Hinrich happy to be back home with Bulls
Two years after he was evicted from his NBA home of seven seasons, Kirk Hinrich was back at the Berto Center, once again an official member of the Bulls.
Hinrich’s return has been common knowledge for weeks, but after waiting for some other transactions to take place, he finally signed a contract and met with the media Tuesday.
“It’s a little weird being back, because I didn’t know at the time if I would be back,” he said. “So it’s a little strange, but I think it’s a great fit and I’m looking forward to working with all the guys.”
On draft night 2010, Hinrich was traded to Washington in what amounted to a salary dump so the Bulls would have the cap space to pursue LeBron James and another significant player in free agency.
James didn’t work out, but the Bulls did produce the best regular-season record in the NBA the past two seasons while Hinrich watched from Washington and Atlanta wishing he could have experienced the success.
“It was tough to swallow at first, to go from Chicago and the two years they had here, not to be a part of it,” he said. “I felt we were at a place where we had a chance to finally really be good.
“Then I got traded, but that’s just how it is in this business. I still tried to go about the game and approach it the same way and bring professionalism wherever I was at.”
While Hinrich, 31, returned to his old home, the Bulls signed former New Orleans shooting guard Marco Belinelli, are on the verge of adding veteran center Nazr Mohammed and refused to match Omer Asik’s offer sheet from Houston.
General manager Gar Forman didn’t comment on the Asik decision, but the move speaks for itself.
It was a product of the team’s success, in many ways. A second-round draft pick in 2008, the Bulls waited two years for Asik to play out his contract in Turkey, and he quickly developed into one of the league’s best defensive centers.
The Rockets jumped at the chance to give the restricted free agent a three-year deal worth $25.1 million total, including a third-year salary of $14.9 million. As much as the Bulls liked Asik, that salary is too much for a non-starter.
The Bulls will have 12 players under contract once Mohammed officially is on board and will pay the NBA’s luxury tax for the first time next season. The team payroll sits at around $71.8 million, while the tax threshold starts at $70.3 million.
The Bulls signed Belinelli using the biannual exception of $1.9 million. It’s not clear if the contract is for one or two years, but Forman predicted a lengthy stay for the Italian shooting guard.
“He’s got a versatile game we think will fit with some of the other guys on our team,” Forman said. “We think he’ll be a real key piece for us, not only in the coming year, but into the future.”
Hinrich won’t need many introductions when training camp begins. He played with Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson with the Bulls.
During his time in Atlanta, Hinrich teamed with new acquisition Vladimir Radmanovic, and he knows rookie point guard Marquis Teague through older brother Jeff.
“Throughout the process, I talked to Derrick a couple times and Joakim a lot,” Hinrich said. “At the end of the day, my heart and my gut told me this was the right move for me and my family. Right now, I’ve got the process behind me and am excited to get ready for the season.”
Hinrich kept his home in Bannockburn, although his wife and two young daughters followed him to Washington and Atlanta. He got a better offer from Milwaukee this summer, according to reports, but settled on the Bulls after meeting a few times with coach Tom Thibodeau.
“It was evident by watching the team play how good a coach he is,” Hinrich said. “That was a huge factor in the decision. I was able to talk to him a couple times, get a little more comfortable with how he saw things, how I saw things. I think it’s going to be a good relationship.”
Last summer Hinrich needed surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. He ended up having the least productive season in the NBA, but is confident he will be back to his usual self.
“This off-season I’ve been working real hard and I haven’t felt any ill effects,” he said. “I think when we’re completely healthy, we’re a very, very good team.
“As of right now, I feel like nobody’s giving us much of a chance. Everybody’s kind of counting us out since Derrick is out, and probably deservedly so.
“I have a lot of confidence in the guys we have here. I’m real familiar with them. We’re going to have a chance to win a lot of games by the way we defend and the way we play on both ends.”
The 6-foot-5 Belinelli, 26, has played for Golden State, Toronto and New Orleans in five NBA seasons. He averaged a career-high 11.7 points last year and produced his best 3-point shooting percentage when he played with Chris Paul in 2010-11.
Belinelli called Rose the best point guard in the league.
“It was tough to play against this team last year,” he said. “When the Bulls called me, I was so happy, because Chicago is a team that can maybe win the championship.
“I can play with some stars like Derrick Rose. I think this is the best opportunity for me to go out and maybe win a championship.”
mmcgraw@dailyherald.com