The Chicago Bulls have some big moves to make this offseason as they try a trade for Kevin Love and attempt to sign Carmelo Anthony or LeBron James, as they will likely need to trade Carlos Boozer or amnesty his contract along with players like Taj Gibson or Jimmy Butler and that could open up options beyond those names for the team, including free agents like Zach Randolph, Lance Stephenson or Luol Deng.
The Bulls reportedly are looking into the Kevin Love trade and while that is a long shot, the team has pieces to move and that includes Boozer and his double digit salary. According to ESPN.com, the team is weighing it's options about trading or releasing him and they also are looking at Anthony as a major target. Anthony is expected to opt out of his deal with the Knicks to be a free agent and he could be a perfect fit with the Bulls, as they need scoring badly.
Stephenson is a dynamic player and he likely is leaving the Pacers and that could be an option, while Deng was formerly with the team and may sign back. The Bulls did not want to trade Deng, but they had no choice and now he is set to be a free agent and they could try signing him again.
Last season Carlos Boozer had his worst year in Chicago and he made over $15 million and still has a high salary and that is one reason why he is likely gone after this season. Boozer made $15,300,000 last season and now that he is 32 years old he is clearly in decline and his stats last season showed it, as he averaged just 13 points and eight rebounds and now he could be an amnesty candidate. The team still likely would have to make other moves, likely Taj Gibson, but Boozer will definitely have to get wiped from the books to get Anthony.
Stephenson played in nearly 80 games in each of the last two seasons since playing in 42 in 2011-12 and from that season to the next he jumped from 10 minutes per game to 29 minutes and he averaged two points, to eight points and now he is in the double digits. Stephenson can create his own shot and is a dynamic player, but his mental issues and immaturity may keep him from becoming as great as he can be and that is one frustrating aspect of his time with the Pacers. The Pacers had a very rough stretch at the end of the season and part of that apparently was on Stephenson and now he likely will be on his way out of town after the season. Stephenson has supreme talent and the Pacers know that he can take over games, but at times he can make some major mistakes, including when he called out LeBron James before Game 4 and that turned out terribly for the Pacers.
Anthony is heading towards free agency this summer and while it's not a guarantee that he will opt out of his contract with the Knicks, everyone is treating it like a foregone conclusion. The Knicks feel that they have the best chance to sign him since they can give him the most money and the longest contract, but according to ESPN.com, Anthony will weigh his options this summer and the Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets are both expected to make strong pushes to sign him no matter what the Knicks do. Phil Jackson has spoken about how he wants to keep Anthony and the two have met already this offseason and that could lead to a deal getting done.
The Pacers traded for Evan Turner at the trading deadline to help the team for the playoffs, but they also wanted to give themselves a backup plan for when/if Stephenson leaves as a free agent after the season. This year Stephenson had his best season as a pro in his career, averaging 13 points and seven rebounds with four assists per game and he did that while playing in 78 games, matching a career high from last season. Stephenson has been developing into a potential All-Star player since Danny Granger went down with a serious knee injury two years ago and that opened the door for him to get into the starting lineup.
