Bulls trade rumors: Warriors interested in Kirk Hinrich, according to report

Now that Luol Deng has been traded and Andrew Bynum waived, a big question becomes whether the Bulls are done dealing. The consensus seems to be no, at least according to a few of those dastardly national media types.

Tuesday afternoon, a report from USA Today's Sam Amick hit the wire saying the Warriors, among other teams, have "serious interest" in Hinrich. In fact, Amick says these teams had interest in Hinrich before Deng was even dealt, so one has to imagine talks could really intensify now that the Bulls moved on from Deng. There was less-credible reports earlier suggesting another Bulls move from Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio, and longtime NBA guy Peter Vescey claimed Kirk Hinrich was the next to go. Vescey suggested the Warriors as a potential team with interest due to their lack of a viable backup point guard behind Stephen Curry.

Given how much Hinrich has struggled this year, it's kind of mystifying that multiple teams would show such interest. However, Hinrich still does do some things well, and his flaws are really amplified given his unexpectedly large role in the wake of Derrick Rose's latest injury. Playing in a backcourt with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, Hinrich could return to a smaller role where he'd be much more likely to succeed and less likely to get injured.

Now what could a Hinrich-to-Warriors deal look like? Well, the Warriors have a nice little $4 million trade exception created from the Brandon Rush deal that Hinrich could fit into. Hinrich of course makes a tad over $4 million, but teams are allowed to take back an additional $100,000 when using a trade exception. That trade exception may not really do the Bulls any good because it would cut into cap space next offseason and likely be renounced, so the Bulls could perhaps look for a second-round pick as a sweetener. The Warriors could also prefer to send a player or two the Bulls way instead so they're not as close to the luxury tax line, which in that case, there are some expiring bums that could be had. I'm thinking guys like Toney Douglas and Kent Bazemore. The Bulls themselves have a TPE for ~$2.5m from the Deng deal to help facilitate a trade.

I personally would love a Hinrich deal because I can't stand watching him play anymore and a Marquis Teague return could help drive the tank, but I'll believe one when I see it. The organization loves Kirk, after all! However, they could always make a run at him in the offseason if they simply can't live without him. I'd prefer they not, but I guess the Bulls could do worse as a backup point guard to Rose. Maybe.