Luol Deng to replace Joe Johnson?

[Jamaaliver]

What do we think?

6'9" 220 pounds.

Could easily average 20 ppg as the focal point of an offense. Good size, still young. Reminds me of JJ when he left PHX to head out and prove his worth. Seems like a good kid, one of the few Duke products to actually produce steadily in the pros.

If JJ were to sign with CHI, might be gettable in a sign and trade seeing as they would be overwhelmed with perimeter scorers. (D rose, K Hinrich)

He seems best suited to play SF, but really I think the positions are somewhat interchangeable.

Did I mention he shot better from the field and from 3pt range than Joe Johnson?

[ATL DirtyBird]

If people believe we cant win a title with JJ, then we sure as hell cant win one with Deng as our star. Love Deng, but he is a complement star.

[Jamaaliver]

THAT....is a very good point.

But Luol makes significantly less than JJ will make which leaves us the possibility of signing another All Star somewhere down the line. I do prefer the method the PISTONS used in winning their title, a team based approach with balanced scoring, a good mix of youth and veterans and a potential All Star at every position.

[HoopsGuru25]

Deng handles the ball like Chill/Marvin. He could never be the focal point of any offense.

[dpaulh]

If Joe does leave, I wouldn't mind this. We could also make a push to get Chill back and start him. Then we would have a pretty formidable bench in Crawford, Deng, Teague. Or start Crawford and have Chill with the bench.

[HMFFL]

If Joe does leave, I wouldn't mind this. We could also make a push to get Chill back and start him. Then we would have a pretty formidable bench in Crawford, Deng, Teague. Or start Crawford and have Chill with the bench.

If Joe Johnson leaves Jamal Crawford will be our starting 2 guard.

Why should we roll out the red carpet for Josh Childress? He was a bench player before and will be one again if we bring him back.

I want nothing to do with Luol Deng and especially if we have him coming off our bench. If our bench is associated with someone as young as Deng who makes between $11-$15 million per season I would have a problem with that and question the direction of our organization.

[evildallas]

Josh Childress has gone on record as never wanting to play for the Hawks again. I can't see that as good for chemistry. He also doesn't have the shooting range needed for his position in the NBA.

Deng is being paid star money and I just don't see reliable star performance out of him (don't overreact to one playoff game). Health is also a concern with him. I would also say that he's a small forward and not a 2 guard.

If Joe leaves, I support an all-Crawford solution. Jamal starting and Jordan Crawford as a rookie off the bench. Actually, there are several potential rookie scorers (Quincy Poindexter is of interest as well) who can come off the bench as a bargain in this draft (if Woodson would actually play a rookie). However, I expect Joe to be resigned unless the playoffs end in a fizzle.

[ATL DirtyBird]

^Who knows if Woody will actually come back...Why doesnt Childress wanna come back?

[evildallas]

^^^ My understanding it was a combination of never getting a fair shot at starting with Woodson and the way Sund negotiated with him before he bolted to Greece. I think he took the RFA negotiations personal.

The quote was from last summer, maybe he's changed his stance.

[Skyhawk1]

In JJ you have a guy who's got great court vision, ball handling skills, with the ability to plat D and create his own shot. Then, you want to replace him with a guy who's injury prone, can't create his own offense, can't handle the ball, is a mid range spot shooter, isn't even top 10 in his position, and has been playing for a losing team for a while where he's not even the center of what happens. Come on.

[old skool]

Deng's contract is horrible. He is signed through 2013-14, topping out at $14-mil. He is a solid starter with potential to grow, but he will never be the centerpiece of a team. Too much cap space taken up for this point in time.

oLd sKool

[betta1]

No to Deng.

[JasonDaPsycho]

If Deng's contract is an expiring one, the trade would've made sense.
With the next FA class quite interesting as well (Melo!), it could save them up cap space for that year.

But then it's like 3-4 years long so...

[Foshan]

What is JJ's relationship like with Brown?

If JJ was looking to leave, would LWill + T.Young + Expirings from Philly be at all interesting?

[dafunky1]

Bulls fan here, JJ for Ding Dong,it depends.Deng is younger than Joe so he has a little upside.If deng would shoot more 3pt shots, he would be more effective.For the record, he is considered one of the top sf in the NBA mostly for his D. Deng is not massively overpaid and 30% of his contract is deferred.

Myself, if Joe wanted to come to Chi, I would s&t for Kirk and picks, next year,his contract becomes a expiring

[Tommy Udo 6]

Deng's contract is horrible. He is signed through 2013-14, topping out at $14-mil. He is a solid starter with potential to grow, but he will never be the centerpiece of a team. Too much cap space taken up for this point in time.

oLd sKool

His salary cap hit is spread over 6 years per CBA rules.

However, Bulls writers report - and Sam Smith confirmed it in a personal e-mail - that Deng's salary is 30% deferred. Details are confidential but basically it means that by the end of his life, Deng would have received $71 million from the deal. However, the Bulls would only actually pay him about $50 million in cash (30% of $71m = $21.3 mil). The rest would be paid off over time probably via annuities purchased for him.

Deng's contract would be attractive in trade to any team that does not take in as much profit as the Bulls. The cap hit is there but the team would not actually be spending what the cap hit states.