How the Bulls Could Keep Up

and not the injuries too. He really was a fantastic player and I’d love to see Rose-Arenas terrorizing teams.

Micheal Redd is another player.

No way Philly does that though. Turner’s their future.

Upgrading at the trade deadline is another possibility.

outside of some lateral movement. I mean, I’d do Rose for Chris Paul, but outside of that…

The idea is to find players who are overpaid and teams would get rid of only for cap space and little (or Taj) else. So while I think Deng-for-Iggy isn’t much of an improvement (though we’d still have the cap space, finding a way to acquire Iggy for less just so the Sixers can save money and let Evan Turner grow would be great.

Arenas bothers me more due to injury than fit or baggage. Sam’s wacky Monta Ellis idea doesn’t seem so bad now. Going top-down in this list doesn’t show many opportunities. I’d like a swing at Kevin Martin but again we’d have to give up something substantially more than a trade exception.

signing Boozer makes it a bit weird. for one, Brand is making shitloads for 3 more years. with Boozer on the books now, and Noah and Rose due for big extensions, you’re really locked into that team for two years and hopefully you can move Brand’s huge expiring in the 3rd year. but since our absolute ceiling right now is maybe the semi’s, perhaps you roll the dice. Turner should be useful right away. by year 3 (when you can move Brand) i see them being really good, though Boozer will have also declined some by then. it’s not a terrible plan if everyone knows we can’t win a title this year or likely next year anyways. might as well be a little more interesting with a higher ceiling. as each year goes on, i’d think Deng becomes more and more sought after in a trade as well, so you’re not completely inflexible. and maybe Brand as the 3rd guy in the Noah/Boozer/Brand rotation gives you some useful minutes…

Everything pointed to him being an elite prospect except for two things: 1) non-elite athletic ability and 2) outside shooting

Unfortunately, even after testing, #1 remains. He’s not especially looooong and he doesn’t jump all that high.

However, I do believe his shooting is perfectly serviceable coming in and should improve as time goes by. He shot a respectable (but not “good”) 35% over 195 attempts from 3 in his college career. I’ll take his 36.4% at face value of proof that he has slightly improved.

I think he’s a perfect fit for Rose.

Another, less risky (because of the lower salary he’ll command) is Tracy McGrady. He looked done in NY, but who knows, maybe another summer of recovery and rehab with Grover gets him back where he was and he’ll come cheaper than Arenas.

that way the bulls have enough talent to make a trade in the future when another superstar is made available.

That would start right after James announces he will go to the Heat (IF he does, please don’t). I would call the Heat and say give us Beasley and we’ll send over next years second rounder or a future second rounder if we don’t have next years.

(1) For Rose to become best buds with Durant at the next Olympics…..(2) make a pact (3)??? (4) Profit.

He and Turner aren’t a great fit together. Philly is losing money, is over the cap and NO ONE will take Elton Brand off their hands. I honestly believe that the Bulls could trade for Iggy and not give up Deng. You may have to get a 3rd team involved, but the Bulls could use their cap space to grab Iggy.

what’s the news or rumors on Where Lebron is leaning?

I have poured over the NBA rosters for the past half hour…beyond the guys that you mentioned and others in this thread (O.J. Mayo), I don’t know that there is another guy that would become available who would have anywhere close to the talent level of the third player of Miami Thrice…

From an international perspective, are there any guys playing overseas currently that could ascend to that level…Is Fran Vazquez good enough to put a team over the top…but he plays the wrong position? Will Omer Asik make a huge impact in the NBA? Doubtful…Is Josh Childress coming back to the NBA? Even if he does, I don’t know if he makes enough of a difference..

I would consider taking a flyer on JR Smith if the Nugz want to shed his salary…he is older, which usually means mature…he has demonstrated the propensity to score in buckets, has the size to defend (and with Thibs) a coach who will demand it…I don’t know if he is talented enough; but he has the right combo of skills to be worth a look.

Sign everybody on the following list:
http://www.thebasketballworld.com/fiba_world_cup/2006_roster_greece.htm

consider signing McGrady. He’s probably done, but if he got back in the same way that Grant Hill got it back he would be a real difference maker. Tim Grover and his people would have easy access in Chicago to shock the hell out of his body are whatever they do. The team needs another perimeter playmaker with Hinrich gone, and McGrady still sees the floor so well. It’s risky, but it’s not a long term or team crippling risk.

Fist of all it seems Mike Miller already have a ton of proposals, including the HEAT.

But I remember crazy-Sam Smith saying that Pat Riley’s plan was to have LeBron James play the point position à la Magic Johnson. If that is the case, no way we can keep DRose or Deng on him efficiently. We either need a second 2 guard who is both big and with defensive skills (Ronnie Brewer) or get that in our starter (maybe iggy but I doubt he has the speed to match LeBron).

If we are to compete bet we need a killer. We need a guy who can now and then reach the 30-40 point mark when Rose fail to do so. Of course we can’t get Carmelo, Kobe or Durant and we already missed Joe Johnson, Rudy Gay, Maggette and Ray Allen. Crazy Stephen Jackson would be a nice fit bball wise but he is also out. Since we don’t have a guy who play both ends I would try to acquire Brewer or Tony Allen to play D + a scoring option. I don’t like Morrow or Korver as starters because they are onedimensional players. I would like to have one of those on the bench though. But they could be our only option.
I would, however, consider trying to lure a team to dump a salary on us and give thoughts one of those:

J-Rich: veteran with size, still fast and strong. Will be in a contract year so if he fails we dont have to keep paying and we can expect him to play hard. Had a great run with the Suns in the playoffs shooting an amazing 48% on 3pts. (so I dont know if they give him away for a pick)

Monta Ellis: ok, he have a lot of flaws. He might be a slightly taller Ben Gordon. But he is one of the few guys available out there. Can play off and he can pass the ball. Sure he doesn’t fit the big SG i just mentioned but i guess we could take him + Brewer. He had a good season playing with curry as he found opens spaces and that would be better with rose.

Iggy: the downside is the lack of a 3 point shot. But he is a good passer, strong rebounder and a big guard who can defend well on Thibs system. We would have to add a 3pt shooter as well but iggy can play 3 so it helps.

Rudy Fernandez: a very risky choice as he is one of the most irregular players on the league. Blazers would not dump him but maybe trade for our JJ or pick. Rudy has played agains the big 3 in the Olympics and played big but he really played bad when given the chance in last year’s playoffs. His 3 pt shooting is irregular. Shot 38% in the season but 48% in the playoffs. I like his style but as a starter is not my first option at all.

Jamal Crawford: not a great option. But still better than Redick or Korver IMO. as Ellis doesn’t play D but could have a shadow in Brewer. He is a real combo and can knock the 3.

Kirk Hinrich: just kidding

I seriously believe Arenas is worth the risk. The injuries to me are the biggest concern. That and determining if he has stayed in basketball shape.

In 2007 (his last full season) he put up the following stats: 28.4pts, 6.0ast, 4.6 reb, 1.9 stl, 56.5% TS, 23.97PER on 31.38 USG

Dwayne Wade put up the following stats last season: 26.6pts, 7.5ast, 4.7 reb, 2.1 stl, 56.2% TS, 28.12 PER on 34.89USG.

If healthy, he’s an upper middle class Dwayne Wade! He’s not quite there and the injuries are a big risk, but if he panned out, this team could be deadly.