Bulls move quickly to snap up Carlos Boozer
By K.C. Johnson, Tribune reporter
No matter what LeBron James announces in his made-for-TV free agent spectacle Thursday night, the Bulls will be booed loudly in Cleveland next season.
Carlos Boozer's commitment on a five-year, $76 million deal Wednesday assured that.
The Bulls' first strike in free agency places Boozer alongside noted non-Cleveland tourist Joakim Noah in a last-ditch effort to make their roster even more attractive to "King James."
If James defects to the Bulls, Dawg Pound-like booing will be prevalent for their road games in Cleveland.
Boozer earned the eternal ire of Cavaliers fans in 2004, when management claimed he reneged on a vocal commitment to then-owner Gordon Gund and signed a six-year, $68 million deal with the Jazz.
Boozer, who turns 29 in November, always has denied the claim. And the fact Bulls consultant Jim Paxson, then the Cavaliers' general manager, pushed for this signing says something.
Whether it says enough to James finally will be known Thursday night. Sources said no one associated with James has told the Bulls he has ruled out signing with them.
That doesn't mean the Bulls will get James. It does add intrigue to his announcement.
A source said when Boozer accepted the Bulls' offer, he vowed to try to personally recruit James, his former Cavaliers and Olympic teammate.
The Bulls recruited Boozer, a two-time All-Star, at the United Center last Thursday, the first full day of free agency. As soon as Chris Bosh committed to the Heat Wednesday morning, Bulls officials hammered out Boozer's deal with agent Rob Pelinka, a Lake Forest native who played on Michigan's Fab Five team.
He is expected to sign it officially Thursday, the first day free agents can do so.
Boozer's deal starts in the $13 million range, which preserves a maximum salary slot of $16.6 million if James picks the Bulls. With the NBA announcing its salary cap at $58million -- $2 million higher than projected -- the Bulls' options increased no matter what James decides.
If he re-signs with the Cavaliers, which is widely expected, the Bulls would have roughly $19 million of salary-cap space to pursue shooters such as Mike Miller, Kyle Korver or J.J. Redick as well as big man depth like Brad Miller and Brendan Haywood.
The Bulls have a gaping hole at shooting guard after the draft night salary dump of Kirk Hinrich to the Wizards, which becomes official on Thursday. Ray Allen is out of the picture and will re-sign with the Celtics.
In Boozer, the Bulls added a 6-foot-9, 266-pound power forward adept at scoring in pick-and-roll and post-up situations. Boozer's prowess in the former with Deron Williams should work well with Derrick Rose. It also will push Taj Gibson into a reserve role he handled as well as starting assignments during his stellar rookie season.
Boozer averaged 19.5 points and 11.2 rebounds while shooting a career-high 56.2 percent in 78 games for the Jazz last season. Over his eight-year career, the Duke product has averaged 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds.
Durability issues have plagued Boozer, who missed 138 games in his six seasons with the Jazz. But the Bulls focused more on his playoff averages of 20.3 points and 12.5 rebounds in 44 career games.
And they got on the free-agency board with more to come, James or no James.
Layups: Coach Tom Thibodeau has added Andy Greer as an assistant coach, according to sources. Thibodeau's staff now features Ron Adams, Pete Myers and Greer, who worked with Thibodeau on the Knicks' bench. … Former Bull Rick Brunson is working as a player development coach with the summer-league team and could be retained for the season.
kcjohnson@tribune.com
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Will sign 5-year, $76 million contract Thursday as team awaits word on James
Carlos Boozer's commitment on a five-year, $76 million deal Wednesday assured that.
The Bulls' first strike in free agency places Boozer alongside noted non-Cleveland tourist Joakim Noah in a last-ditch effort to make their roster even more attractive to "King James."
If James defects to the Bulls, Dawg Pound-like booing will be prevalent for their road games in Cleveland.
Boozer earned the eternal ire of Cavaliers fans in 2004, when management claimed he reneged on a vocal commitment to then-owner Gordon Gund and signed a six-year, $68 million deal with the Jazz.
Boozer, who turns 29 in November, always has denied the claim. And the fact Bulls consultant Jim Paxson, then the Cavaliers' general manager, pushed for this signing says something.
Whether it says enough to James finally will be known Thursday night. Sources said no one associated with James has told the Bulls he has ruled out signing with them.
That doesn't mean the Bulls will get James. It does add intrigue to his announcement.
A source said when Boozer accepted the Bulls' offer, he vowed to try to personally recruit James, his former Cavaliers and Olympic teammate.
The Bulls recruited Boozer, a two-time All-Star, at the United Center last Thursday, the first full day of free agency. As soon as Chris Bosh committed to the Heat Wednesday morning, Bulls officials hammered out Boozer's deal with agent Rob Pelinka, a Lake Forest native who played on Michigan's Fab Five team.
He is expected to sign it officially Thursday, the first day free agents can do so.
Boozer's deal starts in the $13 million range, which preserves a maximum salary slot of $16.6 million if James picks the Bulls. With the NBA announcing its salary cap at $58million -- $2 million higher than projected -- the Bulls' options increased no matter what James decides.
If he re-signs with the Cavaliers, which is widely expected, the Bulls would have roughly $19 million of salary-cap space to pursue shooters such as Mike Miller, Kyle Korver or J.J. Redick as well as big man depth like Brad Miller and Brendan Haywood.
The Bulls have a gaping hole at shooting guard after the draft night salary dump of Kirk Hinrich to the Wizards, which becomes official on Thursday. Ray Allen is out of the picture and will re-sign with the Celtics.
In Boozer, the Bulls added a 6-foot-9, 266-pound power forward adept at scoring in pick-and-roll and post-up situations. Boozer's prowess in the former with Deron Williams should work well with Derrick Rose. It also will push Taj Gibson into a reserve role he handled as well as starting assignments during his stellar rookie season.
Boozer averaged 19.5 points and 11.2 rebounds while shooting a career-high 56.2 percent in 78 games for the Jazz last season. Over his eight-year career, the Duke product has averaged 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds.
Durability issues have plagued Boozer, who missed 138 games in his six seasons with the Jazz. But the Bulls focused more on his playoff averages of 20.3 points and 12.5 rebounds in 44 career games.
And they got on the free-agency board with more to come, James or no James.
Layups: Coach Tom Thibodeau has added Andy Greer as an assistant coach, according to sources. Thibodeau's staff now features Ron Adams, Pete Myers and Greer, who worked with Thibodeau on the Knicks' bench. … Former Bull Rick Brunson is working as a player development coach with the summer-league team and could be retained for the season.
kcjohnson@tribune.com
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