The Expendables Chad Ford today was going over who is possibly on the trading block due to position logjams and of course....salary. And with the Bulls' logjam at the 4, you could see where this is goin:

Marcus Fizer and Donyell Marshall, Bulls Fizer and Marshall appear to be the odd men out in Chicago with the emergence of Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry, Lonny Baxter and the signing of Scottie Pippen. GM John Paxson would love to move Eddie Robinson and his terrible contract, but right now there aren't any takers. However, Fizer and Marshall both have value. Fizer has logged several solid games for the Bulls this preseason and appears to be completely healthy. Marshall is a versatile veteran who knows how to score and rebound. The best part? Fizer's contract is up after this season and Marshall has just two years remaining on his.

I just don't like ever seeing the 'emergence' of Lonny Baxter. I still view Lonny as a 10th man, and unless he grows 4 inches, he will always be. But that's just me. If the team really views Lonny as being as a worthy replacement for Fizer or Marshall, than seeking out a deal wouldn't be a bad idea. However, given the choice between the two, I would deal Fizer. I am a big Fizer fan, but him and Lonny are similar players, undersized scorers off the bench. Marshall however is a veteran, which should be a premium on this team. He's a better defender and rebounder, and dealing him now would be a mistake in their playoff quest. I just don't see Lonny being nearly as good a player as Marcus Fizer. Just watching them play it seems like Lonny could do the things that Marcus does, but not as well. Marcus is an explosive athelete, while Lonny has trouble jumping over a piece of paper. He may be able to rack up the points in the summer league, but he's just outmatched in this league. notes - E-Rob played yesterday, and watching the game I even saw him hit a couple of jump shots. Which made me with I had a VCR hooked up. - I havent mentioned Linton Johnson all preseason, cause basically I thought it was a non-story. But last night he was playing while Trenton Hassell didn't get off the bench. So draw your own conclusions... - The Bulls Reporter has a nice analysis on Chandler's back. Like a real diagnosis. I'd probably just say something dumb like "doctor says he needs a backeotomy!"

My Man Sam, Back Shootin' the Shit Well at least in Sam Smith's latest column he admits "here I go again". He's back pitching crazy suggestions to Bulls' management in the Trib. I like Sam alot, I think his columns are very entertaining and he definately knows the NBA, but he's one step below only Peter Vescey when it comes to outlandish rumours. Here's todays:

Finley, the veteran from Proviso East, has five years left on his contract averaging about $16 million. The Mavericks would like to get rid of that, and part of the Walker trade was to move LaFrentz's large contract. For all Mark Cuban says, he's cutting payroll as well. It would be hard to imagine Finley being worth $18.6 million in 2007-08 when his contract expires. But at 30, he should have several good years left. And he's the kind of rugged veteran defender the Bulls crave. And his salary happens to match up almost exactly with that of Jalen Rose, who has one fewer year on his contract than Finley. Though they're optimistic about Rose this season, the Bulls believe they have enough scoring with their young players. They've been looking for veteran defensive help. Hello, Pax. You listening? Jerry Krause never did.

Pax is probably hearin ya Sam...but hopefully not 'listening'. It's not that this trade wouldn't be a good idea for the Bulls. Finley would be a better fit for this team right now than Rose, he's a better defender and team player. My point is simply why would the Mavericks ever do this trade. Sam says the Mavericks would like to get rid of Finley's salary, yet their taking back a player who has a salary that's nearly equal both in cost and duration. And what else would the Mavericks need but another guy who won't guard anybody and needs the ball? Chad Ford agrees with this, referencing the column today and adding:

Rose is too selfish for what the Mavs are trying to do. Finley will put the team before his own shots. Rose has been unable to do that in Chicago. The one guy the Mavs would love to have is Eddy Curry of the Bulls. It's hard to believe that Chicago would give him up to Dallas for anything short of Nowitzki, however.

This quote is too hard on Jalen though, who has been unable to defer shots cause nobody else wants to take the tough shot. This year will be his test in that regard. And secondly, no crap the Mavs would love to have Eddy Curry. That's the problem here. The Mavs need size and while the Bulls have a lot of 4s, only Curry is a true center. And theres no way the Bulls ever trade Eddy Curry. well maybe for Dirk :) So thanks Sam for stirring the 'ole pot....but besides good conversation there wasn't much to offer.

The Machines Will Rise Up One Day I had a big long post going, but there was a quick power surge and It was lost. But then I reflected and realized it was probably boring anyway. It was about NBA realignment. I don't think its official yet, but the proposal is changing the conferences to 3 divisions apiece, with Charlotte going to the East and New Orleans to the West. Heres the new East:

Northeast: Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors Southeast: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Bobcats, Orlando Magic, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards Central: Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks

Not much change for the Bulls, except possibly less games against the Raptors, Heat and Hawks...which is kind of a bummer. Plugs! I definately want to touch on this though. It warms my little heart to read emails from other basketball bloggers saying they enjoy my site. When I first began, the Basketball Blogosphere didn't seem to have much community, at least not to the extent of baseball sites. But its good to see that its possibly changing. So on with the link dance of love... AllThingsNBA: I mentioned this site before, but I'm gonna be adding it to my links on the left. It has TONS of content, and the best part is that you can search posts by team..which is neat-o. Basketball Rules: Its not about the rules of basketball. I think it means "Basketball RULES!"....kind of like "The Cider House RULES!". This is another all-nba blog, and with a new design so you dont have to look at the hideous green background anymore :) March Madness Report: Produced by my buddy Jeff..and as you can guess it is about the college game. Unlike me, he REALLY knows his stuff. So if you have an interest in college hoops (especially big10 and University of Illinois....but I mean that's everybody), Its definately worth a read. I personally know he has nothing better to do so it'll hopefully be updated often. and a final note, Tim at The End of the Bench asked me to plug his fantasy basketball league. So click on the link if you want to finish second place to him. I'm not joining the league due to deep psychological reasons that I dont care to discuss. (man its hard to convey sarcasm on the internet....) I'll be gone this weekend, so check out these new links and the usual suspects while i'm gone.

Good, Bad, and Ugly Good and Bad Injuries and such: Rose won't need surgery, which is a big sigh of relief. But Tyson and E-Rob sat out again, and Hinrich left the game after bruising his knee. Minor stuff, and expected. Its just hard to give these preseason games any merit when so many players are sitting out. The Ugly The Ugly is remembering those hideous "Cosby sweaters" that E-Rob wore on the sidelines during his lengthy stays on the IR. But now thanks to Paxson's new dress code, sport coats will be required at all times for those sitting out. Off to the big and tall store for E-Rob. And Uglier I try to keep non-Bulls stuff off of here, and so even though I'm a Cubs fan I won't talk about the game. I'll simply direct you to The Cub Reporter, cause as always he says it better than I can.

Gettin Bigs? Both major papers today (here's the Sun-Times version) are speculating on Paxson's desire to add another big man to the roster. "But there's 15 guaranteed contracts already" you say? Actually maybe only I said that. But it turns out that Trent Hassell's contract doesn't become guaranteed till mid-January, So if the Bulls do sign somebody he's the likely one to go. Another candidate would be Roger Mason, who has a guaranteed contract, but can be inexpensively bought out. So who exactly are the candiates mentioned?

Shawn Kemp: Could teach Tyson gain some weight. And also give parenting advice to Eddy. And if the Bulls have a retro-jersey night I predict his would be a top seller. Walt Williams: Don't know why he's mentioned, he's not really a post player. His nickname is "The Wizard", with no affiliation of the tremendous team which achieved the ultimate goals of having earned consecutive mid first-round picks over the past 2 years. Charles Oakley: Bring veteran leadership back to Chicago. Can teach the kids how to disrespect coaches and give up on a team. Also how to come in and give somebody a clothesline for looking at Michael Jordan the wrong way. LaPhonso Ellis: Now I was suprised to hear he was still in the league (well..kind of in it), so I looked up his stats for last year. Oh great, he's not even mentioned on NBA.com (never a good sign). But I found it on ESPN.com 14.3 mpg 5.0 ppg 2.9 rpg 38% fg. I guess that's not bad....but if the size-hungry Heat don't want him, then you can pretty much write him off. Tyrone Hill: Ok, now here's an actual legit NBA post player. Even though he is almost as old as Dikembe (~62) he can still do the 'dirty work' in the paint. And is an upgrade over Corie Blount, which sadly I can't really say for the rest of these chumps. However Ty is currently waiting out for 2 things: someone's mid-level exemption, or the vet's minimum on a championship team. Unfortunately the Bulls don't have either to offer, but as the season draws near you never know. I predict he'll end up in Dallas....and will get into some sort of camp brawl with Danny Fortson.

So what everything turns out to be is just far-fetched speculation. If I were Hassell, I wouldn't be getting my bus ticket to North Charleston just yet. Injury Report Fizer won't play tonight against Indiana, looks like the knee is acting up. Tyson Chandler is unlikely to play tonight (back). E-Rob practiced and might play tonight for the first time this preseason. Jalen's thumb was re-examined yesterday, And the results will determine whether the team's earlier reccomendation of avoiding surgery was correct. That's scary stuff for a Bulls fan, but Jerry Krause always said the Bulls had the best medical staff in basketball. I have no idea how that was determined though.