Setting yourself up for a letdown.

[WCulbertson]

I said it earlier this week and I'll say it again. You guys are setting yourself for a huge letdown.

Everyone is banking on LeBron James signing in Chicago. As a lifelong Cubs fan (despite only being 20 years old) I'm learning fast that expectations like these will only disappoint you.

Call me Mr. Negative but the Bulls will strike out in Free Agency.

First of all, LeBron isn't coming to Chicago. I don't care what the ESPN "experts" are saying from their phantom "GM Sources."

LeBron will either stay home in Cleveland or go to New York or New Jersey. New York has enough money to get 2 max guys but not much else. But still it's New York! New Jersey has 2 All-Star caliber players (Lopez and Harris) plus a GREAT chance of #1 pick (John Wall). Plus they're moving to Brooklyn in 2 years and have an amazing new owner.

That leaves Wade, Bosh, Johnson and Amare.

I firmly believe Wade will stay in Miami because he runs that town. I think Bosh will follow him there. Joe Johnson showed in the playoffs why he isn't worth a max contract. So if the Bulls sign him, it will be a waste of resources.
Amare will stay in Phoenix due to their resurgence.

And secondly, please stop with this "sign and trade" nonsense. In order for a S&T to happen, you need 2 teams to tango. IF the Bulls were to get 'Bron, no other team will take the Bulls' castoffs so they can get a 2nd max free agent.

So this is my most likely scenario.

D. Rose
Joe Johnson
L. Deng
T. Gibson
J. Noah

With a bench looking like this. Kirk, James Johnson, Flip Murray, 2 draft picks, other random scrubs

 

[payton 34ever]

OK, you're Mr. Negative. So LeBron would be more likely to leave a team that can't quite get over the hump in the playoffs to go to New York where he has no chance at the playoffs at all, rather than Chicago where there are already pieces in place. Just because he "likes" the town? Seriously? You really think that's what matters to him at this point?

As to things like that not happening here, do the names Jay Cutler and Julius Peppers mean anything to you? You don't need to be older than 10, let alone 20, to see that big things can and will happen in this town when someone is just too good to pass up.

Lastly, I don't think any Chicago sports fan can honestly say they've seen it all at 20 years old (!) to form an opinion about what the organizations in this town will or will not do. You weren't even in school yet when they got rid of Ditka, you didn't experience the crushing loss to the Padres in '84 by the Cubs, and what you saw out of the Bulls in your early childhood couldn't have possibly made you so bitter. Lighten up, young man.

 

[Dismagic1]

I do agree Lebron is a long shot. But why is Bosh likely to follow Wade to Miami and not D. Rose to Chicago? Chicago has a better nucleus than Miami. Wade is getting older, Rose is just starting.

I think you're just trying to cause trouble on these boards.

 

[JCM]

I been saying this to myself, **** Joe Johnson.

he is so far down my list of players i want.

 

[Anytime23]

Chicago fans, you have every right to get your hopes up and continue to do so. Dont let people say "This player or that player will not come to Chicago." Two weeks ago, LeBron and Wade were pipe dreams but after watching both of their supporting casts completely fizzle down the stretch, you have every right to believe that Chicago is a strong candidate to land either of these superstars.

This team has let down and failed its fans for years and for once we have a bright future and it has a chance to be even brighter with this FA period. Dont let pessimists get you down and if they do fail to significantly improve, we still have Rose, who is a superstar in the making.

No offense WC but where do you get off acting like you know whats going to happen? I hope its not because you write for this blog or forum or whatever you like to call it. Anyone can make a website and state their opinions with proper grammar and act like a sports journalist. I'm not much older at 24 but at the age of 20, you shouldnt come off as Mr. Know It All because you've experienced Northside let downs from the Cubs. Theres dozens of other teams with their own fan bases going through the same thing. Teams get hyped, rumors fly around and theres always going to be speculation. People will be upset, thats life.

I'd much rather spend the next 50 days hoping that the Bulls can land James or Wade then to spend the next 50 days thinking that they will "strike out". I'll be disappointed and bitter when and if the time comes.

 

[WCulbertson]

I'm the 1st to admit that I don't know ANYTHING about anything especially since I'm so young. And I haven't suffered like some of you older people.

But first Jay Cutler didn't just walk into Chicago. He got traded here. He didn't say to Denver "Chicago, that's the place to play." He got TRADED here and then he signed here.

Julius Peppers came here for the money.

LeBron can get more money to stay in Cleavland or can get another star to come with him to New York or New Jersey.

I don't think I'm smarter than any of you because I'm not. And I definitely don't have enough experience in life to feel the pain that older people have. But I'm surrounded by fans of all ages who have simply been let down time and time again by every team in this town.

I'll be the 1st to admit I was wrong if 'Bron signs here. And I truly hope he does.

But everyone who honestly believes in their hearts that the Bulls are going to be running out Rose, James, Noah, Bosh and some other shooting guard at the UC are dreaming.

Whose going to take Deng and his contract? The same for Kirk? No one that's who.

 

[payton 34ever]

You sound like all the people who just "knew" there was no way we'd trade for Cutler. Or the people who "knew" the Bears were cheap and would never drop the coin needed for signing Julius Peppers. None of us "know" anything at this point....it's pure speculation. It's just that the speculation pointing to reasons why LeBron would come here make a hell of a lot more sense than the other destinations at this point, that's all we're saying.

 

[WCulbertson]

Does it though? I'm not so sure.

LBJ would be living in MJ's shadow. If he wins 5 championships here it still won't be enough. That's a lot of pressure. And to think, what if they don't win ANY championships? The fans would turn on him so bad. But....

If he wins 1 championship in New Jersey or New York in the next 5 years, he will be "King" James.

While Rose/Noah plus cap space looks good, there are other options that look better.

New Jersey- Devin Harris and Brook Lopez. Not as good as Rose/Noah but pretty good none the less. The new owner is a bazzilionaire and by all reports is extremal popular. Plus they most likely will get the number 1 or 2 pick. That means John Wall/Evan Turner too. And they are moving to Brooklyn in 2 years and Jay-Z is really good friends with LBJ.

New York- The Knicks are a mess right now. But they can add LBJ and another max contract guy without a S&T. Plus it's New York City and Madison Square Garden. Add in the best 3 pt shooter in the NBA and they can win 50+ games NEXT year. Imagine adding a couple core guys to go with the stars, then all of a sudden they are looking more and more formidable.

Miami- Less likely but possible. Perfect weather, plus with D-Wade, they would run that town like MJ did Chicago.

So yeah Chicago looks good, but I doubt Chicago has any real advantage over the other cities like so many people are predicting.

 

[Anytime23]

The reason why Chicago has the upper hand over all of the places you mentioned is because they have a bit of everything that each team can provide.

Chicago has the big money market that New York has. They have the celebrity following that NY has, not to mention that the President of the United States in a Bulls fan. Please believe he will be on the phone with LeBron, Wade, Bosh, etc etc. Sure they could bring in another superstar but heres the problem. LeBron most likely wont work with Wade and Bosh most likely wont work with either. Bron wants more rings than Wade, Bosh wants to be Batman and he cant with either of those guys and has stated that he wants to be the best player on his team. New York wont have money to even build the rest of the team if they get two max guys.

Chicago has more talent than New Jersey and he's not leaving a 60 win team for a 12 win team in Jersey, plain and simple. He wants to win. No one knows how John Wall or Evan Turner will turn out. Yes, LeBron loves Jay-Z and they arent in Brooklyn yet. He's not going because Jay-Z says so when youve got Obama, Common, Urlacher, Jeremy Piven and the 100 other celeb Bulls fans. Dont forget which team James grew up cheering for...Chicago.

Miami-He's not playing with Wade. Wade and LeBron are like Magic and Bird without the hatred. Wade already has his finals MVP and would love to play with LeBron but the feeling isnt mutual. LeBrons not playing Pippen. And some damn sunshine sure as hell isnt making him go to Miami. These guys are muli-millionaires who can go and do anything they want. They all play indoors too, this isnt the NFL. And again, if he did go there with Wade, where will they find the money to fill in their bench? Miami is already running Bring Back Wade websites. They will go the PG-PF route.

The one team not getting any love that i think had a better chance than NY, NJ and Miami is LAC. They have a big market, a good group of players and they play across town from that guy Kobe, who LeBron would love to steal the spotlight from.

Fact is, LeBron can not only make his money through the great Chicago market and #1 NBA fan base but he can win with the pieces in place w/ money flexibility and Chicago is the 2nd city with the mainstream popularity that you could get from NY.

Also can we end this "Playing in MJs shadow" stuff? LeBron has been put under a microscope since he was in his mid-teens. He's up to the challenge of being the best ever and if he were to make the people of Chicago look past the Jordan era, theres no bigger accomplishment.

Not saying this is going to happen, but theres no reason to doubt it and certainly no reason for fans to not be optimistic. All i know is ive seen a handful of Bulls fans perk up the past week and its a good thing.

 

[payton 34ever]

Can't disagree with anything you said, Anytime - you outlined it very well.

The only thing you didn't address was his assertion that Wall or Turner in Jersey is going to happen. The Bulls won the lottery to draft Rose when they supposedly only had a 1.4% chance of doing so. Being the worst team does not always = getting #1 or even #2 pick.

Culbertson, you're far too young to be this pessimistic, even if you're a Chicago sports fan
Wait at least another decade, and if LeBron shuns the Bulls, Peppers is a bust, and Cutler flames out, go ahead and flame away. Let's give a chance for some of this exciting stuff to pan out or not first before you make up your mind to be as miserable as most old, jaded chi-town fans are. Deal?

 

[Anytime23]

Yeah thats also a great point. 1.7% chance that the Bulls landed the #1 pick and it happened.

 

[BigP50]

It wouldn't be a letdown, I would be kind of surprised though.

 

[RamiTheBullsFan]

There's a part of me that hopes LeBron stays with Cleveland. It's not as big as the part of me that was hoping Kobe wouldn't come here, but yeah.

 

[WCulbertson]

While I know the Nets aren't guaranteed the top pick, they do have the best chance.

But I'll tell you what, if they don't land the top pick, they lose a huge chip in their sweepstakes for LeBron.

 

[JCM]

While I know the Nets aren't guaranteed the top pick, they do have the best chance.

But I'll tell you what, if they don't land the top pick, they lose a huge chip in their sweepstakes for LeBron.

Im hoping they dont land that top pick.

 

[TopekaRoy]

I'm not getting my hopes up, but I'm not giving up hope, either.

LeBron-to-Bulls is only a rumor, but it gives hope
BY RICK MORRISSEY Sun-Times Columnist

But why would LeBron spurn $30 million to come to Chicago? There are several plausible reasons.

If you watched Cleveland dispatch the Bulls in five games earlier in the playoffs, you know the Cavs don't have a great lineup. In Shaquille O'Neal, they have an old center who's a magician with the ball: He makes it disappear.

As it stands now, James doesn't have a Scottie Pippen for a wingman. If he joined the Bulls, he would have one in Derrick Rose.

And maybe LeBron would like to come to Chicago and brazenly wrest the title of Best Player in History from Michael Jordan. Maybe the challenge of being better than Michael in the House that Michael Built is too enticing.

James' next move might not be just for the money. There's a chance he has peered into the future and seen the status in Cleveland remaining decidedly quo. He knows he has to win championships, plural, if he wants to be considered a better basketball player than Jordan. That's not likely to happen with the Cavs.

I doubt the Bulls will be able to get LeBron, but it's still possible, especially after the Cavs got knocked out in the second round of the playoffs. The salary he gives up coming to Chicago could easily be made up for in endorsements. And think about it. If YOU were Lebron would you rather play with Rose and Noah, or play with aging geriatrics who's careers are just about over? Would you rather win 3-6 championships in he next 6 years or keep getting knocked out of the playoffs? Would you rather live in Chicago or Cleveland?

I'd pick column A.

 

[CarlosSilva]

I really don't want Johnson. He is old and chokes in the playoffs. I am also buying into the rumors of Lebron to the Bulls and truly think he will come here.

 

[BigP50]

I like Johnson but he isn't MAX worthy.

 

[Lex L.]

Theres a difference between being a "realist" and being a pessimist and this thread is a good example of that.

 

[Anytime23]

Then be a realist but dont tell other Bulls fans that they shouldnt get their hopes up. You do you, we will do us.

Also many NBA heads think its realistic and the world is buying it. So whos the realist?