Carlos Boozer is nearly a free agent after his release on amnesty from the Chicago Bulls and if he clears waivers and hits the market, teams like the Houston Rockets, Cleveland Cavaliers, LA Clippers, NY Knicks, Denver Nuggets and Lakers could be interested in signing him, as he could provide depth to a number of teams after his release so the Bulls could sign Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic to join Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah.
Boozer was a consistent player for the Bulls after dealing with some injury issues early in his tenure with the team and he eventually turned into an iron man, but he was worn out by the end. Boozer's minutes went down in his final season in Chicago and so did his numbers and at his salary and the deadline of the amnesty clause provision coming, there was no choice but to release Boozer. According to ESPN.com, the Bulls used the amnesty provision on Boozer to clear $16.8 million on his contract from the cap and after trading Greg Smith, the team has cleared over $10 million.
The Bulls now can use that money to sign Gasol and Mirotic and they could potentially save money out of their pocket depending if another team picks up some of Boozer's salary through waivers. ESPN reports that it is unlikely he will make it all the way through waivers and that means teams will bid to acquire him for this season. The report says that teams who have salary cap space can bid blind and the team that has the highest bid will get Boozer and that is the money that the Bulls will get off his salary that they have to pay.
Some teams that could be interested include the Houston Rockets, Miami Heat, NY Knicks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Indiana Pacers, OKC Thunder and Phoenix Suns. Boozer still has some legs under him and he has been to the playoffs plenty in his career. Boozer previously played with James in Cleveland and that could be an option if the team is interested in a return.
Boozer put up solid numbers if his contract wasn't so high, averaging 13 points and eight rebounds last season. Gasol is the big free agent signing for the Bulls and it comes after the team chased Carmelo Anthony and was also mentioned as an option in the Kevin Love trade. Anthony signed back with the Knicks, while the Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers are looking like the top options for the Timberwolves. Gasol is in on a $22 million deal over three years and that comes after he had interest from the NY Knicks and LA Lakers.
The Bulls are bringing back Kirk Hinrich and now have a core of Gasol, Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson as well as players like Tony Snell and Jimmy Butler and that is looking like a strong team in the east. LeBron James has returned to the Cavaliers and the Indiana Pacers should be good again and that makes the Central division the top group in the eastern conference.
