Where will Kobe land?

There are so many questions regarding Kobe Bryant and the Bulls, it's difficult to know where to start.

For instance, once Kobe moves to Chicago, will he live downtown or in the suburbs? Would he send his daughter to Loyola, Whitney Young or Highland Park High School?

If the Bears met Bryant's hometown Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs, which team's hat would he be wearing? Will his first local endorsement be for hot dogs, deep-dish pizza or Chevy trucks?

There's just one thing we know for sure: Bryant is coming. He will be accepting the torch handoff from Michael Jordan shortly before the last Illinois team is eliminated from the NCAA Tournament, if not sooner.

Proof is unnecessary. The national analysts seem to agree that Kobe is coming to town.

In a roundtable essay of five NBA experts on ESPN.com, three called Chicago his most likely destination, while two others put the Bulls in a tie for first. At SI.com, a writer declared the Bulls the No. 1 favorite in any Bryant sweepstakes. Case closed.

OK, five paragraphs of sarcasm should be plenty. So let's move on to reality…

Chicago is NOT the most likely destination if the Los Angeles Lakers decide to trade Kobe Bryant. The Bulls may not even be in the top five.

Sure, Bryant wants to play in Chicago. He also has a no-trade clause in his contract and the option to become a free agent in 2009, so he has the means to force the issue.

And Bulls management has nothing against Bryant. They'd love to have him on the team and they did travel to the West Coast in 2004 to make a longshot free-agent pitch.

But there is very little chance a trade to the Bulls actually will happen, and here are a few reasons why:

1. The Bulls aren't broken

The Bulls already are one of the top contenders in the Eastern Conference. It makes no sense to radically alter the team's chemistry and probably mortgage the future before seeing how far the current roster can go.

It's easy to say the Bulls don't have the pieces to win an NBA title. There also is no guarantee Dallas will ever win a championship. We won't know for sure until it plays out.

Right now, though, it's ridiculous to say a title is out of reach. Just look at the competition: San Antonio is getting older, Phoenix's Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire can't get along, Dallas just lost in the first round, and Cleveland has a shaky supporting cast surrounding LeBron James.

2. The price is too high

The following line actually appeared in an East Coast newspaper earlier this week: "There are well-founded rumblings that Kobe has his sights on Chicago or Dallas. So, would a package revolving around Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, Kirk Hinrich, Tyrus Thomas and/or Andres Nocioni work?"

Sure it would work. Just like the Bulls' lineup of Bryant, Chris Duhon, Thabo Sefolosha, Ben Wallace and Joakim Noah would roll over San Antonio in the Finals.

Bryant is one of the most talented offensive players in league history. But how can anyone assume a Bryant trade means a free pass to the Finals when the Lakers have won 42, 45 and 34 games in three seasons since Shaquille O'Neal left the team?

There is no chance the Bulls would combine Gordon and Deng in any deal. A Gordon-Tyrus Thomas combination would be a tough call as well because that would leave the Bulls with just one young big man (Noah) and little means to add reinforcements.

3. Bryant's salary is insurmountable

Matching up salaries so a trade can work isn't so difficult. Bryant, who makes $19.5 million this season, could waive his trade kicker to facilitate any deal.

But the details get complicated. The Bulls would need to jettison two large contracts or face a big luxury-tax bill. Sending Gordon, Thomas and the popular idea of a P.J. Brown sign-and-trade to the Lakers would result in the Bulls owing about $64 million to five players next season. The luxury-tax threshold is $67.8 million this year.

Also, Nocioni and Joe Smith cannot be traded until Dec. 15 because they signed new contracts in the summer. And if both Gordon and Deng sign extensions before the Oct. 31 deadline, a Bryant deal becomes virtually impossible until next summer.

Why? Because salary-cap rules make it difficult to trade players with future extensions or those in the first year of a larger contract. The Bulls would have four such players in Gordon, Deng, Hinrich and Nocioni.

For a Bulls-Lakers deal to go down, two things need to happen: Either the Bulls are in disarray by February and ready to make a radical change, or the Lakers feel pressure to deal Bryant and accept a package of Gordon, Nocioni, Sefolosha, Smith and draft picks.

If the Lakers really want to trade Bryant, here's an idea that could make sense for both sides: Send him to Houston for Tracy McGrady.

The Rockets would exchange a superstar who has never won a playoff series for one who has three championship rings. The Lakers would get a player back who can sell tickets and keep the team competitive.

If the Lakers insist on sending Bryant to the Eastern Conference, how about to Milwaukee for Michael Redd, Yi Jianlian and filler? True, Milwaukee is not a large market. But if Bryant really does love Chicago, he could be reminded that Toni Kukoc played for the Bucks and lived at his home in Highland Park. Sounds like everyone's a winner.

Give it up for Kobe

Five Kobe Bryant trades that make more sense than sending him to Chicago for half of the Bulls' roster:

1. To Houston for Tracy McGrady

2. To Dallas for Josh Howard, Jason Terry and DeSagana Diop

3. To Phoenix for Shawn Marion and Leandro Barbosa

4. To Atlanta for Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Shelden Williams

5. To Milwaukee for Michael Redd and Yi Jianlian

-- Mike McGraw

Do you want Kobe Bryant in Chicago?

Last week, Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss has said he would consider trading Kobe Bryant under the right circumstances. Since then, rumors have run rampant about where Bryant might go, including to the Bulls. Do you think it would be possible for the Bulls to work out a deal?