We knew this is how it would end.

Tyrus Thomas, the Bulls’ young power forward, the one with all the potential in the world he could never seem to harness into consistency, has left the building. In a relationship that was always a bit rocky, the final straw came earlier this month when he decided to start screaming and swearing about playing time to Vinny Del Negro.

And so he’s now been traded to the Bobcats for Acie Law and Flip Murray — don’t worry; both are expiring contracts — and a protected first-round pick.

Yes, friends: the Bulls just dumped Thomas for very little. The player we all hoped would blossom into something brilliant on both ends of the floor — not that he wasn’t here and there, mind you — has been exchanged for table scraps.

In watching rookie Taj Gibson this year, he’s been pretty much the polar opposite of Tyrus. Where Ty feels he should start for no other reason than he feels he should start, Gibson has shut his mouth and just played. He’s done what’s asked of him. He works hard. He’s never making dumb mistakes or playing outside his game.

He’s doing what the coaching staff has asked of him, and he’s doing it well.

If only Tyrus had done the same, things might have been different. But alas, it just wasn’t meant to be.

In closing, I’ll leave you with a graph from the last blog post Thomas penned for us this past summer. It’s about as fitting as it gets for his tenure in Chicago:

The draft! I keep getting the question “what’s up with the two forwards?” Let me say this, I’m the starting power forward and I don’t plan on playing anywhere but Chicago. Some may say I’m arrogant, or full of myself, some may even say I’m crazy! I’m just giving yall the truth.

So after Tyrus Thomas decided to go on an expletive-laden tirade against Vinny Del Negro over the weekend, it appears Mr. Thomas’ days are numbered as a member of the Bulls.

And with the trade deadline a week away, the Bulls are looking to unload Thomas sooner rather than later. So where could he land? Just about everywhere!

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, the Bobcats, Blazers, Knicks, Kings, Spurs, Nuggets and Hornets have all had discussions with the Bulls about Thomas. Oh, what it must feel like to be loved.

As I’ve detailed on this here blog before, the Bulls are looking to trade Kirk Hinrich for expiring contracts as well, so there’s a chance Tyrus could be packaged with Kirk in such a deal. But if that were to happen, you can cross off a lot of these teams; most aren’t looking to take on a contract like Hinrich’s, unless they were dumping salary back at the Bulls — something Chicago has no interest in.

According to Woj, the asking price for Thomas is a 2010 or future first-round pick and an expiring contract, and the Bobcats have thrown out Flip Murray, Acie Law and their 2010 first-round pick.

If the Bulls were to accept this proposal, that could been the rumored deal sending D.J. Augustin to Boston for Glen “Big Baby” Davis might not happen, as the Bobcats would already have the big man they covet.

Or maybe it could mean Davis and Thomas end up in Charlotte together, and reunite again, just like their LSU days. Let’s just hope if Big Baby decides to punch Thomas, he doesn’t retaliate by swearing at him.

So, with Francisco Garcia coming back to the Kings’ lineup soon and Omri Casspi finding his way into the Rookie of the Year discussion– and, to a lesser extent, SG Kevin Martin already being back since Friday — the Kings finally find themselves with a plethora of wings. They’ve been rumored to be wanting a big man.

So Sam Amick of the Sacramento Bee connects some dots here as trade season really starts to heat up: Nocioni (the odd man out at small forward) for Tyrus Thomas.

League sources continue to indicate Nocioni is the likely log to leave – by a long shot.

The six-year veteran is owed a combined $21 million during the next three seasons, and the Kings could either trade him for expiring money and gain $6.85 million in salary-cap room this summer, or include him in a deal for the additional big man they need. It bears watching whether Chicago shows any interest in re-acquiring the player they traded last February.

The Bulls are believed to still think highly of Nocioni, and they just so happen to have a defensive-minded big man in Tyrus Thomas who they are reportedly open to trading. Thomas is owed $4.7 million this season and is a restricted free agent this summer, meaning the Kings could give him a long look before deciding whether or not to keep him.

On paper this makes some sense. The Bulls want to trade Thomas. It looks like the Kings could unload Nocioni.

But.

The Bulls are not interested in taking on any more salary — especially for a player of Nocioni’s caliber. Heck, they’re also looking into trading Kirk Hinrich, who’s got two years and $17 million left on his deal, in an effort to shave even more salary to really be under the cap this summer. (The dream is to have enough money to attract LeBron James and Chris Bosh, because there are rumblings they want to play together. Odds of the Bulls pulling this off are likely pretty low, further complicated by the fact Bosh could be traded to another team before the deadline if the Raptors feel like he’s not going to re-sign this summer. But it’s still the dream.)

Keep reading →

Well, it seems like they’re certainly trying to.

The situation in shaping up like this right now: Both Kirk Hinirch and Tyrus Thomas are being dangled by the Bulls, according to Marc Stein and Chris Broussard.

On Thomas’ end, the Bulls, by most accounts, don’t have him in their plans long-term. He’s a restricted free agent this summer, and it seems as if they’re going to let him walk. Which, I suppose is cool. Thomas has shown spurts of maturation, but he’s hasn’t put it together for long stretches. How long until you give up on his potential?

The Bulls drafted Taj Gibson to prep for this, and it’s worked out exceedingly well. If they can sign Chris Bosh — or potentially trade for him before Feb. 18’s deadline — Gibson would be more than a serviceable backup off the bench. He’s not amazing by any stretch, but he plays within himself and doesn’t often make rookie mistakes. He’s just a solid contributor.

On to Hinirch: He’s got two more years on his contract after this — $9 million next year, $8 million the season after — so the thinking here is that if the Bulls can trade him and get some expiring contracts back, Hinrich’s next two years of $17 million come off the books, and the Bulls are in a better position to attack the free-agent market this summer, likely having enough scrilla to sign both LeBron James and Chris Bosh. With Hinrich’s contract still on the table, that’s not really a likely scenario: it’s either one or the other for the Bulls.

But the problem here is that Hinrich doesn’t have the value he once did. And in an economic market where teams are looking to avoid paying luxury tax or taking on any longer-term money, that makes it doubly hard to trade him.

So yes: If the Bulls are to make a move, it will likely involve either one of these two — or  a package of them together. But unless it’s for Chris Bosh, the Bulls likely won’t be taking on anything major or long-term.

Ditching Hinrich is simply away to free up some more cap space this summer.

Rumor time!

From Boers and Bernstein on 670 The Score, though I’m not sure which one said it. (Transcription comes from Da Bullz.)

Try this on for size, as something that is percolating. And as of now, this is all I can tell you. I’m not going to tell you this is a done deal, or that it’s even close, but as far as something that is out there as a possibility. Hinrich, Tyrus Thomas, and at least one pick to the Toronto Raptors for Chris Bosh.

Yes, yes, yes, 1,000 times yes. Of course, the odds are likely slim on this happening, but unlike other people, I don’t see this as highway robbery; the Bulls aren’t pulling the o’l switcheroo on Toronto. Bosh is likely not coming back to the team next year; he’ll walk in free agency. So Toronto would be wise to try and get some value for him now, instead of getting nothing for him later.

That’s the reason the Bulls can afford to offer a package like this — which, really, isn’t that horrible — and the Raptors may bite; it may be the best they can get for Bosh.

Further, the Raptors are the worst defensive team in the league. Jose Calderon is perhaps their worst defender. Adding Kirk Hinrich helps some in that department. (Though, I suppose losing Bosh negates that.)

Keep reading →

It’s that time of year again, friends. Time to get the Tyrus Thomas trade rumors going.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, a potential deal being bandied about is Thomas and Jerome James to the Knicks for Al Harrington. A blockquote, then let’s discuss.

Thus far, Walsh has resisted parting with Harrington, but discussions are still active and the teams have explored different combinations in recent days that would ultimately deliver Thomas to the Knicks.

“Nothing is imminent, but both sides would like to figure out a way to do this,” one league executive briefed on the talks told Yahoo! Sports.

The Bulls believe Harrington’s ability to score coupled with a $10.2 million expiring contract make this a worthy exchange. Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni has long been fond of Thomas, a 6-foot-9 forward whose nimbleness and athleticism makes him an intriguing fit for New York.

Thomas, 23, was the fourth pick in the 2006 NBA draft, and started to fulfill his promise with 10.9 points and 6.4 rebounds last season. Nevertheless, Chicago believes it has a worthy power forward successor on the cheap in rookie Taj Gibson, and jettisoning Thomas would also eliminate his approximate $13 million cap hold for the Bulls next summer.

Thomas’ agent, Brian Elfus, tried to negotiate a contract extension with Chicago, but talks never pushed past perfunctory.

If Donnie Walsh agrees to this deal, it instantly makes the Bulls better. Harrington is averaging 19.5 points and 6.2 boards per game, and he’s doing it rather efficiently: his PER of 19.27 ranks 13th in the league for power forwards. He’s scored over 40 points twice this season. Not too shabby. (I know he’s on the Knicks, which plays a fast pace under Mike D’Antoni, and his career average is 13.9 points a game which isn’t much better than Thomas, but still.) Put him in the frontcourt with Joakim Noah, and that’s not a bad one-two punch.

When the Bulls didn’t extend Thomas, it was clear they were taking a wait and see approach. But after a slow start and then the injury, it looks like they might have decided enough is enough, and are trying to get some value for him while they can. I like Thomas, but he’s still yet to fulfill his potential. How much longer do you wait?

Keep reading →

The Bulls take on the Spurs this evening in their season opener. Three things to keep on eye on tonight, and as the season progress.

1) The play of John Salmons and Luol Deng.

With Ben Gordon gone, the Bulls need scoring. Salmons provided it last year for the Bulls; can he do it again this year? Expect some regression, but it’s likely Salmons still drops around 14-17 a game. Deng will be interesting to watch as well. Can he return to form? Will he show off the potential he had a few years back, when many thought he was the next breakout star in the league?

Let’s hope. Because if Salmons and Deng fail to produce, the Bulls are in trouble on the offensive end.

2) Tyrus Thomas vs. Taj Gibson.

Tyrus Thomas will start at power forward tonight for the Bulls. Good. He’s in a contract year, is hungry, and if the Bulls are looking to trade him before the deadline, there’s no reason to stick him on the bench where he may pout. But you wonder what happens going forward here: if the rookie Gibson outshines Thomas when he gets out on the floor, will there be a battle for playing time? Will Gibson suddenly become the Bulls’ best trade bait? The job is Thomas’ for now, but don’t be surprised if Gibson gives him a run for his money.

3) The maturation of Vinny Del Negro and Derrick Rose.

Both were rookies last year. Del Negro as a head coach, Rose as a point guard. Del Negro took a lot of guff for questionable lineups during last season, but he got the monkey off his back in the playoffs, as the Bulls went toe-to-toe with the defending champion Celtics. Del Negro is far from an elite coach, but if he can improve with experience, the Bulls will be all the better.

For all the praise heaped upon Rose last year, he’s still got plenty to improve: his defense, his shooting, his vocal leadership.

If he can improve on all those things, it’s not a stretch to say Rose may leap into the top point guards in the league conversation — Derron Williams/Chris Paul/ Steve Nash — in the next year or two.