The Chicago Bulls are heading into a vitally important year this season with Derrick Rose returning and with Luol Deng's contract situation still up in the air, the team has plenty of questions and Deng will likely be at the center of them for a while with his free agency coming up.
Deng had problems last season in the playoffs and according to Pro Basketball Talk, one reason he may not sign back with team stems from his medical care and what happened with his spinal tap during the Miami Heat series. Deng was dealing with serious injuries and missed most of the series and was in the hospital and according to his agent in an interview with NBA.com, saying that Deng was left behind in Chicago by the team medical staff when the series was in Miami and he dealt with some problems including when he got "violently ill as spinal fluid leaked into his body."
Deng and his agent were reportedly working on a contact this summer, but later his agent said in the interview that part of the discussions had to do with the medical care. He said that the two sides never got to the negotiating part of the discussions and now it appeared that the two sides will part ways. ESPN.com reported a couple weeks ago that Deng's agent said that all talks have been tabled until the end of the season, and that could lead the former Duke star to leave Chicago for another franchise.
Deng has been an integral part of the Bulls makeup for the past decade and after playing out his six-year, $71 million contract, he likely will be able to test free agency and he will be one of the top players that teams will go after. Apart from his injury issues last season, Deng has been consistently healthy, playing at least 70 games in three of the past four seasons. Last year he averaged 16.5 points and over six rebounds per game and getting Rose back will only help his production as well.
Chicago has a good core with Deng, Rose and Joakim Noah and with players like Jimmy Butler, Carlos Boozer and Mike Dunleavy now there too, the team has the bench to make a deep run. Last season the team played well without Rose and if the team can be back to that level of play with him in the lineup, they could be the team that knocks off the Miami Heat finally. Deng could be traded at some point as well, especially if the team knows a deal won't get done, but they may not want to jeopardize playing for a championship and that will be one decision the team has to make moving forward.
