Doug Thonus' new blog

Evidently the Chicago Tribune is starting up a website dedicated to sports called "Chicago Now." Doug's going to be one of the (the only?) bloggers for the Bulls.
The website requires a log-in to read because it is still in its infant stages (ie. don't contact them if something doesn't work and it might be too early to create login profiles). I contacted Doug and he said he did not mind if the login information was shared with the broader Blog A Bull community.
login: cn
password: cn

over 2 years ago Jamaicanpi 17 comments 1 recs |

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A couple of fun excerpts:

Awesome!

Tyrus Thomas has begun working out this off season and has switched over to use the same personal trainer as Ben Gordon. He’s also been working out with Marcus Thornton, a guard draft prospect from LSU.

A wonderful point I hadn’t thought of this past week:

If Reinsdorf (this has nothing to do with Forman/Paxson) does not approve luxury tax spending for Gordon then he loses all credibility with this Bulls fan. You simply can’t take on Peavy in this environment for that losing team and then tell me with a straight face we’ve got no money for Ben Gordon.

People should remember that while they have the right to their opinion, they are not entitled to be taken seriously. --Bruce Bartlett

by tyger1147 on May 23, 2009 7:39 PM CDT reply actions

Yeah I was impressed

Doug’s put in a lot of work writing articles that few people have access to yet. Check them out.

by Jamaicanpi on May 23, 2009 9:11 PM CDT up reply actions

excerpts...

nothing against anyone, but I posted the Thornton/Thomas/BG workout stuff a couple of weeks back in the Draft fanpost.

And I completely agree with the Peavy/BG thing. I actually hadn’t thought about that when I was hearing about the Peavy story a couple of days ago. Even with Peavy telling the Sox to kick rocks…JR still has no leg to stand on with the BG negotiations now. He actually gave BG more leverage with this.

Fire Vinny…pay Ben!

http://awsomepeoplesearch.com/

by NormVanBeer on May 23, 2009 10:41 PM CDT up reply actions

AND KEEP KIRK!!!!

(crickets chirp)

….
:(

On Behalf of Sue, Wjb, majoyenrac, Bullshooter and all the other Hinrich fans...Ill keep the Hinrich Hope coming...There will be light!

by piccolomair on May 24, 2009 2:30 AM CDT up reply actions

Well, the Bulls could likely get local fan favorite Luther Head for less than 1/4 of "Kurt's" salary.

JR is cheap, you know.

"Whoever was responsible for pulling that offer [to Ben Gordon] off the table...bring him before me and I'll punch him right in the face " - Frederick Pfeiffer

by Granny Waiters on May 24, 2009 5:02 AM CDT up reply actions

I saw that, but did you post the "same personal trainer as Ben Gordon" too?

I should have just quoted that part because I did remember someone (you, probably) posting the Marcus Thornton thing before. Good for you, though. (no sarcasm)

People should remember that while they have the right to their opinion, they are not entitled to be taken seriously. --Bruce Bartlett

by tyger1147 on May 24, 2009 11:16 AM CDT up reply actions

What does Peavey have to do with the Bulls?

Different sports, different rules…baseball has no salary cap nor luxury tax.

" I've looked at these numbers and decided the #1 problem

is that Ben Gordon is selfish..." -your friendly bulls blogger

by Dionysus2.0 on May 26, 2009 11:40 AM CDT up reply actions

There is a profit margin associated with the White Sox and one associated with the Bulls. The Bulls made 4x the net profit of the White Sox over the past 10 years, and the White Sox one a title over that time that the Bulls did not win. There are different rules, but if the bulls were allowed to run at the same profit margin as the White Sox then they would have the flexibility of adding another 15 million to the payroll at least.

Bulls Beat Podcast

by dougthonus on May 26, 2009 2:45 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

Thanks for the comments

I was going to post about my blog here once it was open all the way. Since I’m not as big a poster here as I am on realgm/bullspodcasters, I didn’t want to come off as a spammer with my blog while it’s still private.

Thanks for the comments, I’m hoping the Bulls blog goes well over there. At least for now, I’ll have the only Bulls blog, though that could change at any point. I’m not sure if they’re trying to fill in another Bulls blog or not, but a lot of the blogs on there are “expert” blogs, so it wouldn’t surprise me if they try and get Swirsky or Wennington or someone to do a weekly blog.

The Tyrus/Thornton thing could have definitely been reported prior to me doing so, I have no problem believing that, but I didn’t get it from here, I got it from one of my regular sources otherwise I would have just linked it back to here. Part of my blog responsibility is to post/link anything interesting related to the Bulls, and the policy is a mandate to link back to the original source (which I was very happy for). So anyway, the short story is I heard it from someone else and wasn’t attempting to avoid giving credit where credit was due or anything.

I was surprised the Peavy thing wasn’t discussed on any Bulls sites. It was the first thing I thought of when they made the deal to get him. The Sox stink, and they’ll spend to get Peavy while making 1/4 the money the Bulls make.

Bulls Beat Podcast

by dougthonus on May 25, 2009 7:16 AM CDT reply actions

The economics of baseball are different than the NBA.

The tax threshold is different. The White Sox wouldn’t be missing out on revenue sharing, and they wouldn’t be paying Peavy’s salary twice. Any team making the playoffs has a chance to win the world series, especially if they have a starter like Peavy. Peavy would increase the salaries, but Peavy would also likely boost attendance on the days he starts as well as attendance for other games by keeping the Sox in the playoff race longer. And significantly increasing their chances of advancing if they make the playoffs. There aren’t those kind off revenue offsets for what it would take to sign Gordon.

by Scotter on May 25, 2009 4:52 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

All of this is irrelevant.

The White Sox have averaged 12 million in profit a year over the past decade. The Bulls, on lower revenue, have averaged 44 million in profit a year for the past decade. Regardless of where the luxury tax is or isn’t or how payments are shifted, if the bulls could put another 32 million a year into player salaries they’d still be operating at a higher profit ratio than the White Sox and would have a ton more flexibility.

Peavy has everything to do with the Bulls in that Reinsdorf is willing to spend on the White Sox, though they stink, but not the bulls.

Bulls Beat Podcast

by dougthonus on May 26, 2009 2:47 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

"Reinsdorf is willing to spend on the White Sox, though they stink, but not the bulls."

I suppose Peavy is yet another example, but this sentiment isn’t exactly new. It still stinks, though.

Do you know the % of ownership ’dorf has for each team? I wonder if he has to keep more people happy in his Bulls chairman duties.

USE THE SOFTWARE. Actions-> Rec/Flag. Reply to comments with the reply button. Rec good fanposts/fanshots so the crud gets pushed down.

by your friendly BullsBlogger on May 26, 2009 2:53 PM CDT up reply actions

Definitely not new sentiment, but when an example of it jumps out into your face, I think it’s worth noting it at least. I was really, really mad about it when it happened, but that’s not entirely fair.

He hasn’t refused to pay the tax yet, so I’m blaming him for something I expect to happen and not something that has happened.

Bulls Beat Podcast

by dougthonus on May 26, 2009 6:43 PM CDT up reply actions

And no idea on the ownership %. I wonder if it’s the same group that bought both teams through the same corporate tier or if it’s entirely different animals.

Bulls Beat Podcast

by dougthonus on May 26, 2009 6:44 PM CDT up reply actions