It isn’t looking likely that the Chicago Bulls will re-sign Pau Gasol, but that may have more to do with the Bulls wanting to re-sign Joakim Noah than it does with Gasol’s relationship with the team. Noah has been in Chicago since he was winning back-to-back National Championships at Florida, and he they want him to stay according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribute:
“The biggest reason Pau Gasol and the Bulls appear headed for a split in free agency has less to do with Gasol and more to do with Joakim Noah.
Though front-office meetings have yet to finalize the Bulls’ Plan A for this offseason, there is strong internal desire to re-sign Noah on a short-term deal. Noah long has been a favorite player and ambassador of Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf. Executive vice president John Paxson drafted Noah, and their bond is genuine.
And Noah remains invested enough in the team to question Jimmy Butler and Derrick Rose for their silence at the April 3 team meeting, according to several people present.”
The Bulls may have to pick between Gasol or Noah, because they are loaded with other big men who need minutes: Taj Gibson, Nikola Mirotic, and Bobby Portis. Mirotic is able to stretch the floor with his solid outside shooting ability, and he is extremely young which means he could use a larger role so that he can one day potentially be a star. Gibson is an extremely active player, and he has a nice mid range shot and is a solid defender. Like Mirotic, Portis can also stretch the floor and hit a few threes. All three players could use bigger roles, so the Bulls won’t be able to keep Noah and Gasol.
Noah has spent his entire career in Chicago, and he has many ties there. He wants to start though, and so does Gasol, so they can’t keep them both because the younger guys need more minutes. Noah is still an excellent defender and rebounder, but offensively, he looked bad before falling to a season-ending injury.
Noah has said he wishes to remain in Chicago. If he remains, he can help locker room tensions involving Jimmy Butler and Fred Hoiberg, but he may not be able to run Hoiberg’s up tempo system. The Bulls need to sign guys to help their locker room tensions and guys that fit Hoiberg’s system, and Noah fits one of those qualities, but not the other.
