Q&A with Jerry Reinsdorf: Departed Ben Gordon didn't fit in with Bulls
CEO: Gordon didn't fit, Wallace a mistake, Rose a called shot
July 21, 2009
BY BRIAN HANLEY
bhanley@suntimes.com
From Ben Gordon's exit, to Ben Wallace's short and costly stay, to Pau Gasol's bypass of the Bulls on the way to L.A., Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf weighed in on numerous subjects Monday.
Reinsdorf, also the White Sox owner who allowed he might have bought the Cubs had the timing been different in 1981, sat down with Bulls beat reporters from the Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune, and Daily Herald for an hour of free-wheeling conversation at the United Center.
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Question: What do you think of Ben Gordon's signing as a free agent with the Detroit Pistons?
Answer: Actually, we made a decision a year ago not to commit long term to Ben. We tried, and he turned it down. Then, near the end, [now GM] Gar Forman and John [Paxson] decided it probably wasn't a good idea to make a long-term decision. We wanted to see what other options might develop. So we withdrew the offer [six years, $54 million] we had on the table. Ben ultimately said he would take it, but it was too late.
Now, fast forward to the end of the year, we have [John] Salmons and we have a hell of a three-guard rotation with [Kirk] Hinrich and Derrick [Rose]. Ben wasn't going to get a whole lot of playing time. [It] was going to be diminished. So Ben really no longer fit. Ben's a terrific player. But Ben needs minutes. He would not have been happy with the minutes he was going to get.
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Q: What about letting Gordon go and getting nothing in return given he was the third overall pick in the 2004 draft?
A: You can't just look at a player by himself. You've got to look at what his departure enables you to do in other ways. You do have to have [salary] cap flexibility in this league. It's not like baseball where, if you have the money, you can do whatever you want. The cap really constrains you. So you're constantly looking at your roster to see maybe two or three years out.
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Q: The Bulls will have some $25 million in salary-cap room projected to spend on the star-studded 2010 free-agent class. After spending $60 million on free agent Ben Wallace with little to show for it, are you leery of courting another big-money player?
A: Yes. But the only way you can avoid making a mistake is not to make a decision. Even Jerry West has made mistakes, and he's probably the best in the business. Even [Red] Auerbach made mistakes. Was Ben Wallace a mistake? Probably. Because what we didn't think about is Ben needs to play alongside somebody who can score a lot of points. But I don't think it's about Ben Wallace that makes us be careful. It's the thought that when you make a mistake, you own that mistake. So we've got to be careful.
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Q: Does it take three All-Stars to contend for a championship? MJ was the last Bulls All-Star in 1998.
A: We have Derrick [Rose]. He clearly shows the potential to be an All-Star. A healthy Luol is going to become an All-Star. Boston showed three stars helps you a great deal. The Bulls championships, we really had two stars. Maybe we had three stars in Michael Jordan himself. But it's still a team game. If you have the right role players and play the game properly, you can win. But with three All-Stars, it makes it a lot easier.
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Q: Without beating the lottery odds of less than 2 percent and landing Rose, would your three-year building plans have been set back greatly after the 33-win season (2007-08)?
A: Yeah. But I knew right along we were going to get Derrick. John [Paxson] can tell you. John said several months before the draft, 'We really need a point guard.' I said: 'We'll win the lottery and take Derrick Rose.' Honest to God, I said that. I was acting silly, and it worked out.
People say, 'You should go to Las Vegas.' I say no because I've already used up all my luck. I walked into Michael Jordan. He had already been drafted, nobody knew what he was. You don't succeed in this world without a certain amount of luck. If you're successful and you think you're successful because you're so frickin' smart, then you're heading for a fall. You have to have luck, and you have to have other people helping you out.
