Raptors.

Hopefully the Bulls can continue their stellar play and possibly even move up in the rankings a little more. They've got a lot of people talking and anything is starting to seem possible.

The question on everyone's mind is, if Deng returns, does he start? I'm gonna agree with Reggie Miller and say no. This is working out way too well to try something different.

Bulls Beat Depleted Pistons Team 99-91

2009-03-25T05:25:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

Last night, the Bulls somehow pulled out a win against the current Eastern Conference 7th seed, the Detroit Pistons 99-91. This was done all without their star point guard Derrick Rose.

Kirk Hinrich started in Rose's place and lead the way with 24 points, 8 assists, 3 steals and 1 block. Not too shabby on paper but the other players looked completely lost half the game without Rose running the show.

Tyrus Thomas had an impressive 18 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists. Play by play color commentator, Reggie Miller joked the whole game that Thomas could get 10 blocks if he wanted to considering how ridiculously athletic he is. I agree, but some nights, the looks just aren't there.

Joakim Noah was excellent and very productive with 15 points and 12 rebounds. He got a few 3 points plays in the mix as well. He's starting to finish with a little more muscle than he did last season which is great. He needs to get his ass to the weight room this summer though.

John Salmons once again played decent. He didn't shoot well but still managed to get 16 points and 5 rebounds. He's just a lot more consistant than Deng is. I hope to God we can get rid of him and his outlandish contract somehow this summer.

The Bulls play another nationally televised game tomorrow night on TNT against the Miami Heat. Derrick Rose will probably be out again so I hope somehow the Bulls can pull out a win this time. They lost their first two meetings of the year, they need this one.

Bulls Win 3rd in a Row, Hold Onto 8th Seed in the East!

2009-03-19T06:32:00.000-07:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls followed up their spectacular St. Patrick's Day upset against the Celtics with yet another win on the road against the OKC Thunder last night.

All I have to say is John Salmons.

This guy has been fantastic night in and night out since he was traded here a few weeks back. Luol Deng's future as a Bull could actually be in jeopardy because of how good this dude is playing. I have no idea who would want to take on his ridiculous contract but we might be able to dump him this summer along with Kirk Hinrich someplace.

The Bulls are currently holding on to the 8th and final playoff spot in the east. This would have the Bulls playing the hungry Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round.

I'd actually rather have them play Cleveland than any other of the elite teams in the east. I fear the Magic and Celtics would both tear the Bulls up in 4 or 5 games. I think they actually have a chance to win a few games against Cleveland so hopefully we don't move up in the rankings.

Saturday evening, the Bulls take on the Lakers at home in a nationally televised WGN Superstation appearance. They have two nights off in between which for some reason is never a good thing for Chicago. I hope they can pull off another shocker just to say they beat the Lakers, Magic, Cavs & Celtics this season.

Bulls Blowout Magic 120-102

2009-02-25T06:09:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

First of all, sorry for the lack of updates regarding the last two Bulls games. Both Alex and I were out celebrating his 21st birthday and didn't get to watch the fantastic win against the Nugget last Friday. We did however get to watch the Bulls lose a ridiculous nationally televised game to a depleted Indiana Pacers team who were without Danny Grainger and Mike Dunleavy.

Last night, again I didn't get to watch the game, but the Bulls beat the hell out of the Orlando Magic 120-102 who are currently holding the #3 seed in the Eastern Conference. Derrick Rose and Ben Gordon had great games and the bench looked really good with Miller, Tim Thomas (who had 17 points) & Salmons all playing well. Miller had a rare breakaway slam also which brought some laughs to his teammates regarding his landing of of the dunk.

Once again, VDN stuck with his Kirk Hinrich lead 4th quarter, somehow this time theyprevailed. Vinny's been taking a lot of flack from columnists, bloggers, beat writers and the whole NBA in general for taking Rose out in favor of Hinrich for the 4th quarter of the game. No one really knows why he's even doing it at this point but whatever, I'm gonna let it slide until it really hurts us.

The Bulls play again tonight, this time at New Jersey. Last time they met, the Bulls had a 100-87 win back in December. The Bulls have not won consecutive road games against the Nets since 1998. New Jersey is coming off their big win against Philly on Monday night where Devin Harris hit a controversial half court shot at the buzzer. Chicago needs to win this game since the Nets are just a half game behind them fighting for that final 8th playoff seed.

Sefolosha Traded, Pax Not Resigning, Bulls vs. Nuggets TONIGHT!

2009-02-20T07:17:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

One last trade went through at the wire yesterday afternoon. The Bulls decided to part ways with Thabo Sefolosha, trading him to the OKC Thunder for a 2009 or 2010 draft pick. The draft pick will be the least valuable of their draft picks from the Spurs, Suns or Nuggets.

I think this gives them another trade piece or an excellent pick to perhaps draft another bench guy with some energy like Tyler Hansbrough this June (if the pick is for this year's draft). Thabo was going to have zero playing time after aquiring John Salmons and his botched pass attempt that cost the Bulls the game last week against Miami which was still fresh in everyone's mind.

The Bulls were declared big winners of the 2009 trade deadline this year by most NBA analysts regardless if they took on a bunch of crap. Chicago is obviously looking ahead to 2010 which they should, especially with rumors circling around that Chris Bosh would like to play on the Bulls. Jerome James will likely retire and insurance will pay his salary saving the Bulls millions. Roberson will most likely be waived and Tim Thomas will actually see playing time in taking Noc's place.

Pax also reiterated that he is NOT resigning, which is great. Although you can tell this job has aged him terribly, especially over the last 3 years, I'm glad he's staying. I doubt he'll be with the team 2 years from now but he needs to at least finish what he's started.

The Bulls play the Nuggets tonight in Chicago. They lost their first meeting on Nov 23rd but hope to continue their winning ways. They'll be without all of the new guys including Miller, Salmons and Tim Thomas until Sunday's matinee against the Indiana Pacers.

Bulls Ship Out Hughes (Crap) to the Knicks For Tim Thomas (Crap), Anthony Roberson (Crap) & Jerome James (Crap)!

2009-02-19T12:18:00.000-08:00

By Sean Mackey

The Bulls succeeded in their final trade deadline task of dumping Larry Hughes. Larry Legend (as Alex and I like to call him) was traded to the NY Knicks for former Bulls dumpee Tim Thomas along with PG Anthony Roberson and injured center Jerome James.

This move should free up a little bit of cap space for the offseason. I'm sort of glad to see they kept Captain Kirk on the team for the rest of the year. I'm pretty sure he'll be traded though as soon as July comes around.

It's going to be interesting to see what happens to Tim Thomas since he was only played 3 games before a buyout happened last time he was with Chicago. VDN has stated that he liked Tim while he with him in Phoenix, but I'm sure Tim isn't going to want to listen to a rookie coach who was once the director of player personnel. The consensus with Jerome James is that he's done and insurance will probably pay his salary and Anthony Roberson will most likely keep the bench all nice and warm with Lindsey Hunter.

Unfortunately, no other major last minute deals were made around the NBA either so the Larry Hughes trade was the deal of the day. We'll see how this all comes together on Sunday when most of the new Bulls squad will be intact to take on the Indiana Pacers.