Joe Johnson wants to commit early to Bulls?

[♠ B u c k e t s ♠]

It'd be really hilarious if Lebron re-signed with the Cavs. All the hype for nothing.

[BigP50]

that would be very un-hilarious

[Lex L.]

Originally Posted by Anytime23

1st, who is this guy reporting this.
2nd, I'll wait until Sam Smith or KC Johnson mention this before i get worried.

I just dont see how they would have a handshake agreement with one of the older and less talented free agents when they are obviously front runners for the top talent FAs. Just doesnt make sense to me. If there are discussions with Joe Johnson behind close doors, there can very well be the same with LeBron, Bosh, etc. Im sure there are discussions happening with all of the teams and with all of the FAs. I think by the time the 8th rolls around, people will already have their minds made up. I would be very happy with a JJ/Bosh combo though.

Meh. The only thing I find encouraging about the possibility of it being Joe Johnson and LeBron is that people are always forgetting that our team led the league in rebounding last year. Our biggest weakness was that we got 28.5 ppg from Kirk and Luol. LeBron gets that by himself. But the reason its encouraging is that our core of players has already proven to be effective rebounders. And its not like we just rely on one guy for rebounding like Miami or NY would be doing if they landed Bosh and a SF. I like this because I think the FO should be emphasizing this hard...the fact that if Miami gets 3 Max FAs, they only have 6-7 million to spend on the rest of their roster. How are they going to get any rebounding to help Bosh? Bosh cant do it himself, and especially not against teams like the Celtics and Lakers...or the Bulls. Rebounding was a major factor in the outcome of the NBA finals. And again, the fact that they might be targeting Johnson at least sort of suggests theyre very aware of our core strengths and they might also emphasize this in selling Chicago.

[Chi-Town Brahma]

I'm not a firm believer in Unofficial articales giving away random blotchs of info like this JJ agreeing to a "handshake deal". If that would be true...screw any possiblity of everything else falling into place the right way.

GarPax, I'd like to think, are not dumb enough to fall into thinking getting JJ first or at all will help us out.

[Undisputed]

Originally Posted by Crystallas

Gay is NOT on my wishlist. But my point is that if we have to fill in the SF spot, because the FO finds a taker for Deng to clear more space(a thought we can't rule out) then Gay is an option somewhere down the line.

I'm on a pre-July 8th rollercoaster right now.

One moment I'm clenching my fists with excitement, then the next moment I am reminded by some of the stupid moves of the past. Up, then down... AGH, I'm going to puke..

I don't think we should try to move Deng before free agency. Signing Rudy Gay would be a mistake for this team, but I suppose if Deng was traded I'd have to welcome it.

All of the rumors will make your head spin. My only expectation is vast improvement, that's all I can ask for out of this free agency.

[Anytime23]

Originally Posted by Lex L.

Meh. The only thing I find encouraging about the possibility of it being Joe Johnson and LeBron is that people are always forgetting that our team led the league in rebounding last year. Our biggest weakness was that we got 28.5 ppg from Kirk and Luol. LeBron gets that by himself. But the reason its encouraging is that our core of players has already proven to be effective rebounders. And its not like we just rely on one guy for rebounding like Miami or NY would be doing if they landed Bosh and a SF. I like this because I think the FO should be emphasizing this hard...the fact that if Miami gets 3 Max FAs, they only have 6-7 million to spend on the rest of their roster. How are they going to get any rebounding to help Bosh? Bosh cant do it himself, and especially not against teams like the Celtics and Lakers...or the Bulls. Rebounding was a major factor in the outcome of the NBA finals. And again, the fact that they might be targeting Johnson at least sort of suggests theyre very aware of our core strengths and they might also emphasize this in selling Chicago.

Thats a good point but if we get Johnson, theres no LeBron because of Deng. Nor Deng or LeBron are capable of playing PF. If JJ comes, they must be planning on paring him with a PF.