Chicago Bulls Rumors: Taj Gibson Could Be On The Trade Block, But No Apparent Trade Partners Yet

The Chicago Bulls are rumored to be shopping Taj Gibson, but so far they don’t appear to have a trade partner for the 30-year-old forward.

Gibson appears to have a precarious place on the Bulls roster. He’s got two years left on his four-year, $33 million deal but is expected to miss at least three more months after undergoing offseason ankle surgery.

While Gibson has averaged nine points and six rebounds over the course of his five-year career, rumors indicate that he doesn’t fit into the future plans for the Chicago Bulls. But so far reports have said that it’s been difficult for them to find a trade partner.

The Bulls haven’t tipped their hand on Gibson yet, but there has been plenty of speculation as to where he might end up next season, if not in Chicago.

Sports Blog believes that Taj Gibson could be a good fit with the Utah Jazz, with the Bulls receiving Trey Burke and Rodney Hood in return.

“By making this trade, the Bulls acquire a good, athletic point guard who can run the offense when Rose needs a breather in Trey Burke. Burke is a sub-par shooter, hitting under 40 percent of his field goals last season, but he almost had three assists per turnover which means he may be a good fit for Fred Hoiberg’s offense in Chicago—comparable to Monte Morris’ fit at Iowa State last season. Rodney Hood is a shooting guard with potential who may not be ready to back up Jimmy Butler this year, but could be a long term fit for that role. Hood averaged just over 36 percent from downtown and needs to get more consistent with his shot to earn minutes behind Butler.”

Today’s Fast Break thinks that the Chicago Bulls could ship Taj Gibson to Miami to bring back Luol Deng.

“Deng isn’t the All-Star caliber player he was on the Bulls, but he doesn’t need to be. His veteran presence, stingy defense, and slashing ability make him a valuable role player and an immediate upgrade at small forward from Mike Dunleavy.”

This could just be an exercise in off-season speculation, however. Despite the reports, there isn’t much hard evidence to the rumors that the Chicago Bulls have an actual trade partner in mind for Taj Gibson. While it’s seen as a strong possibility that the Bulls will ship Gibson at some point for some salary relief, Chicago doesn’t seem to have much urgency at the moment.

[Image via NBA.com]