We all know we have a need at the SG and the PF position. This isn’t about who we’d like, but rather, if we get an A-level player at the SG, what level player would we need at the PF position, so to start off, I will put up a list of the all the Restricted, Unrestricted FAs as well as players who are likely to be available through trade. Mind you I haven’t dissected this from a stand point of signs and trades to attain a particular player.
Here’s the key as well so you know the availability of the player, if the player doesn’t have anything next to his name, that means he is an Unrestricted free agent:
ETO – Early Termination Option
PO – Player option to extend
TO – Team option to extend
TR – Through Trade
R – Restricted
A - Level players (Superstars)GuardsLebron James (PO)
Dwayne Wade (PO)
Kobe Bryant (PO)
ForwardsAmare Stoudemire (ETO)
Chris Bosh (PO)
Dirk Nowitzki (ETO)
CentersYao Ming (ETO)
B – Level players (All Stars)GuardsJoe Johnson
Kevin Martin (TR)
Forwards
Paul Pierce (ETO)
Rudy Gay (R)
David Lee
Carlos Boozer
Al Jefferson (TR)
Caron Butler (TR)
CentersShaq
C – Level players (Role Players)Guards
Nate Robinson
Tracy McGrady
Manu Ginobli
Ray Allen
Michael Redd (ETO)
Stephen Jackson
TJ Ford (U with PO for ’10-’11)
Jamal Crawford
Raja Bell
Rafer Alston
Will Bynum (R)
Kyle Lowry (R)
Sebastian Telfair (PO)
Luke Ridnour
Chris Douglas Roberts (TO)
JJ Redick (R)
Anthony Morrow (R)
Rodney Carney
Steve Blake
Keith Bogans
Randy Foye (R)
Forwards
Mike Miller
Udonis Haslem
Al Harrington
Josh Howard (TO)
Richard Jefferson (ETO)
Amir Johnson
Travis Outlaw
Luis Scola (R)
Chuck Hayes (TO)
Tyrus Thomas (R)
Leon Powe (TO)
Drew Gooden
Kris Humphries (PO)
Linas Kleiza (R)
Kenyon Martin (R)
Carl Landry (TO)
Jason Kapono (PO)
Grant Hill (PO)
Kyle Korver
Jermaine O’Neal
CentersMarcus Camby
Tyson Chandler (ETO)
Brad Miller
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Anderson Varajeo
Ben Wallace
Joel Przybilla (ETO)
Brendan Haywood
Channing Frye (PO)
Fabricio Oberto
D – Level players (Bench Players)GuardsAnthony Johnson
Jason Williams
JR Giddens
Mario Chalmers (TO)
Tony Allen
Anthony Roberson
Acie Law
Brent Barry
Mike James
Antonio Daniels
Cuttino Mobley
CJ Watson (R)
Willie Green (ETO)
Royal Ivey
DeShawn Stevenson (PO)
Sergio Rodriguez (R)
Desmond Mason
Michael Finley
Lindsey Hunter
Derek Fisher
Damien Wilkins
Jason Hart
Javaris Crittenton
Quincy Douby
Speedy Claxton
Jannero Pargo
Jordan Farmar (R)
Shannon Brown (PO)
Mardy Collins (R)
Trenton Hassell
Earl Watson
Chucky Atkins
Jarvis Hayes
Coby Karl (R)
Shaun Livingston
Kevin Ollie
Travis Diener
Larry Hughes
Roger Mason
Roko Ukic (PO)
Bobby Brown
Devin Brown
Chris Duhon
Luther Head
Carlos Arroyo
Ronnie Brewer (R)
Patrick Mills (R)
Marcus Williams
Ricky Davis
Kareem Rush
Josh Childress (R)
JJ Barea (TO)
Eddie House
Anthony Carter
Forwards
Matt Barnes (PO)
Juwan Howard
Sean May
Antoine Wright
Oleksiy Pecherov
Othello Hunter (R)
Kenny Thomas
Alando Tucker
Matt Harpring
Marcus Haislip (TO)
Brian Scalabrine
Ian Mahinimi
Adam Morrison (R)
Hakim Warrick
Rasual Butler
Bruce Bowen
Brian Skinner
Craig Smith
Shawne Williams (R)
Jawad Williams (R)
Yakhouba Diawara
Dominic McGuire (R)
Peja Stojakovic (ETO)
Shelden Williams
John Salmons (ETO)
Matt Bonner
Ryan Bowen
Darius Songaila (ETO)
Ike Diogu
Sean Marks
Kenny Thomas
Bobby Simmons
Brian Cardinal
Tim Thomas
Kelenna Azubuike (PO)
Craig Smith
Jock Brockman (R)
Shavlik Randolph
James Singelton
Josh Boone (R)
Joe Alexander
Quintin Ross
Dorell Wright
Steve Novak
Mark Madsen
Devean George
Sasha Pavlovic
Quentin Richardson
Maurice Evans
CentersAdonal Foyle
Primoz Brezec
Theo Ratliff
Tony Battie
Sean Williams
Nathan Jawal (R)
Mark Blount
Rasho Nesterovic
Josh Powell
Joel Anthony (PO)
Brian Cook
Kwame Brown
Chris Wilcox (PO)
Malik Allen
Joe Smith
Jerome James
Nazr Mohammed (ETO)
Vladimir Radmanovic (ETO)
Aaron Gray
Jason Collins
Hilton Armstrong (R)
Etan Thomas
Francisco Oberto
Kurt Thomas
Francisco Elson
Jamaal Magloire
Mikki Moore
Patrick O'Bryant
Steven Hunter
Louis Amundson
Jarron Collins
Pop Mensah Bonsu (R)
Johan Petro
Randolph Morris
Kyrylo Fesenko (R)
D.J. Mbenga
Paul Davis
So this tells us that there are at least 200 players available, and I know some players are capable of playing the SF position but it is truly a SG and vice versa. Similarly with PFs and Cs
7 A-level players, 9 B-level players, 52 C-level players, and 146 D-level players. Mind you, my categorization is based on how the Bulls can benefit from these players. For example, Rudy Gay is considered a B-level player which I have labeled as “All Stars” but he may not necessarily be an All-Star. He just has the potential to perform at that level.
So now, that we have all these players, we can kick back and think it’d be really great to get to A-level players, namely Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, or Lebron James and Chris Bosh and what not. Which is great, I mean I’d love to have Lebron as a player, regardless of the taunting that we received, which quite frankly we deserve (I mean shit, the only player who stood up for the team was Noah).
So now let’s take a look at these Superstars, below you’ll find a breakdown of, if we get any of them, what type of complimentary players we need to surround this individual, or what else would we need rather:
A-Level Stars
Yao Ming:Probability of becoming a Bull:Great player but it doesn’t look like he’ll opt out. He’s comfortable in Houston and made himself a name. Plus it’s an attractive NBA city.
If he was a Bull:He’d provide a center that can score, play D and gives us the offensive post presence we severely lack.
Fellow newcomers:If we somehow land him (which I highly doubt), we wouldn’t need a Dwayne Wade, but rather a Joe Johnson would do very well, or a Ray Allen, Mike Miller, or Travis Outlaw would do nicely. With a guy like Yao, we wouldn’t need an absolute star at the SG position, but one that can shoot the 3 and play some D. But again, actually getting Yao is very close to 0% chance so I won’t either bother suggesting candidates.
Amare Stoudemire:Probability of becoming a Bull:I like Amare Stoudemire. I wouldn’t consider him the first option for us, however I won’t complain if we get stuck with him. He wouldn’t be a top target so the chances of us are landing him are low.
If he was a Bull:He’s a guy who can be a scoring machine, however, can’t play D or rebound very well. I’m not worried as much as we have Deng, who’s an good rebounder on most nights, and Noah who can play good D and rebound very well. Amare doesn’t give you a Ming presence, but will most likely require the max or close to it to get signed.
Fellow Newcomers:So who do we get at the SG position? Joe Johnson would be a good addition here or even Manu Ginobli, although he’s up there in years. Stephen Jackson would be a good addition. The guy can score and play D, and won’t require the max. Anthony Morrow would be a great addition because he’s young and can shoot the 3, and won’t require much money to secure.
Lebron JamesProbability of becoming a Bull:
The King is one of the top 2 players in the league, you can’t deny that. Also, you take him away from the Cavs, and their team on paper would fair much worse than the Bulls do. Is there a chance to land the King, sure, perhaps. The challenge to take the NBA’s greatest player’s team to new heights would do wonders for his ego. If by some miracle we do manage to get him he can line up at almost any position, but then again we’d probably need him to line up next to Rose at the 2. I’m almost sure though, that if the Cavs win the championship this year, LBJ will be ready to pack his bags and leave to greener pastures are another challenge.
If he was a Bull:
We’d get our two guard that can score from practically anywhere on the court. He’ll take the attention away from Rose and Deng, which will give them much more wide open shots, especially with his ability to drive and kick. His ability to line up at any position except for the maybe the 1 and 5 slots would give us a lot of flexibility with lineups.
Fellow Newcomers:
So what type of player would we require at the 4? We wouldn’t need a Bosh or Stoudemire. Best case scenario to win a championship, I think we’d need David Lee. David Lee won’t be asking for the max, and he’s shown in the past few years that he can score, rebound and play D. A line up of Rose, James, Deng, Lee and Noah, would provide you with an excellent and young defensive team that would rebound well and be very well balanced.
We can then use whatever money remaining to secure a three point shooter off the bench and an extra body or two for the paint. Hakim Warrick would be a nice pick up, Anthony Morrow would most certainly do, Kyle Korver or even Mike Miller would be good additions. Factor in a 1st round pick in the middle of the first round, and the development of Taj, and JJ and you have a pretty solid contender. If we can’t land David Lee, who would be much more humble than a money hungry Boozer, we can get away with Al Harrington but we’d need to pack more punch of the bench.
Dwayne WadeProbability of becoming a Bull:
I think there’s a much bigger chance than people expect that Wade can be a Bull next season. The following things are working for us:
A. He’s from Chicago
a. Closer to his family and kids
b. Almost all players dream of playing for the team they grew up cheering for and bringing a championship back home
B. He’s won it all for Miami
C. The fan base is unquestionably one of the top fan bases in the country
D. A proud and legendary franchise (albeit ownership is poor)
E. Much more talent than the Heat currently has (Deng, Noah and Rose)
If he was a Bull:I think he’ll either have to recognize that Rose is a star on the rise and is a person that can share the load with him in the backcourt. Wade will have to prematurely take a step back in terms of limelight, similarly to how Shaq did when he joined the Heat. Wade would be required to help with the development of Rose, hell maybe even Ty Thomas if he’s re-signed. We’d have a deadly backcourt that can’t shoot the three though.
Fellow Newcomers:A lot of people I’m talking to have dreams of signing Wade and Bosh. I mean sure that is a great combination, especially when you have Rose running the show, but I don’t think Bosh would be the best fit. Spending all that money on Bosh and Wade would leave very little money (if any) under the cap to get decent role players. Good options would be Lee, Boozer and even better yet, Al Jefferson. Jefferson if traded for (Sign and Trade of TT and Deng) will provide the Bulls a PF that can play with his back to the basket. He gives you a very strong presence in the paint, and although his defense is subpar by Chicago standards, Noah + Gibson could help offset that.
I much prefer Lee and Jefferson over Boozer due to Carlos’ (probably high) salary demands. If we actually get Jefferson and have to give up Deng to do so, we can trade Hinrich for Butler, giving Washington the PG they covet and we’d get a scoring SF in Butler. We can then sign up a 3pt shooter or two. Options include Anthony Morrow, Channing Frye, Keith Bogans, Travis Outlaw (not 3pt shooter, but a good prospect off the bench), all players that can provide us with a solid bench. Luke Ridnour and Steve Blake will be nice options at the PG position, and we also have a draft pick to draft a need. Again, we wouldn’t need to splurge on two Superstars.
Chris BoshProbability of becoming a Bull:
I like Chris Bosh. Really I do, and I think other than Lebron, he should be our number one option going into the summer. With Bosh next to Noah, they will form the best front court along with Deng that the Bulls has ever had. More importantly, I think we should try trading for him before the deadline. Send Ty Thomas, Kirk Hinrich, and Jerome James for Bosh and an expiring. This would be pivotal, because even if he doesn’t want to re-sign with the Bulls, we’d have his bird rights. In other words to maximize the potential of any future deal, if he doesn’t re-sign, he’ll have to do it through a sign and trade. That would at least net us a few vital cogs and some picks.
If he was a Bull:Although Toronto may have more talent on their squad, I don’t think they have as much potential. I think Rose will make the All-Star team this year. Also, Bosh won’t have to worry about playing center, as we have Noah manning that position. That way Bosh can play at his natural position, PF. We’d have a solid front court in Bosh, Noah and Deng with Rose orchestrating the offense.
Fellow Newcomers:
So if by some miracle we lock up Bosh, who do we get at the SG position? Ideally I think Joe Johnson would be a nice fit, but he’d require a rich contract. There are other options. If the Kevin Martin/Tyreke Evans experiment fails, we can trade Hinrich + 1st round pick for Kevin Martin. Hinrich fills a need for the Kings as a PG, as Evans figures to be a SG. Given that Martin is injury prone, he’ll still give us a high volume scorer that we so direly miss after Ben Gordon went to our Midwest rivals. We can then fill the PG position with the many options we have in free agency.
Kobe BryantProbability of becoming a Bull:Maybe Kobe giving Rose advice was a sign of things to come, especially if Phil Jackson does not return to the Staples Center next season. However I highly doubt that Kobe would want to leave the Lakers when they’re stocked with so many personnel built around him.
If he was a Bull:If by some miracle we manage to lure Bryant to the Windy City, we’d have a pretty solid core in terms of scoring provided by Bryant, Rose and Deng. Bryant would draw so much attention from opposing defenses that it would be possible for an average post player to develop in the Bulls system. But we’d still be severely lacking in the frontcourt, and that’s something Bryant hasn’t had to worry about for the majority of his career. Still, Bryant, like James, would help improve his teammates and that’s something we can’t afford to overlook.
Fellow Newcomers:David Lee would be ideal (yes, I have him listed in most scenarios), but there are good options in Al Harrington and Hakim Warrick. I highly doubt that Kobe would leave LA for Chicago, especially if they manage to swing a deal to get Bosh for Bynum and secure him for the long run. Odom, Gasol, Artest, and Bynum for Rose, Noah, and Deng? I don’t think so. Although it would be a challenge and he’ll have a chance to do it where the legend did it six times.
Dirk NowitzkiProbability of becoming a Bull:I am not too high on Dirk and I wouldn’t think he’d leave Dallas. He has reiterated several times that he would like to retire in Dallas so the chances of him coming to Chicago are very low.
If he were a Bull:If he happens to land in Chicago, he’d provide us with a stretch 4, that can rebound and play defense. But I really don’t see his addition really enhancing our squad especially since he’s getting up there in years.
Fellow Newcomers:So what we’d require at the SG position is a player that can shoot and play D. Candidates for that would be Travis Outlaw, Keith Bogans and Manu Ginobli. Not very expensive (or young options with the exception of Outlaw) but can definitely still be productive and will rub off (at least Ginobli) very well on a young Bulls team. Again, the probability of this happening is very low.
Joe JohnsonProbability of becoming a Bull:
I think there’s a high probability of JJ becoming a Bull. First of all he’s not too impressed with the Atlanta fan base which only seems to care come playoff time. Also, he’d benefit greatly from a marketing point of view if he was to change his permanent address to Chicago. Look at VDN, he’s the shittiest coach in the league and isn’t the only coach on the hot seat. Yet he’s under the most scrutiny and has as many articles written about his job speculation as Arenas’ gun play.
If he was a Bull:A lot of Bulls fans are against getting Joe Johnson as a primary target. I believe he can still help the squad as he is a do it all type of player. He’d definitely fill a SG need and would share ball handling duties with Rose. He also would go to a less talented team if he was to come here, but I think he can handle it taking into consideration his smart play and experience.
Fellow NewcomersSo who’d be a good option at PF? JJ will likely command big money, and we may have to seek a PF through a trade. Options here include Al Jefferson and David West. This would be in a very ideal situation and would help. Otherwise we’d have to settle for David Lee, Al Harrington, and maybe even be more patient for another year. This would give the squad one more year of development rather than compete now for a championship. If we do get Al Jefferson or David West, we’d be able to sign some FAs to beef up the bench, preferably 3pt shooters and defensive players.
Carlos BoozerProbability of becoming a Bull:
Last summer, Boozer declared interest in both the Bulls and the Heat. I’m pretty sure if the Heat can secure Boozer they will re-sign Wade. Unless Wade doesn’t think Boozer is good enough, he’ll re-up with the Heat. This, IMO is the best case scenario. I would much prefer Boozer and Wade get engaged in Miami. But then again, Boozer’s history shows that he’s all about the benjis. I don’t think Jerry Reinsdorf will ok a Max deal for Boozer and I don’t think he’s worth that much, given his age and his injury history. His production this season has been stellar and truly does warrant it.
If he was a Bull:He’d provide the Bulls with the inside presence that they have been craving since MJ decided to crossover (or push off) Russell for that last shot in Salt Lake City. Rose would definitely have an opportunity to blossom and come into his own, and Noah can concentrate more on what he does best, rebound and play D. Deng will also get more open shots and have a good chance at making an All-Star team.
Fellow Newcomers:
Assuming we pay him max money we can always trade Hinrich and a 1st round pick for Kevin Martin and we can try and pry away Rudy Gay from cost-wary Memphis. But we’d still need to clear more cap space. Other good candidates would be Travis Outlaw, Anthony Morrow, and or Keith Bogans. I really don’t see Boozer as a good fit given his asking price, and future potential as a team.
David LeeProbability of becoming a Bull:
I don’t think David Lee will stay with the Knicks after this past summer and the hassle of getting re-signed. He’s proved himself to be a consistent 20-10 guy and has declared interest in the up-and-coming Oklahoma City Thunder. I think if the money is right, and if the Bulls show him enough importance, he’ll sign. He won’t command max money, potentially 10-12 million a year, especially with this down market.
If he were a Bull:I really like David Lee for the Bulls, because he is a reflection of the city. He’s a blue collar type of player that rebounds very well, plays D and can score if needed. He’d give us an improved post-presence offensively, perhaps not as good as a Bosh, Boozer or Stoudemire, but he would suffice I think. Defensively we’d have one of the best starting front courts and he seems to be a fairly injury-free player who gives 200% every night.
Fellow Newcomers:
I don’t think he should be a primary target because he’s not a # 1 option yet. If we manage to lose out on Bosh and Stoudemire, we go after Lee. Good two guards to compliment the team would come in the form of Joe Johnson, Kevin Martin (which would allow us to have more cap for other role players off the bench), Ginobli, Stephen Jackson, Morrow. Again we won’t have a championship team, but a contender, and all of this will hinge on Rose developing into a superstar, only that will take our squad from a contender to a Championship team.
Well, I hope this all makes sense. I just wanted to kind of put in writing all the different scenarios with free agents we potentially maybe getting. I think it will be a swell summer, I just hope are Front Office get the priorities right and make the best decisions…fat chance…
PEACE
