Bulls' Gordon: No regrets turning down $55 mil deal

The morning after agreeing to take the one-year qualifying offer from the Bulls and become an unrestricted free agent next summer, Ben Gordon wasn't smiling, but he claims to be happy.

"Because I'm playing basketball," he said Thursday following his first practice at the Berto Center. "Without having a contract this summer, I hadn't played since the last real game I had last season. So I'm just happy to be back out here on the court playing basketball. That's my main reason."

The fifth-year shooting guard insists he doesn't regret turning down the Bulls' offer, now believed to be worth around $54-55 million over six years. Clearly, though, the qualifying offer carries a significant risk. Gordon will be paid $6.4 million this season and cannot be traded without his consent.

The list of players who have opted to sign the qualifying offer is short and includes Michael Olowokandi, Stromile Swift, Vladimir Radmanovic and Mickael Pietrus. All of those players changed teams after becoming a free agent and none has been paid more than the mid-level exception (currently worth $5.6 million).

Asked if there's still a chance he could re-sign with the Bulls next year, Gordon was noncommittal, but general manager John Paxson kept the door ajar.

"This does not mean that Ben won't be here long-term," Paxson said. "It means that we didn't get something done right now."

During the final hours before Wednesday's 11 p.m. deadline, Gordon's camp pressed for a long-term solution and his agent, Raymond Brothers, flew here to plead his case in person. The Bulls called in legal counsel Irwin Mandel to see if anything could be done to backload the deal so the team could still avoid paying the NBA's luxury tax. No solution was found.

"At the end of the day, Ben shouldn't sign a deal he's not comfortable with," Paxson said. "Because then you sign something and if you're not totally happy with it, you're always thinking about that. He's a Bull for now, which is great for us, because we need his ability on the floor."

Many NBA observers have questioned why Gordon would turn down the Bulls' offer. He's been an explosive scorer during his pro career, but as an undersized shooting guard most teams likely view him as a sixth man who would not command a contract worth $12 per season or beyond.

Perhaps Gordon's representatives were thrown off by the sign-and-trade potential. Some teams were willing to meet Gordon's asking price in a sign-and-trade, but only if the Bulls would accept multiple bad contracts in return. The Bulls were never close to a trade agreement involving Gordon, according to team sources.

"I can go into a long list of things I'm surprised about that didn't happen, but that's neither here nor there," said Gordon, the team's top scorer for three years running. "I'm just going to go out and play."

So another Bulls season will begin with another potential distraction. Last year's poor start could be blamed, in part, on Gordon and Luol Deng turning down contract extensions just before the opening game. Now Gordon is playing on a one-year deal and the Bulls are still overloaded in the backcourt.

There aren't enough similarities to last year to expect the same dismal results, Gordon maintained.

"I think a lot of things have changed around here," he said. "It's like a completely new year. We have a new coaching staff, so things aren't the same as the past. It's really tough to compare it because we're not doing the same things that we used to. The whole system is different.

"I'm not going to base this year on any other year. I'm just going to go out with my teammates and try and make this the best year possible."