Butler/Thabo platoon is serviceable at the 2. Mike James I could do without, but he did score 20ppg in ‘06, and he’d make Kirk expendable, which is nice. I’ve always liked Ely, he’s a hometown guy who seems like a faster, skinnier clone of Aaron Gray, complete with some post moves. And Julian Wright could be better than Gordon in a year or two… I think he’s fantastic.

And in response to atthehive, I think the Hornets pull the trigger on this deal. They just signed Posey, so they don’t need Wright. Besides, with Nocioni’s 3 point stroke and ability to play the 4, he might be a better option for the Hornets than Wright anyway – their backup PF is Ryan Bowen at the moment. Gordon is obviously a huge upgrade offensively over Mo Peterson, and they’ll need to upgrade more than with just Posey if they want to leapfrog the Spurs and Lakers next year.

if this is to work, has to be at least a 3-way trade

I’m assuming they’ll get Butler and James who come off the books fairly soon. Hopefully the Bulls could then move Noce because I like Julian Wright and would like to see him get the minutes at the backup 3. The SG minutes can then go to Thabo, Kirk, and Larry, with Kirk also getting some minutes at the 1. Mike James and Butler become trade assets themselves as their deals are up after the 09-10 season. The Bulls could get three very tradable assets in return for someone they see as a 6th man, don’t want to overpay, and likely would not be as tradable an asset should he get the deal he’s seeking. I think there is plenty of value in it for the Bulls should they deal with NO. More than enough to justify a S&T and Ben will do fine in NO.

about luxury tax maks me sick. Really, for one year they wont pay the luxury tax?even if it means getting a much better deal back.

So Ben is the best undersized 6th man with limited defensive skills shooting guard on a 33 win non-playoff team in the league, pay the man his money. He is the king of the dip sh*ts.

It is embarrassing that our self-annointed Alpha Male (pay me the most because I am the best) is not even a top 50 player in the league.

go for 40, but lose when he allows Larry Hughes to drop 45 on him.

Every year they overpaid the team was moving in the right direction. Ben Wallace, Hinrich, Noc all came after positive seasons. The team was headed in the right direction. Noc’s extension came as the Bulls were favored by some to win the Eastern Conference. It made sense to keep the momentum going. Now they collapsed and they aren’t moving forward, so why continue to overpay in order to maintain an average team. I am sure if the Bulls made the conference finals this year Gordon and Deng would have gotten their money right away. That didn’t happen though.

Noc and Wallace contracts are sunk costs. You can only learn from them. You can’t use them as a way to support also overpaying gordon.

(which, of course, it often doesn’t in the NBA):
1. Unless the Bulls intend to simply cut costs and lose Gordon’s value as a former #3 pick and elite NBA shooter/crunch-time scorer, they must trade hiim out-right or sing-and-trade him between now and the trading deadline.

2. In order to get equal value in an outright trade, they’d have to land another rookie scale player who has elite talent that fits their new core AND has underperformed with his team — Andrea Bargnani, Robert Swift, Channing Frye, and Adam Morrison are the only possibilities I see, and most would agree none of those provide equal value. The one possible base-year guy might be David Lee, opening up New York’s 4-spot for younger/cheaper/D’Antoni-er Wilson Chandler and letting BG play out his rook deal in a high-tempo offense. But is David Lee enough for the Bulls?

3. Sign-and-trade seems most likely — Ben wants $, Bulls want talent/a team player/to build for the future in return. That means they want a) to cut costs and dead weight b) to unclog positional logjams and make players happier c) to turn multiple demiocre talents into one great talent that fits. Only a few teams would help them with Scenario a — win now clubs like Cleveland and Dallas come to mind. BG and Noc for expiring Wally and Eric Snow cuts costs, but the Cavs already put their scoring guard money down on Mo Williams. Mark Cuban will spend to contend, and a short 2 like Ben could start next to J-Kidd, but what do we get in return, a wheezing Josh Howard?

Paxson’s best bet is moving disgruntled-yet-talented Gordon for an equally talented superstart who wants a better situation. Artest and McGrady are off the table. Ditto for RJ and Redd. Here are the best talent return trades possible:

1. Marion for BG + Gooden — MIA wants to cut costs and build around Wade-Beasley, and Marion wants a fat extension. Unless he backs off from that position, they have to trade him by the deadline to get anything in return, and have to sign-and-trade him this summer if they want a young player entering his second deal. The Bulls get 48 minutes of non-stop alley-oops from Rose to the four-spot, and don’t have to rely on Tyrus to start right away. Marion would definitely enhance Rose’s rookie assist numbers, generate more fast -breaks with blocks and steals, and even replace BG’s 3-pt shooting. Noc’s contract even looks better since they could certainly use his savy in their upcoming playoff runs…

2. Diaw + Barbosa for BG + Gooden — as above.

3. Channing Frye + Martell Websiter + Darius Miles for BG + Noc = a tricky one, but Portland may be inclined to move young talents like Frye/Webster if Miles is healthy enough to force them to honor the $9M they owe him this season and next. Blazers get another veteran backcourt combo talent to start alongside Roy (who can handle PG duties) and tutor rookies Bayless/Fernandez, plus they can afford Noc’s contract for a veteran shooting-combo forward with some toughness. Bulls get two young, versatile offensive front-court players, get out from under the lengthy Noc deal, and a big expiring contract for 2009-2010 to boot (D-Wade homecoming, anybody?)

4. Okur for BG — easiest to accomplish, allows either Noah or Tyrus to come off the bench, and gives CHI a 7-foot shooter. Jazz get another sniper along with Korver, move Brewer to 3, AK to 4, and Boozer to 5, making the team faster and more effective. I would definitely do this if I’m Utah, though I’d prefer a running big for a Rose-based team. Still, Okur is the best skilled C available (Brad Miller = baaaad idea…)

5. Chris Wilcox + Robert Swift for BG = cut costs with Wilcox’s expiring deal, gain low-cost young shot-blocking (injury prone?) C in Swift. OKC gets a veteran sniper to pair with Westbrook in a deadly backcourt, moving Durant to his natural 3-spot and Green to his natural 4-spot.

Sorry to go on so long, but I just realized how optimistic I am for all the good options they have. Hope Pax reads this…