Wojnarowski On Taj Gibson Trade Rumors: 'Haven't Heard Anything Along Those Lines'
(CBS) The Bulls may not be as active on the trade market right now as originally thought.
After a Sporting News report surfaced that Chicago sixth man Taj Gibson had been "connected to much of the league the past few months" in trade talks, Yahoo Sports NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski told the Spiegel and Mannelly Show on Friday morning that he'd heard nothing of that sort in his discussions.
"I have not heard anything involving Taj," Wojnarowski said.
"I haven't heard that in my conversations with team executives. I've heard about a lot of names coming up in trade talks. His has not been one of them. Going forward for the Bulls, do they have a decision to make on Taj? Let's say Jimmy Butler is going to get a max offer sheet (next offseason) or they have to get in front of a max offer sheet and offer a deal close to the max.
"Do they have to look at the cap and make a decision on Taj? It's possible. But I don't know that they have to do that now. I haven't heard anything along those lines that they were looking to shake it up that way. That doesn't mean it's not true, but I haven't heard one team mention to me that they felt Taj was available."
Gibson was at the center of many trade rumors last summer when the Bulls pursued Carmelo Anthony in free agency and were weighing options on how to offer him the most money, so it's not surprising that Gibson's name has popped up again. Still, the report on him being connected to "much of the league" seemed to suggest Gibson had a huge "for sale" sign hanging on him, which Wojnarowski hasn't found to be the case.
In signing the 34-year-old Pau Gasol last summer, the Bulls basically gave themselves a two-year title window with this group. So unless the return haul is something special, trading Gibson would seem contrary to Chicago's win-now mentality anyway.
While he's been inconsistent at times, Gibson remains a key contributor who was a stalwart in Chicago's closing lineups last season and could serve as an answer in that role again as Tom Thibodeau looks for ways to spark his struggling team.