Kirk Hinrich Trade Could Be Key in LeBron James Sweepstakes

To the naked eye, last night’s NBA draft was about as exciting as an episode of “I Love Toy Trains” , but there was plenty of drama unfolding beneath the surface.  While the Cleveland Cavaliers did not make a single pick in the draft, their future may have been affected much more than we realize.

Earlier this month, I wrote that Cleveland was a significantly better place for Lebron to play than Chicago for a multitude of reasons. Last night, the Chicago Bulls dealt the 17th pick of the draft along with Kirk Hinrich to the Washington Wizards.  While that doesn’t seem overly significant to most, it was an absolute game changer in the Lebron James sweepstakes.

By dumping Hinrich’s $9 million dollar salary, the Bulls free up more than $30 million dollars to spend in the free agent market starting July 1st.  A maximum contract in the NBA is expected to be roughly $16 million dollars a year, which means this move allows Chicago to target more than one of the mega star free agents set to explore their options this summer.

The most remarkable thing about this situation is that by simply trading Hinrich, a bench player, the Bulls are now in position to bring in Lebron James and a player like Chris Bosh to go along with Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Luol Deng.  Chicago is putting themselves in a position to make a Jordan-like run to the title not just next year, but for the next decade.  This is precisely the core of young, talented players that Cleveland fans have been begging their team to put around LBJ for years.

The Cavaliers are going to have to act fast if they want to work out a sign and trade for one of the big name free agents, but many believe that they do not have the fire power to entice a team like Toronto to pull the trigger.  If Dan Gilbert isn’t able to bring in another quality piece, will Lebron James be content coming back to The Q with virtually the same team that has not won a title in Lebron’s first seven seasons?

Cleveland can still offer Lebron more money than any other team, but Lebron has always contended that his first priority is winning.  If that statement holds to be true, the people of Cleveland could be in store for another last second sucker punch, courtesy of the Windy City.

I still believe that Lebron will stay with his hometown team, but the Hinrich deal changed the landscape of this free agency frenzy of a summer.  The Bulls are clearly the front runner to retain The King’s services, and if Lebron really wants to win, Chicago seems like the best fit.

I can’t believe I just wrote that.