Chicago Bulls should not match offer on Omer Asik – NBA Feature
The Chicago Bulls were recently dealt another blow in a series of unfortunate incidents, which have their chances of success in the upcoming NBA season reduced significantly.
The Bulls stuttered early in the post season when their star point guard Derrick Rose suffered an ACL injury to his left knee and was sidelined for 8 to 10 months. Although, he is recovering at a good pace, it is almost a certainty that the point guard will miss a major chunk of the next season.
In Rose’s absence, the Bulls need to add a scoring option to their line-up who can carry the franchise till the time Rose returns. And according to reports, they have been gauging quite a few options.
However, one thing the Bulls were confident about was their bench, one of the deepest in the league. And of all the reserves, the Bulls seemed most excited about restricted free agent Omer Asik. The back up centre to Joakim Noah did a good job of holding his position this season and the Bulls were looking forward to re-signing him for next season.
However, out of the blue, the Houston Rockets offered Asik a three year $25 million offer a few days ago and spoiled the Bulls party. The Rockets have been on the look-out of a marquee centre ever since Yao Ming retired and feel that Asik has the talent and skills to take on the starting position for the Rockets.
Asik is a restricted free agent which means that the Bulls can match the Rockets offer to keep him. Bulls General Manager Gar Forman had said earlier last month that he intended on re-signing Asik. However, the new price tag of Asik has the Bulls in a fix. With Rose signed on to a maximum contract, the Bulls do not have much cap space. One way they can afford to keep Asik is by amnestying Carlos Boozer, who is owed almost $15 million for next season.
Boozer is yet to live up to the huge contract he was offered when he signed on with the Bulls and many fans have called for the Bulls to amnesty him. But the fact remains that if the Bulls offer Asik such a big contract, they will not have much flexibility to strengthen their team, particularly the front court. In the absence of Boozer, Taj Gibson is one player who can step up but Gibson is yet to prove himself as a player who can be relied on a regular basis to get double digit points and help the Bulls on the paint.
25 million dollars for Omer Asik will be a stretch for the Bulls from whichever angle you see it. It is likely that they will pass on the offer and allow Asik to move to the Rockets. But they would then need to search for a back up to Joakim Noah.
With free agency period winding down and teams locking down players, the Bulls options will become more limited day by day. So far, the Bulls have not demonstrated the aggressiveness that was expected from them in the offseason after being ousted in the first round of the playoffs, even though they finished the regular season tied for the best record in the league. With their options winding down, the Bulls need to make crucial decisions soon or their hopes for a title in the coming one or two years will fade away.
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