Ben Wallace News

Danny Ainge has been on the hot seat to turn around the NBA’s most storied franchise. via MVN - Recent Articles

“They already had a good team, but when you add me and Kobe and Jason (Kidd), that’s a lot of leadership.”

Chauncey Billups saw what happened to the Detroit Pistons and their fans when Ben Wallace left last summer for the Chicago Bulls. via Slam Sports

It’s unlikely many children aspire to master the intricacies of the IRS tax code. via Crain’s Chicago Business Weekly Edition

Official Tim Donaghy worked four Bulls games last season, and the Bulls won three of them.

The FBI is investigating Donaghy on allegations he bet on games he worked and perhaps influenced their outcomes - or at least the point spread - with calls.

Any analysis of Donaghy’s work on Bulls games must come with the caveat that he works as part of a three-person crew and, without game film, it’s not known who blew the whistle to make calls.

Still, the Nov. 25 victory over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden raised eyebrows among some veteran observers for reasons beyond Ben Wallace breaking a team rule by wearing a headband. Read more

“I’m optimistic about that right now.”

The Bulls have created a crowd at the post positions. While Ben Wallace remains the starting center, the team has added first-round draft pick Joakim Noah and veteran power forward Joe Smith, and it is … via Daily Herald

“I’m very positive about our depth”

Ten pounds lighter and $37.5 million richer, Andres Nocioni has the same desire and, finally, a pain-free right foot.

‘I’m the old ‘Noce,’ ‘ he said.

Undaunted by playoff failures with previous teams and $10 million richer, Joe Smith has a post-up game and a healthy appreciation for the Bulls’ tradition.

‘It would be nice to add something to it,’ he said.

The old and the new Bulls made the rounds Wednesday at the Berto Center, where optimism reigned as soon as both players’ physicals ended and ink on their restricted and unrestricted free-agent contracts dried. Read more

The high expectations, the slow start. The first-round sweep, the rally that came up short in the second round.
It all added up to the Chicago Bulls’ best season since Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen were collecting titles, but they still have work to do to get back to that championship level.
“I don’t mind change,’’ Bulls […]

This Kobe Bryant article was originally written on 6/24, prior to the NBA draft when it’s topic material was a bit more relevant. via ArmchairGM

“We needed another big who could shoot if we couldn’t get a legitimate post player”

Other than one season playing alongside Ben Wallace with the Pistons, Joe Smith’s only association with anyone with the Bulls is a July 5 meeting with general manager John Paxson and coach Scott Skiles.

‘That’s OK, because I’m not a hard guy to get along with,’ Smith said Saturday in a phone interview. ‘I have a laid-back personality. I like to joke around. But when the ball goes up, I like to come in and take care of business. I want to win.’

That shared desire is why Paxson and Skiles are happy and why Smith is beaming for reasons beyond the two-year, $10 million deal he will sign Tuesday, barring an unexpected blip with his physical. Read more

The Bulls got their man.

League sources confirmed the Bulls reached agreement on a two-year contract with Joe Smith late Friday, the veteran forward who had been their No. 1 target in free agency.

Financial terms weren’t available, but the Bulls had the midlevel salary-cap exception of $5.36 million at their disposal.

As recently as Thursday, general manager John Paxson had expressed pessimism the Bulls would land any of the veteran big men they had been targeting. Those included the Nets’ Mikki Moore and the Lakers’ Chris Mihm. Read more

Points in the Paint 07.08.07 Posted by Rob Bonnette on 07.08.2007 More draft recap plus free agency!! Hey there everyone and welcome to a punctual edition of Points in the Paint where we do our best to talk … via 411mania.com

“I started off pretty bad. I’ve come a long way”

Aaron Gray couldn’t have landed in a better spot on draft night. Until the Bulls selected Florida center Joakim Noah with the ninth pick of the first round, the tallest players on their roster were Ben Wallace, … via Daily Herald

“We can’t commit to anything until then.”

With his contract situation wrapped up and his right foot improving, Andres Nocioni is, shall we say, even giddier than usual.

That’s why he’s not shy about offering his preseason predictions long before the national NBA preseason magazines are published.

‘I believe we can win the [Eastern] Conference next season,’ Nocioni said from Argentina. ‘We were close last season, and I believe we have a better team right now.

‘We’re still young, but everybody has more experience and everybody is improving and everybody can play much better. We have great chemistry. It’s a good idea to keep the team together and try to have continuity.’ Read more

“I have to work on the offensive end and work on going right, my pull-up jumper, and do my work in the post.”

Blow up the Detroit Pistons just because they didn’t make it the NBA Finals? That was the thought on a lot of people’s minds in the days after the Pistons were bounced by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but don’t … via HOOPSWORLD.com

Bulls still have that low-post need Drafting Joakim Noah was just so-so - not great, not terrible. via Daily Herald

Andres Nocioni’s enthusiasm is infectious, his passion is genuine and his desire to win is large. So when the irrepressible forward says it’s not about the money, you actually believe him. That’s especially so after he agreed to a five-year deal with the Bulls on Friday for slightly less money than the Memphis Grizzlies offered to the restricted free agent, according to league sources. ‘I just want to say thank you to the fans, thank you to the organization for giving me the opportunity to play five more years in the NBA,’ Nocioni said in a phone interview from Argentina. ‘I’m really happy for this. I want to give everything of me to play hard every night, with passion every night, to win for the Chicago Bulls.’ The $37.5 million deal carries with it a team option for a sixth season that could bring the total package to $45 million, sources familiar with the negotiations said. Like the contracts of Ben Wallace and Kirk Hinrich, the contract also is front-loaded, sources said, to prepare for possible long-term extensions for Luol Deng and Ben Gordon. That means Nocioni, who can’t sign the deal until the free-agent moratorium ends Wednesday, will make $8.8 million next season, and his salary decreases annually to $6.2 million in 2011-12 before the $7.5 million team option decision arrives, according to sources. Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace flew to Argentina this week to woo Nocioni personally. But he bettered the Bulls’ total package only slightly, perhaps fearing the team’s estimated $8.8 million in salary-cap space would be locked up for seven days while the Bulls debated matching the offer sheet on their restricted free agent. ‘I wanted to re-sign with Chicago anyway because Chicago gave me the opportunity to play in the NBA,’ Nocioni said. ‘I feel really lucky to play for the Chicago Bulls. So I’m really happy. I can see the future in Chicago. I think we have a great team to play for the Finals. I like the idea of playing for Chicago.’ So does John Paxson. The Bulls’ general manager can’t announce any signing until Wednesday per league rules, but he did confirm a verbal agreement is in place, as did one of Nocioni’s agents, Dallas-based George Bass. ‘Andres is one of those guys who have helped change a lot of things around here in terms of how we go about our business,’ Paxson said. ‘I understand and [Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf] understands our young guys are growing into this next contract. We’re not in a position where we want to lose players for nothing. Some organizations have to do that. We don’t feel like we have to right now. ‘We talk all the time about needing another big [man], but the league [is playing] smaller. Andres helps us spread the floor and play a certain way. He brings an attitude. It’s continuity for our team. Obviously, it doesn’t keep us from making moves down the road. But that’s for another day.’ Indeed, Friday was for celebrating a player considered so valuable Paxson made the rare move of a proactive offer to a restricted free agent. ‘He fits in with what we’re trying to do, and I felt the area we started talking about was a legitimate, fair offer,’ Paxson said. ‘So I never have problems throwing that out there.’ When the Grizzlies’ negotiations fizzled, Bass and Arkansas-based Mike Cound, another Nocioni representative, finalized details with Paxson and Irwin Mandel, the Bulls’ senior vice president for financial and legal matters. ‘We aggressively worked to get this deal done,’ Bass said. Nocioni, 27, averaged 14.1 points and 5.7 rebounds last season before slumping in the playoffs as he battled pain from plantar fasciitis in his right foot and a strained right quadriceps muscle. He’s still resting his foot condition but feels good enough to pursue his passions for hunting and fishing - no doubt with his trademark intensity. ‘I’m really happy for the organization, for John Paxson, for coach Scott Skiles, for the players, for everybody,’ Nocioni said. ‘You know my dream was to play in the NBA. Right now, I’m living the dream.’ Read more

“He’s got such a good follow-through when he shoots and he’s a really good player.”

Unlike his newest teammate, Joakim Noah, Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon would never wear seersucker. via Downers Grove Sun