Chicago Bulls News and Rumors

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Chicago Bulls Analysis

The 2015-16 NBA season is right around the corner, and there will be plenty of analysis and news coming out of training camp. New Chicago Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg will be trying to implement his system and work with Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler, Pau Gasol, and Joakim Noah. The Bulls kick off the season at home at the United Center on October 6th. It will be interesting to see the new offensive sets and creativity Hoiberg will bring to this anemic offense, and how Butler and Rose gel in the new system. Last season there was turmoil in the locker room, with the star guards creating news and rumors with their apparent rift. Winning cures all, however, and it’ll be a story line to watch all year.

Derrick Rose dunk

Derrick Rose dunk

Hinrich, and Nazr, and Belinelli! Oh, my!

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K.C. Johnson’s latest piece for the Tribune is filled with a lot of information regarding the Bulls’ current and future moves. Right off the bat we’re hit with the following:

The Bulls on Tuesday officially will announce they have declined to match Omer Asik’s three-year, $25.1 million offer sheet from the Rockets, sources said, paving the way for multiple signings that began Monday with Kirk Hinrich.

More on Hinrich:

The Tribune reported on July 8 that Hinrich verbally agreed to a two-year deal, but it’s closer to $8 million in value, sources said. Hinrich, who will be reintroduced at a 2 p.m. Berto Center news conference on Tuesday, turned down slightly more money from the Bucks, sources said.

G Marco Belinelli (2 years, $3.8 million) and C Nazr Mohammed (1 year, $1.4 million) are also expected to be signed sometime in the near future. As K.C. mentions, La Gazzetta dello Sport is reporting that Marco’s second year is a team option.

Diving into Summer League!

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With the second game of the Bulls’ 2012 Summer League stint in the books, let’s take a quick look at how Jimmy Butler, Marquis Teague, and Malcolm Thomas have fared so far.

Butler has been quite impressive. Jimmy’s averaging a very respectable 24.5 ppg on 48% shooting from the field while also showing efficiency and a knack for getting to the line. His form looks better than I remember, and his jumper appears to have some more arc to it than it did last year. Jimmy has also shown poise, maturity, confidence, and vision in both games.

Teague, on the other hand, has struggled early on. He’s made some careless passes and has turned the ball over a bit too much. However, I think we witnessed a bit of a turning point for Teague somewhere in the second quarter against Houston: from that point on, he seemed to be more cool, confident, and collected. Against the Celtics, Marquis shot 4-for-17 from the field and racked up 8 points, 1 assist, 1 rebound, and 6 turnovers. He bounced back against the Rockets, putting up 14 points on a 6-for-13 shooting performance, 5 assists, and shaving a turnover off his Boston total.

Malcolm Thomas, the 6’9″ forward out of San Diego State, is a guy us Bulls fans should probably keep our eyes on. He has put up exactly 10 points and 13 rebounds in both games while facing some pretty solid Summer League frontcourts. K.C. Johnson had this to say about Thomas:

The caveat is back: “It’s only summer league . . .” That said, I’d be surprised if Malcolm Thomas doesn’t get training camp invite.

The Bulls have three Summer League games remaining. We have Thursday off, and then we’ll take on the Warriors, Clippers, and the Bucks over the course of three days.

Korver traded to Atlanta

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The Bulls have traded veteran sharpshooter Kyle Korver to the Atlanta Hawks. According to K.C. Johnson:

Pending a passed physical, the Chicago Bulls have traded Kyle Korver to the Atlanta Hawks via the Minnesota Timberwolves in a move that saves them $500,000 and nets what is expected to be either a second-round pick and traded player exception or a player with a small contract from the Timberwolves.

More to come as details emerge.

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K.C. gives us a bit of an update:

It’s also unclear what the Bulls will receive with negotiations ongoing, though one source said they originally agreed to a second-round pick from the Timberwolves and a $5.1 million trade exception. Another, less likely possibility would be the second-round pick and Wayne Ellington, whom the Bulls had interest in coming out of North Carolina.

The details are still a bit fuzzy, but it all appears to be slowly coming together.

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Courtesy of Bulls.com, the Bulls have officially “traded forward Kyle Korver to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for a trade exception and cash considerations.”

Kirk Hinrich, Bulls reach verbal agreement on 2-year, $6 million deal

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From K.C. Johnson’s Tribune article:

Just over two years after getting traded from the Chicago Bulls to the Washington Wizards, sources said free-agent guard Kirk Hinrich has verbally agreed to return to the franchise that drafted him.

Hinrich, who spent his first seven seasons with the Bulls, is expected to sign a two-year deal worth just over $6 million, one source said, though details were still being finalized. The free-agent moratorium ends July 11.

Additionally, according to Mike McGraw, the Bulls also have their eyes on Michael Redd and Gerald Green. Aggrey Sam mentioned earlier today that Green visited the Berto Center on both Friday and Saturday.

Naturally, this also all but guarantees C.J. Watson’s departure.

Another one bites the dust: Roy reaches verbal agreement with Minny

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According to Jason Quick, a senior writer for the Oregonian, veteran shooting guard Brandon Roy has reached a verbal agreement with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Quick later tweeted:

Agent Greg Lawrence confirms earlier report: Brandon Roy to Minnesota for two years and in “ballpark” of $10.4 million

Also, after learning about Roy’s decision, K.C. Johnson gave us this tidbit:

Not much appears to have changed on Bulls’ front: Still talking to Hinrich, Courtney Lee camps.

While the Bulls appear to have entered free agency with a less aggressive mindset than some other teams, it is still definitely not time to panic. While the amount of available combo guards and shooting guards may be dwindling, there are still some very solid names out there.