Drama and Trade Rumors Surround Bulls

Prior to his recent injury, Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard discussed his team’s play, their adjustment this season and much more.

Bulls Looking to Shake up Roster

The Chicago Bulls haven’t gotten off to the start that many expected, with the team currently sitting at 15-11 (putting them in seventh place in the Eastern Conference).

While they have the second-ranked defense in the NBA, the Bulls’ offense hasn’t improved under new head coach Fred Hoiberg. In fact they have been worse on that end of the floor, as the offense ranks 27th in the NBA – ahead of only the struggling Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers.

With a logjam in their frontcourt, many people around the league predicted over the summer that Chicago would eventually shop one of their big men. And now, with the team dropping three straight games and having a number of issues, the front office is considering potential trades.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports recently discussed the Bulls’ situation on his “The Vertical Podcast.” Wojnarowski reported that Chicago is “determined” to deal Joakim Noah or Taj Gibson for a quality wing player – particularly a good shooter as the team tries to turn into “more of an offensive-minded group.”

Shortly after Wojnarowski’s podcast revealed that rumor, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sun-Times came over top with his own report, confirming that the team is open to moving Noah or Gibson and added that Pau Gasol could be had before the trade deadline as well.

Johnson said that Gasol could be moved since he has a player option to become an unrestricted free agent this summer and there have been “whispers that he’s done with the Bulls experiment.” Gasol has a $7,448,760 expiring contract.

Noah, like Gasol, is an unrestricted free agent after this season so he has a $13,400,000 expiring contract. Gibson is earning $8,500,000 and has one more season on his contract after this one.

Not only are trade rumors surrounding this Bulls team, there has been drama as well. Jimmy Butler recently made headlines when he called out Coach Hoiberg for not being hard enough on players (perhaps comparing him to the strict Tom Thibodeau, who was Hoiberg’s predecessor).

“I believe in the guys in this locker room, yeah,” Butler told Nick Friedell of ESPN. “But I also believe that we probably have to be coached a lot harder at times. I’m sorry, I know Fred’s a laid-back guy, and I really respect him for that, but when guys aren’t doing what they’re supposed to do, you got to get on guys, myself included. You got to do what you’re supposed to do when you’re out there playing basketball.”

After those comments were made, Bulls players were split on whether it was right for Butler to state his opinion publicly. Gasol supported Butler, whereas Noah said that he felt the comments should’ve stayed behind the scenes.

“I just wish it would’ve been kept in-house, maybe,” Noah told Johnson. “That would’ve probably been better. Everybody needs to be a leader. It’s not about Jimmy. It’s not about Coach Hoiberg. It’s about everybody coming with the right attitude.”

As if that wasn’t enough, some players (along with Derrick Rose’s camp) are reportedly annoyed with Butler’s recent attempts to be the Bulls’ leader.

“There are several players that often simply laugh when told of Butler’s latest thumping-of-the-chest leadership proclamations,” Johnson wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times. “And while Derrick Rose seems to be completely detached from the situation, his camp is very annoyed by all things Butler these days.”

There have been numerous reports about Butler and Rose not getting along, but both players have tried to shoot down those rumors. However, it wouldn’t be a huge shock if Rose’s camp doesn’t like that Butler is stepping into the role of leader and franchise player of the Bulls since Rose used to hold those titles.

The Bulls are currently a circus and things will only get worse if the team continues to drop games. Either way, expect to hear more trade rumors throughout the season, especially as the February deadline gets closer.