Morning Report: The Luol Deng Story
By:
Steve Kyler
Last Updated: 7/22/08 10:03 AM ET
| 1615 times read
The Luol Deng Story: Reports yesterday suggested that Chicago Bulls' forward Luol Deng and his agent were ready to issue an "ultimatum" to the Bulls, basically saying if Luol did not have a deal done by September 1st, that he would back away from negotiations and not negotiate again with the Bulls. The reports suggested if Luol did not get a deal he's comfortable with, he'd sign the Bulls' $4.4 million qualifying offer sheet and become an unrestricted free agent next year and walk. After spending the bulk of the day on the phone talking with Bulls and league sources and a couple of agents, there is some truth to this stance. Let's not call it an ultimatum - the parameters of the negotiations have been established. That's how the agents frame it. The Bulls have had several discussions with both Luol Deng and Ben Gordon and are basically offering both players the same kinds of packages they offered last year. In Luol's case, $57 million is not enough for a number of reasons. First, other teams are offering sign-and-trade packages that Chicago seems lukewarm on exploring. Those sign-and-trade packages could get Luol in the $13 to $14 million a year range, which is substantially more than Chicago's offer - roughly $9 million per year. Some teams are telling the agents of the restricted class to take the qualifying offer this year and get radically paid next year as unrestricted free agents; this includes Ben Gordon and Luol Deng. League sources suggested that the Lakers, Pistons, Heat and Jazz have all had discussions with Luol Deng's camp about the framework of a sign-and-trade. Luol's camp would not comment on the situation, stating they did not want to negotiate in the media, but did confirm that talks were on going and that Luol, after the first round of talks, wants to remain "loyal" to the Bulls. One veteran agent not involved in talks with the Bulls explained that there are limited things a player can control in this process; one of them is choosing when to talk. The belief in both Ben Gordon and Luol Deng's case is the Bulls have had two years of talks to get to a deal, and if at this point they are not ready to make the kind of investment both players are seeking, then it's not going to happen for them. The question remains will the Bulls get serious in contract talks, or will they look to cash Luol out in a sign-and-trade and get an asset for him? It will be interesting to see who blinks first in this high stakes game of chicken, and it seems Luol's camp is ready to move on if Chicago does not get serious about Lou. The question really is can the Bulls afford to lose a player of Luol Deng's caliber next year without compensation?
No Deal In Charlotte: Our good friend Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer is reporting that contract talks between Emeka Okafor and The Bobcats are at a standstill. The Bobcats have lowered their contract offer from the $12 million offered last year and Okafor's camp is now asking for a sign-and-trade. The Bobcats maintained for weeks that re-signing Emeka was a priority, but now it seems that reality has set in for the Bobcats. $12 million a year for Okafor is a lot of cash for a middle-tier frontcourt player, so if Okafor is getting better offers in the sign-and-trade market the Bobcats should call that a blessing in disguise and trigger the deal. The Bobcats have declined to comment on the situation.
Moving Iverson?: There has been a lot of talk about the Denver Nuggets possibly trading Allen Iverson, and there is some basis for this belief. The Nuggets have made it clear they are "open for business." The team is not sold that as constructed they can compete for a top playoff spot, let alone an NBA championship. The Nuggets have also been pretty vocal about wanting to get below the luxury tax threshold for 2008-2009. The good news for Nuggets fans is luxury tax is computed based on what's on the books at the end of the season not the beginning so the Nuggets have time to decide what to do. Trading Carmelo Anthony was thoroughly explored before the draft and ultimately the Nuggets found that they were better off as a ball club keeping Melo, and have assured him and his agent he is staying. After moving Marcus Camby last week to the Clippers, a move that left many scratching their heads, the Nuggets now have flexibility. The Nuggets could use that $10 million exception to add a very serious piece, a complementary piece via sign-and-trade, or an outright trade for a veteran. If the Nuggets turned Marcus Camby into, say, Emeka Okafor via sign-and-trade or Vince Carter from New Jersey, the public view of the Camby swap would be different. Moving Iverson on the other hand means the Nuggets are scrapping the plan and moving towards rebuilding. Miami might be an interesting trade partner, how would Shawn Marion look in Denver? Or Iverson next to Dwyane Wade and Michael Beasley, that team would score a ton of points. The Nuggets are exploring options right now because they have to, they understand where they are in the grand scheme of the western conference and Iverson and his $20 million ending contract is a very attractive chip to cash. Teams eyeing a shot at the 2009 free agent class could do worse than talking with Denver.
About the Author: STEVE KYLER
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Steve Kyler is the Editor and Publisher of HOOPSWORLD. Steve is a life-long basketball fan that started covering the NBA from Orlando in 1998, but has been a huge follower of the game since the mid-80’s.
Steve is also an on-air radio personality in Tampa for ESPN radio and appears on dozens of radio shows across the country each week.
Steve is an active member of the Professional Basketball Writers Association and is passionately involved in the development of new writers and sports personalities.
Steve does not have a favorite team per se, but does root for the underdog in almost every situation. You can reach Steve directly at skyler@hoopsworld.com
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Comments (7 posted)
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posted By Stan the man, 22 July 2008 7:55:57 AM
The Bulls are morons... they screwed one season, now they are trying to screw another one...
posted By it's Ya Boy!, 22 July 2008 11:11:30 AM
do the trade for Allen Iverson , Miami that would be a nice trade Allen Iverson , Wade , and Beasley I'm lovin it ! But would we get the the 10 million exception thing that they got from the clippers and we should try to throw in Blount or Banks in the trade also if we do .
posted By Jonathan, 22 July 2008 12:47:35 PM
Considering that Iverson is a better player than Marion and makes more money. The Nuggets trade exemption won't get involved especially for scrubs like Blount and Banks. Maybe for Haslem.
posted By Rob Paulson, 22 July 2008 1:16:03 PM
Assuming the Lakers are, in fact, interested in a sign and trade, would we assume it would involve Lamar Odom? If so, would you envision that trade to look?
posted By drew, 22 July 2008 3:08:21 PM
if the rockets do not sign carl landry could you see them making an offer to loul deng that would be a team
posted By Steve Kyler, 22 July 2008 4:24:30 PM
I can say that in speaking with League sources, The Lakers, Jazz, Heat and Pistons have openly talked about Luo and would be willing to do a sign and trade at or near the $13 to $14 million annual salary Luo is seeking, and those would be spots Luol would be willing to go... As for the Lakers specifically... my assumption would be Lamar Odom , that works straight up - but I would say if Chicago were willing to pay $14 million to anyone, they'd pay it to Luo... as for the Rockets, unlikely, although interesting, the Rockets are in salary cap hell already and adding a $13 to $14 million deal for Lou would be foolish given what they owe to T-Mac and Yao... Now reach with me for a second - T-Mac to Chicago for Luol Deng and Andres Nocioni - that gets almost close salary wise, but who gets the better end of the deal... Again, we have been told by folks at the highest levels of the Rockets that trading Tracy McGrady is not in the immediate future, so its all speculation to even talk Houston for Loul, but it would be interesting.
posted By D-TOWN KID, 24 July 2008 6:32:45 PM
forget trading iverson to miami. why would we want marion. if you want a trade we will trade diawara for wade. how bout that?
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