Bulls Likely to Remain Idle at Trade Deadline

The NBA’s trade deadline is one of the most exciting times of the year, but Bulls fans shouldn’t get their hopes up that Chicago will make a deal by the 2 p.m. CT deadline this afternoon. Of the players on the roster, the two that most fans would like to see traded are Rip Hamilton and Carlos Boozer.

Hamilton has been more down than up this season and the 34-year-old is clearly not the player he once was. Meanwhile, the 31-year-old Boozer is second on the team in scoring at 15.7 points per game and rebounding at 9.3 per game, but with just over $30 million remaining on his contract, it makes him less than desirable in any trade scenario.

The early rumors of a Boozer trade with the Toronto Raptors for Andrea Bargnani died almost as quickly as it popped up and it appears the 10-year-veteran will be hanging around the Windy City for a little while longer.

Interestingly, one of the names that keeps floating around is Orlando Magic sharpshooter JJ Redick. As you may recall, Redick – who is represented by the same agent as Derrick Rose, Arn Tellem – signed an offer sheet with the Bulls in the summer of 2010 and wanted to come to Chicago, but the Magic matched and the rest is history.

If the Bulls were to make a deal for Redick, they’d have to give up significant assets for a player who’d essentially be a “rental” because of the fact he’ll be a free-agent this summer and could want to earn somewhere around $10 million annually for his services.

Chicago’s financial situation with Taj Gibson’s new deal kicking in next season along with the salaries of Rose, Noah, Deng and Boozer make it nearly impossible to carry a player looking to make the kind of money that Redick could be seeking.

The Bulls just don’t have the flexibility under the cap nor do they have any valuable trade chips. So unless they can somehow find a taker for Hamilton and/or Boozer, expect Chicago to stand pat at this year’s trading deadline and finish the season with the guys already on the roster.