Did the Chicago Bulls Trade Kirk Hinrich for Nothing?

Technically, all is signed and sealed for the Chicago Bulls.

They made their offers, received their deals, and have their lineup.

Now, it's reflection time.

For arguments' sake, the Bulls biggest regret would probably be trading Kirk Hinrich to the Washington Wizards for... hopes. Hopes in acquiring one of the "big three" (LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and/or Chris Bosh).

Though the Bulls didn't hit big there, they still got some bang for their buck by notably adding Carlos Boozer, Kyle Korver, and Ronnie Brewer to play around Derrick Rose.

But could the Bulls still have gotten those players without trading Kirk Hinrich?

Could they still have been a better team while maintaining Hinrich?

Pro No. 1 if kept Hinrich: His versatility

Hinrich is best described as a three-in-one deal; he's a defensive-minded player who can play both guard positions and has a solid 40 percent shooting.

Thus, with Hinrich, the Bulls would've only needed to focus on finding a big man and a shooter.

They didn't seem to have any problems landing Carlos Boozer and Kyle Korver.

Both were eager to fly to Chicago, and Hinrich wouldn't have played a factor in delaying their arrivals.

With Hinrich's contract, the Bulls would've had $20 million in salary cap space, which would've been enough to sign both Boozer ($15 million in his first year) and Korver ($5 million).

But the Bulls would've foregone the bidding war for J.J. Redick.

Korver is 41 percent from the three, but he wouldn't match up with Ray Allen in a shooting contest. A shooter like Redick would've filled the void left by Ben Gordon.

The knock on Korver is his defense, which is were Hnrich comes in.

Then again, the Bulls could've also taken their pick between Korver or Ronnie Brewer.

Brewer ($3.9) would've been a cheaper bargain at the two or three, leaving the Bulls with more than enough to add size in their wing rotation.

However, with Hinrich, there wouldn't be a need for Brewer (who was targeted mostly for his defensive prowess) or C.J. Watson.

Hinrich causes more headaches for his opponents on the defensive end. At the point and alongside Rose, Hinrich plays with more confidence and even distributes the ball way better than Watson.

While it may be a concern to rely on one guy to play many different roles, Hinrich has proven that he can stay consistently healthy. Among the seven years that he's been in the league, his only nagging injury was with his thumb.

Pro No. 2 if kept Hinrich: His intangibles to the team

They don't call him Captain Kirk just for the jingle.

His leadership distinguishes him among his teammates.

No other Bull on the roster has been with the organization or experienced the ups and downs with Bill Cartwright, Scott Skiles and Vinny Del Negro.

His vocal-ness and "leader by example" earned him the respect of his entire team.

Trading away the "glue-guy" risks disrupting the team's chemistry.

Though it's difficult arguing intangibles, Hinrich's presence has been essential in the Bulls' climb as Eastern conference contenders.

Con No. 1 if kept Hinrich: Small backcourt

I touched a little on a con of keeping Hinrich in terms of getting Redick.

Some have argued that Hinrich is an overpaid, undersized guard who can't shoot.

Wrong, mostly.

Money aside, Hinrich's biggest drawback isn't his shooting. He's not a poor shooter; he's just an OK shooter.

Rather, it's his size.

There's a problem with having two little guards (Rose, standing at 6'3) defending the backcourt.

Rose's defense isn't stellar, and Korver's is nada. James Johnson has his team cringing whenever he's on the floor, never knowing when he'll make a mental mistake.

Nonetheless, opponents will be shooting over the heads of the Bulls' wing rotation and drawing fouls.

The Bulls would lack size.

Remember, one of their biggest issues with playing Cleveland last season was guarding LeBron James.

The Miami Heat would be a nightmare with James and Wade leading the offense.

Luol Deng on James? Gosh no. James' biceps are trice the size of Deng's.

Only then would it be smarter for the Bulls to sign Brewer over Korver.

Con No. 2 if kept Hinrich: Not being gamblers in the market

Let's put money back into the equation.

Then definitely yes, Hinrich was being overpaid, and the Bulls needed to dump his contract if they wanted to be strong "players" in the market.

By holding onto Hinrich, the Bulls would've taken their names out of contention for James, Wade and/or Bosh.

Sure, the Bulls had the "supporting cast edge," but at $20 million, they only had enough to sign one max free agent.

Even without Hinrich, the Bulls didn't have enough for two max players, but they were there. Bosh might have been out of the picture, but Boozer and, say, James were not possible with Hinrich.

Pro No. 1 without Hinrich: More depth

Let's look at the reality of the Bulls now.

With Hinrich, the Bulls would've still had depth.

Now, the Bulls have even more depth.

With Korver, Brewer, Watson and whoever they pick up with the rest of their $3 million, the Bulls have more defined roles in their lineup.

A great team is one that is diverse with guys who can play off each other, and this is what distinguishes the Bulls from the Heat.

The Bulls have different talents that can potentially complement each other. And with Rose being the center piece, he can only develop into the star player whom the Bulls need him to be.

Pro No. 2 without Hinrich: More size and a little youth

Finally, the Bulls are looking bigger.

The release of Hinrich's contract easily allowed them to buy size with Boozer, Korver, Brewer and Kurt Thomas.

Rebounding and mismatches had been an ongoing issue, but they won't seem to be a bother this time around. Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson won't get banged up as much at the post.

This also means more pick-and-rolls for Rose, and also opens up options for Rose to dish the ball to, either down low or to the wing.

At the same time, the Bulls were able to add size without sacrificing speed. They already had a young team who have the energy and potential to run up and down the floor.

Though speed might not have been an issue with Hinrich, 29, the Bulls still got Brewer, 25, and Watson, 26. And Brewer is a guy who is known for his quick slashes to the basket.

Con No. 1 without Hinrich: Bulls just got two lesser halves of Hinrich

As stated earlier, the Bulls could've gotten Boozer and Korver without sacrificing Hinrich.

Right now, the Bulls are still trying to spend the rest of what they saved from Hinrich's $9 million contract.

So far, the Bulls got Brewer ($3.9), Watson ($3.1), and Thomas (roughly 400K/veteran minimum).

Besides size, Hinrich arguably has more value than Brewer. Watson and Thomas are nothing to be excited about.

Watson will mostly come off the bench as a breather for Rose, and he isn't much of a dynamic or commanding floor leader than Hinrich.

One of Hinrich's key attributes while playing on the same floor with Rose was that he took ball pressure off Rose.

With Rose being a star on the rise, other teams definitely won't ignore him and know that in order to shut down the Bulls, they would have to shut down Rose.

Furthermore, Thomas and whoever the Bulls sign won't play meaningful minutes.

Con No. 2 without Hinrich: Wasted trade options

"Trade" is the key word. And the Bulls got nothing in return.

The Bulls could've tried very, very hard to ship injury-prone Deng and his $11 million contract somewhere, anywhere, but that seemed impossible.

Hinrich had the biggest trade value, and he caught the eyes of many teams. The Bulls could've traded for a veteran like Vince Carter to clear out cap space.

Even the Lakers were rumored to be interested in Hinrich, which had names like Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic and Adam Morrison in the mix.

Hinrich has been on the trading block before, and when all the talk finally became reality, in the end, the Bulls got nothing from their end of the bargain when they could've gotten something.

Bottom line: A deal that was worth the risk

It would've been foolish for the Bulls to hold onto Hinrich and forgo the opportunity to land the three most prized free agents.

Though the Bulls struck out there, they are one of the winners in this free agency season.

The Bulls were going to land at least two marquee players either way because the strong nucleus of Rose, Noah, Gibson and Deng set the Bulls up as Eastern Conference contenders. Plus, the Bulls had the money.

With or without Hinrich, the Bulls' lineup would've been potent either way.

Sure, combine Hinrich hefty contact with his size, but the Bulls got Brewer, Watson and Thomas in return.

Looking at that tradeoff, the Bulls technically got the same quality in the form of quantity.

Shipping Captain Kirk was a deal that just had to be done. And though the Bulls didn't exactly get what they wanted in the trade, they still spend their money wisely this summer.