No Bulls deal imminent with Gordon, Deng

Posted October 30, 2007 11:00 pm

Mike McGraw

There is no chance the Bulls will sign Ben Gordon or Luol Deng to contract extensions before Wednesday's 11:59 p.m. deadline, according to sources on both sides of the negotiations.

The Bulls are in New Jersey preparing for their season-opener against the Nets. A year ago, Kirk Hinrich agreed to a contract extension on the morning of the Bulls' first game, but there was no last-minute progress with Gordon and Deng.

The two fourth-year Bulls will become restricted free agents next summer, with the Bulls able to match any offer from another team. They would then have to sign one-year qualifying offers before becoming unrestricted free agents in 2009, but players rarely go that far in the NBA.

Deng and Gordon are both looking at their situations optimistically. The extensions wouldn't kick in until next year. So they expect to play well this season and command a higher salary next summer. The Bulls' offers were believed to be around $50 over five seasons. Hinrich signed for $47.5 million over five years in 2006.

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