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> LeBron Interested In The Bulls?, "That's the one team no one talks about"
AtHomeBoy_2000
post Feb 23 2010, 11:29 AM
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Cross Nets, Clippers & Heat off LeBron James' list of potential NBA homes
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As if there hasn't already been enough speculation about LeBron James' plans for the future, the next five months are going to be off the charts.

But go ahead and cross off the Clippers, Nets and Heat from the list of potential destinations for James, even though they've all got salary cap space to attract the NBA's top free agent this summer.

James isn't playing second fiddle to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, even if Clippers GM Mike Dunleavy traded off Marcus Camby, Al Thornton, Sebastian Telfair and got rid of Ricky Davis to create a maximum salary slot for the express purpose of landing James.

James might be tight with Net minority owner Jay-Z, but he's not coming to play in Newark for two years, which could turn into three or four seasons, depending on what happens to the Nets' Atlantic Yards project.

James isn't moving down to South Beach to team with Dwyane Wade. They both need to dominate the ball and the Heat wants to import a big man to pair with Wade. Chris Bosh tops the list, although the Heat were in trade talks this past week with Phoenix for Amare Stoudemire and Utah for Carlos Boozer, each of whom could become a free agent in July.

If James wants to win a title, his best chance, obviously, is to stay in Cleveland, where he can also sign for the most money.

While the Knicks were scrambling to get rid of Jared Jeffries' contract, which was the key to picking up enough cap space for two "maximum-salary" players, their brass was livid when it learned that the Cavaliers had stolen Antawn Jamison from the Wizards. The feeling inside the Two Penn Plaza offices is that Washington president Ernie Grunfeld stuck it to his old team by giving James the missing piece to the Cavs' championship puzzle. Winning it all is seen as the best way for Cleveland to keep its franchise player.

"It was as if the Wizards said, "You want Antawn Jamison? Well, here he is, take him,'" said one Knick executive. "They handed him over, just like the Timberwolves gave Kevin Garnett to the Celtics."

If James wants to go to a bigger market and join what would be a strong supporting cast, in Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich and Joakim Noah, he could go to the Bulls. Like the Clippers, the Bulls engineered a deal to get them far enough under the salary cap to give them a "max-salary" slot. They were so intent on clearing cap space, they were willing to give Hinrich away. But in the end, they swung the deal with the Bucks that removed John Salmons from their cap and gave them the necessary space to make a run at James.

"That's the one team no one talks about," said a person with close ties to James.

But Bosh, the top big man in the free-agent pool, is considered the Bulls' primary target.
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Sanitarium
post Feb 23 2010, 12:20 PM
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Good TEAMS win championships.. not "have lebron pass to someone, then pass it back to him, then he creates a play on his own"
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Cowch
post Feb 23 2010, 12:28 PM
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Well I would LOVE Lebron on the Bulls. Rose, Hinrich?, Lebron, Taj, Noah sounds fine to me.
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ZoomSlowik
post Feb 23 2010, 12:57 PM
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QUOTE (Sanitarium @ Feb 23 2010, 12:20 PM) *
Good TEAMS win championships.. not "have lebron pass to someone, then pass it back to him, then he creates a play on his own"


Apparently you missed the title that the Heat won as well as the entire Jordan era. The first one the Rockets won was basically Hakeem killing everyone down low while everyone else shot open jumpers as well, and two of the three Laker titles were basically a two-man game with Kobe and Shaq.

Having one of the top-10 players (top-5 in most cases) in the league is much more strongly correlated with championships than "being a great team".
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Cowch
post Feb 23 2010, 01:36 PM
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Though having a GREAT player may make winning a championship easier, Lebron still has no rings.
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ZoomSlowik
post Feb 23 2010, 01:48 PM
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QUOTE (Cowch @ Feb 23 2010, 01:36 PM) *
Though having a GREAT player may make winning a championship easier, Lebron still has no rings.


He also just turned 25 and is on pace for his second 60-win season with Mo Williams as the team's second leading scorer.
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GreatScott82
post Feb 23 2010, 05:05 PM
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The Bulls will be ontop of a lot of free agents lists this summer. But seriously, Lebron? Come on. . . he'll likely stay in his hometown or sign with New York.
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Cowch
post Feb 23 2010, 05:23 PM
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QUOTE (ZoomSlowik @ Feb 23 2010, 12:48 PM) *
He also just turned 25 and is on pace for his second 60-win season with Mo Williams as the team's second leading scorer.

I sometimes wonder just how awful Cleveland would be minus Lebron, anyway I won't deny that Lebron is a stud and that he alone could win a championship for his team, but pair him with ANYONE talented and his chances skyrocket. Jamison could be that answer, but he's not really top talent...

QUOTE
The Bulls will be ontop of a lot of free agents lists this summer. But seriously, Lebron? Come on. . . he'll likely stay in his hometown or sign with New York.

I agree with this, but I do like to dream of Lebron in a Bulls uniform.
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Chicago Bulls Fr...
post Feb 23 2010, 05:49 PM
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Well if Lebron wants to come to the Bulls and that's a BIG IF, he instantly becomes your #1 target. Otherwise this is how I think the Bulls should be ordering their priorities.

1- Bosh
2- Stoudemire
3- Wade
4- Boozer
5- Johnson

Bosh is a MUST with us. He is the ideal fit for our team. Amare is probably the best for Rose because of the PnR but Bosh is a superior defender and rebounder. Wade is 3rd on my list although he could still be ahead of Amare, but the reason is because he is a bit older than some of the other guys and I think he has a smaller window in his prime than Bosh. I worry that he wouldn't be able to maintain his level of play through a max contract. Especially when you factor in all the wear and tear on his body from his style of play. And what I mean by that is, will he still be the same DWade in his 4th and 5th years of the contract? Bosh is 25 and he's just entering his prime years as a player.

Boozer is a good fall back option because he provides a great PnR player who's also a force down low and on the boards. It would actually be interesting to see if it comes to this option whether the Bulls will try to sign and trade for Joe Johnson and piece him together with Boozer.

The ultimate dream would be a sign and trade with one of Bosh or Wade and then sign the other one outright. OMG. One can dream.. haha
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Sanitarium
post Feb 23 2010, 06:10 PM
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i know this has also been discussed to death but lebron does not want to play in MJ's shadow
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BigEdWalsh
post Feb 24 2010, 10:02 PM
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QUOTE (Sanitarium @ Feb 23 2010, 06:10 PM) *
i know this has also been discussed to death but lebron does not want to play in MJ's shadow

It didn't bother Khalid El-Amin.
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rockren
post Feb 26 2010, 09:56 AM
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QUOTE (BigEdWalsh @ Feb 24 2010, 10:02 PM) *
It didn't bother Khalid El-Amin.


I smell a sales pitch....
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eddog2
post Feb 26 2010, 03:29 PM
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QUOTE (Chicago Bulls Franchise @ Feb 23 2010, 05:49 PM) *
Well if Lebron wants to come to the Bulls and that's a BIG IF, he instantly becomes your #1 target. Otherwise this is how I think the Bulls should be ordering their priorities.

1- Bosh
2- Stoudemire
3- Wade
4- Boozer
5- Johnson

Bosh is a MUST with us. He is the ideal fit for our team. Amare is probably the best for Rose because of the PnR but Bosh is a superior defender and rebounder. Wade is 3rd on my list although he could still be ahead of Amare, but the reason is because he is a bit older than some of the other guys and I think he has a smaller window in his prime than Bosh. I worry that he wouldn't be able to maintain his level of play through a max contract. Especially when you factor in all the wear and tear on his body from his style of play. And what I mean by that is, will he still be the same DWade in his 4th and 5th years of the contract? Bosh is 25 and he's just entering his prime years as a player.

Boozer is a good fall back option because he provides a great PnR player who's also a force down low and on the boards. It would actually be interesting to see if it comes to this option whether the Bulls will try to sign and trade for Joe Johnson and piece him together with Boozer.

The ultimate dream would be a sign and trade with one of Bosh or Wade and then sign the other one outright. OMG. One can dream.. haha



I rank them like this:

1. Lebron - Probably not going to happen unless he wants to one up MJ which Lebron might actually be thinking about.
2. Kobe - Not likely to happen but he can opt out.
3. Wade - Not a fan of having a player that is used to having the ball this much but Wade is a top scorer and playmaker which is what we need.
4. Johnson - I think having a legit SG is our biggest need. Johnson would be a great fit next to Rose. He provides outside shooting that the Bulls really need as well as someone that can hit the last shot. Plus he's big and would improve our defense.
5. Bosh - I'm really not a fan of Bosh b/c I think he's soft but he is a good scoring big man and maybe next to a workhorse like Noah he'd really excel. I really don't think he's work a max contract and I think that's what the Bulls would have to give him to get him to come here. Sure his rebounding and scoring numbers are excellent this year but do you think that has anything to do with this being a contract year? I find it interesting that he has averaged well below 10rpg several seasons during his career and then during a contract year he has a great year both shooting the ball and rebounding. Anyway, he's not a leader and this idea that he plays good defense is the first I've ever heard of. Sure his D is probably a notch better than Amare's but he's no shutdown PF. Stats are not everything but his blocks and steals leave a lot to be desired. Anyway, this is saying a lot but I'd rather keep Taj Gibson as our starting PF next year than pay Bosh a max contract. We won't win a single title if all we add to Rose is Bosh.
6. Amare - I think some of his defensive problems would be masked by Noah's D. He's a great slashing big man that can hit the open
7. Manu - If we don't get a top tier SG or SF then I think Manu is the perfect short term fix at the SG position for the Bulls. You add him to a combo or Rose/Deng/Noah and either Bosh or Amare and you have a well rounded offense. If we don't get a top SG I really hope we give Manu a hard look.
8. Camby - I think if we sign a player form the top 4 above Camby would be a great 1-2yr addition if we want to compete for titles in the short run.

I have zero interest in Boozer unless you can get him very cheap (under $9M per year). Mark my words. He'll get hurt and miss a majority of next year. He only tries to show up in contract years.
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SoxFan1
post Feb 26 2010, 03:46 PM
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QUOTE (eddog2 @ Feb 26 2010, 04:29 PM) *
I rank them like this:

1. Lebron - Probably not going to happen unless he wants to one up MJ which Lebron might actually be thinking about.
2. Kobe - Not likely to happen but he can opt out.
3. Wade - Not a fan of having a player that is used to having the ball this much but Wade is a top scorer and playmaker which is what we need.
4. Johnson - I think having a legit SG is our biggest need. Johnson would be a great fit next to Rose. He provides outside shooting that the Bulls really need as well as someone that can hit the last shot. Plus he's big and would improve our defense.
5. Bosh - I'm really not a fan of Bosh b/c I think he's soft but he is a good scoring big man and maybe next to a workhorse like Noah he'd really excel. I really don't think he's work a max contract and I think that's what the Bulls would have to give him to get him to come here. Sure his rebounding and scoring numbers are excellent this year but do you think that has anything to do with this being a contract year? I find it interesting that he has averaged well below 10rpg several seasons during his career and then during a contract year he has a great year both shooting the ball and rebounding. Anyway, he's not a leader and this idea that he plays good defense is the first I've ever heard of. Sure his D is probably a notch better than Amare's but he's no shutdown PF. Stats are not everything but his blocks and steals leave a lot to be desired. Anyway, this is saying a lot but I'd rather keep Taj Gibson as our starting PF next year than pay Bosh a max contract. We won't win a single title if all we add to Rose is Bosh.
6. Amare - I think some of his defensive problems would be masked by Noah's D. He's a great slashing big man that can hit the open
7. Manu - If we don't get a top tier SG or SF then I think Manu is the perfect short term fix at the SG position for the Bulls. You add him to a combo or Rose/Deng/Noah and either Bosh or Amare and you have a well rounded offense. If we don't get a top SG I really hope we give Manu a hard look.
8. Camby - I think if we sign a player form the top 4 above Camby would be a great 1-2yr addition if we want to compete for titles in the short run.

I have zero interest in Boozer unless you can get him very cheap (under $9M per year). Mark my words. He'll get hurt and miss a majority of next year. He only tries to show up in contract years.

You're saying saying adding Johnson makes us more of a title contender than adding Bosh? And you'd rather have Gibson than pay a max deal for Bosh?

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ZoomSlowik
post Feb 26 2010, 04:09 PM
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You're strange Edwin. You freak out about how Gibson can't be our answer at PF in the other thread, but suddenly you'd rather have him starting than Chris Bosh? You don't think that just maybe playing in a frontcourt where Andrea Bargnani isn't the "power" forward or center makes a pretty sizeable difference? Over the last three years his PER allowed is around 5 points lower when he's playing PF instead of center. Some, "career year" too, he's averaged 22-10 twice before this and 22-9 twice as well. He's been one of the best big men out there for several years.

PF is easily a bigger concern than SG. You're not winning a title with a frontcourt of Noah and Gibson unless you get Lebron. You need someone like Bosh that can convert at a solid clip inside and get to the line with regularity. It's also far easier to find a serviceable shooting guard than a big man that can score. Johnson is a solid player, but you're basically right back where you were last season if you sign him instead of Bosh.
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