Luol Deng to CLE

[Clench123]

Both team won with this move IMO

[barefacedmonk]

I read on Woj's Twitter feed that Deng had refused a 3 year $30 mil deal from the Bulls.

Guess it was only a matter of time before they moved him?

I am beginning to like this for Chicago.

EDIT: Apparently Deng's reps asked for 15-16 mil/yr.

[LarBrd33]

so bulls go full tanky and the Cavs have a shot of digging themselves into the playoffs.

Doesn't re-signing Deng make it so the Cavs dont' have cap space to offer LeBron?

Edit: Oh... they are going to amnesty Boozer, right?

[Clench123]

Is this good for us going forward?

[Yoki_IsTheName]

Those who are blaming Chicago management for being "cheap" need to take a good hard look at the repeater tax rates.  They are crippling and especially hard to swallow if you're not even in contention.

Im sorry, they are cheap. It's not like they are losing profits.

With all that said. Is Chicago trying to save money.

How about we throw them Humphries and a pick for Noah. I mean if they are willing to get this kid of compensation for Deng, we might as well try.

Throw Jordan Crawford in there too, they need a Rose replacement right?

Deng wasn't part of their long term future. Noah is. Chicago didn't want to pay Deng the money he would have gotten this summer and had a quality replacement in Jimmy Butler already on their roster. Add in long term concerns about restructuring their team around D-Rose and needing that financial wiggle room and Deng was expendable.

That isn't the case with Joakim Noah. He is younger and harder to replace. The Bulls will keep him and D-Rose and rebuild their franchise around those guys.

Like Deng, Boozer won't be part of the Bulls future either. So you could probably Boozer in a straight swap for Humphries if that is a deal you wanted to do. Taj Gibson may even be available at the right price. Say cap flexibility and a first round pick.

---------------------------------------

Moving Deng is not purely about saving money. It is about building a new team.

The previous core of Rose - Deng - Boozer - Noah had run it's course largely due to bad luck with Derrick Rose's injury problems. They needed to restructure to find a younger All-Star talent(s) to put alongside Rose + Noah in order to compete for a title once again a few years down the line and for the 3-5 year window beyond that point.

Moving Deng and creating the cap flexibility to do that was a necessary step in that long term plan.

I was about to post a rebutall about this. As I think the better plan is to just resign Deng and not be cheap.

But I'm back pedaling. barefacedmonk just posted that Deng is asking for 15-16 million a year!?

Okay, I like this deal for Chicago now. A little bit. I'm all for resigning Deng, but JEEZ not for that much.

[barefacedmonk]

Feel sorry for Deng....he has to play for Mike Brown now.

[Yoki_IsTheName]

Feel sorry for Deng....he has to play for Mike Brown now.

Hey, atleast he doesnt have to play 46 minutes a game. 

[barefacedmonk]

Feel sorry for Deng....he has to play for Mike Brown now.

Hey, atleast he doesnt have to play 46 minutes a game. 

The Cavs should have insisted that Thibodeau and Mike Brown were also included in the trade.

Bill Simmons via Twitter.

[clover]

So this should move Cleveland out of the race for the most ping-pong balls, but solidify Chicago as a challenger in the Parker/Embiid stakes?

Then I guess this is a wash for the C's in the short term. A small bonus in that it keeps a Bynum deal from helping the Lakers restructure for a reload.

I think the C's really need to be in the top five and they're tied for eighth right now.

[LarBrd33]

So this should move Cleveland out of the race for the most ping-pong balls, but solidify Chicago as a challenger in the Parker/Embiid stakes?

Then I guess this is a wash for the C's in the short term. A small bonus in that it keeps a Bynum deal from helping the Lakers restructure for a reload.

I think the C's really need to be in the top five and they're tied for eighth right now.

The only tangible effect the Bynum for Gasol trade would have had on the Lakers is prevent Pau from accidentally winning some games.  He's still a fat expiring contract and the Lakers are still on their way to Tankville.

[clover]

That Sacramento pick could be a good get for Chicago, but what happens if the Kings pick in the top 12, does it roll over for another year?

[Boris Badenov]

This puts things in perspective from the Celts' standpoint. Deng is a good player on an expiring deal and the Bulls essentially gave him up for nothing.

This suggests to me that if you are a "seller" right now, you are not getting much back in terms of real assets. If this is the market value of Luol Deng, what is the value of Jeff Green, or Brandon Bass?

[Who]

I think Chicago had to move Deng in order to bring in another star player.

Keeping Deng, D-Rose and J-Noah together would have cost the Bulls ~$45-48 million a year ... and we all know those three aren't good enough to win a title without a fourth high quality player.

It is not like they have lots of trade opportunities. Deng, in particular, will never be a player that commands high trade value because he has been proven to not be able to lead a team. To be a go-to guy. He is a complementary player. And teams won't give up a king's ransom for guys like that.

So keeping Noah + Rose and positioning the Bulls to become players in free agency is the best way forward for Chicago to add a legitimate third star to their team.

--------------------------------------------

Which brings me to this question, is Chicago now the front-runner to sign Carmelo Anthony this summer?

A D-Rose + Melo + J.Noah, Big Three, to build around long term. A top defensive center and rebounder alongside two of the very best offensive players in the league. A top defensive head coach in Tom Thibodeau. Plus, maybe they can even keep 1-2 of Taj Gibson and Jimmy Butler to lead supporting cast. A young stretch four in Mirotic to come over. Does anyone have a better offer than that for Carmelo Anthony? I don't think so. I think Chicago has the best offer.

And even if they miss out on Melo, does that make Chicago one of the main destinations for Kevin Love (as a fall-back) 18 months from now? A Big Three of D-Rose + K-Love + J-Noah.

I think so.

That is why they needed to get rid of Deng.

[Fafnir]

They'll only have 10 million in space this summer after waiving boozer. They'll need to make another move to get Melo, or sign and trade for him which is dicey with Dolan.

Don't like this move for the Cavs. They need more talent. Waiters, Thompson, and Bennett don't look like great pieces around Irving, Deng is just a high level role player.

[Roy H.]

Good trade by Chicago. They needed to start looking forward a few years down the line past this current Luol Deng + Carlos Boozer supporting cast for Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose. Picked up a couple of draft picks for a player they were not, and should not, have resigned in the summer.

I don't really like it for Cleveland. Too much too soon. This impatience in rebuilding could cost them further down the line. A terrific short term move however.

Yeah, agree with everything that you said. Felt like Cleveland rushed it a bit. Even though the pick is heavily protected, I think that they could have been better off if they went in another direction.

I think they're desperate to keep Kyrie in Cleveland, and want to get him some legit help.