Deng, Bulls on verge of six-year, $70M deal

[sonny]

They kept on holding out trying to see if they could get him @ a lower rate from last year, but they gave him the same offer?

What he accepted was a little less than what we offered last year.

He wanted more than 60M over 5 last year.

[Sebastian]

How much is a player like that worth, based on production, age, and potential? Can we agree on $63-65 million, as I've read many a poster opine? So Deng gets maybe an extra mil per year than he "should" because he and his agent demands it, and the Bulls pay him because it's only marginally more than they originally offered and they don't want to lose him - how does this make him overpaid?

Overpaid should be used for players like Larry Hughes or Ben Wallace or Rashard Lewis, not guys like Okafor or Biedrins or Deng. They're simply getting what the market dictates a player of their caliber should get.

[girlygirl]

i personaly think they should've focus more on gordon than deng but locking him up is good now its gordons turn to cash in

Wrong. According to one Chicago paper, Gordon wants as much, if not more $$$ than Deng is getting. And he isn't likely to get it, for two reasons: 1. The owner has said he won't pay the luxury tax; 2. the Bulls don't seem to think BG is worth this kind of money

And it doesn't look like any other teams are lining up to give $12 million/year to an undersized shooting guard who can score but isn't a playmaker, is an average defender and really isn't a great clutch player.

BG may have overplayed his hand by turning down 5 years/$50 million last year, because that is really about what's he is worth.

[CB4MiamiHeat]

I think Deng is a little overrated, i wouldve offered him about 9 million, take it or leave it...why not throw 6-75 million at Josh Smith or Igoudala..i think theyre both superior to Deng...or wait it out for better free agents in 2009-2010

[noido]

I thought Deng should go in the 8-10 range, but this isn't incredibly overpaid. Especially if last year was an aberration... he did have plenty of excuses, new coach, team issues, injury etc...

I think to some extent Chicago had to overpay because they need to keep one free agent and they are to far apart with BG. Which is fair enough, BG should be worth around 7-10.

As for Biedrins, that is par for the course for a double double big, and because Baron left and they didnt get Brand or Arenas they needed to keep both their RFA's.

[_SRV_]

He's definitely not worth less the 10/yr, you can argue they are paying 1-1.5 million/yr more, but it's not critical, especially for a team with 3 other high picks on rookie deals.
The term overpaid should be preserved for severe cases, Larry Hughes, Ben Wallace, Kenny Thomas, the Knicks, etc...

[BR0D1E86]

I figured a 6/62 to 6/66 was fair, 6/70 was the high side of what I thought was reasonable. If he goes back to the player of two years ago with a bit of growth and a better offense he’ll be well worth it.

Rumor is that Ben Gordon wants more than Deng got, and not just a little bit more. My guess is if he’ll take 10 a year the Bulls will sign him otherwise he’s going to sign the QO and find out next offseason that nobody wants to pay him what he thinks he’s worth then either.

[Magilla_Gorilla]

Seriously, what the hell is going on? Why are near-max contracts being handed out to players like Biedrins, Okafor, and Deng? These are all players who are at best the 3rd best player on a good team. Probably even worse for Biedrins, like 4th. Why are these players getting 60-80 million dollars? If the 3rd best player on a good team is demanding that much, how much are the 2nd best and the best players demanding?

Dwight Howard got a 5 year $80 million extension last year. And now, Luol Deng could be earning just as much except in one extra year. This is madness. Do the Bulls really think Deng is worth a little less than the best big man in the league?

Thats a pretty big difference - about 18 million dollars difference.

[Jordan45822]

I don't see why 6/71 is overpaying. For Deng, that is fair market value.

[nitetrain8603]

i personaly think they should've focus more on gordon than deng but locking him up is good now its gordons turn to cash in

Wrong. According to one Chicago paper, Gordon wants as much, if not more $$$ than Deng is getting. And he isn't likely to get it, for two reasons: 1. The owner has said he won't pay the luxury tax; 2. the Bulls don't seem to think BG is worth this kind of money

And it doesn't look like any other teams are lining up to give $12 million/year to an undersized shooting guard who can score but isn't a playmaker, is an average defender and really isn't a great clutch player.

BG may have overplayed his hand by turning down 5 years/$50 million last year, because that is really about what's he is worth.

If you don't think Gordon is a great clutch player, then what is Deng? Because that guy fades every 4th quarter he's ever been in.

[sweet daddy]

Well, if he falls between and $70 and $80 that's being reported, that's 12.5 a year for six years. Josh Howard signed a 4 yr, $40 million exension two years ago, so allowing for inflation and a very busy free agent signing year this year, that sounds about right. From a career perspective, Deng and Howard's numbers are almost identical. That's what a really good but not great young player gets when they sign their first big contract these days.