NBA Free Agency 2010: Depression Hits the City of Chicago

Well, that was a major kick in the you-know-what.

Dwyane Wade will not be a Chicago Bull.

Ditto for Chris Bosh.

In the most hyped free-agent summer in NBA history, the Chicago Bulls—and their $30 million in available salary cap room—appear to be shut out by the some of the biggest stars in the NBA.

First, it was Joe Johnson, who elected to stay in Atlanta and continue to build the Hawks' franchise (and his wallet in the process).

Then, we saw Amar'e Stoudemire bolt for New York in an attempt to recruit fellow stars to join him in the Big Apple.

Stoudemire wasn't talked about as a possible Bull, and his lofty contract was something the Bulls weren't prepared to offer, but it still goes in the box score as 0-for-2 for the Bulls' executive starting lineup of Jerry Reinsdorf, Gar Forman and John Paxson, with the help of coach Tom Thibodeau.

With Wednesday morning's announcement that Wade and Bosh will pair up in Miami, the Bulls now stand a dismal four up, four down in their pursuit of building an Eastern Conference power.

Sure, LeBron James remains "undecided," but at this point, what reason do the Bulls have to believe he'd join them?

Yes, he met with the Bulls' representatives last, but he's remained in Cleveland for the last several days, and will announce his decision tomorrow in a television event that will rival any State of the Union address Barack Obama has made.

For James, the decision likely will come down to his roots in Akron, Ohio, and his loyalty (and extra $30 million) to the Cavaliers franchise.

This is what we feared most as Bulls fans.

The unthinkable of not landing any of the top free agents now appears to be exactly what is happening.

Carlos Boozer and David Lee—both impressive power forwards—remain options when LeBron decides he won't be a Bull.

But Boozer and Lee were viewed as Plans C and D a week ago when the Bulls were believed to be in the hunt for Wade, Bosh, James, etc.

I don't envision a Bulls team led by Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Joakim Noah and a Carlos Boozer or David Lee winning any NBA titles—or appearing in any Finals series, for that matter.

The Bulls' best hope at this point could be inking Boozer or Lee, and paying top dollar for a short-term contract for guard Ray Allen.

Allen and Boozer/Lee would give the Bulls a very talented top-five, but likely still not enough to compete with the Orlando Magic, Cavaliers (if LeBron stays), or Miami Heat (if LeBron joins Wade and Bosh).

We are a sad city at the moment.

We'll be glued to our televisions tomorrow night to find out for sure that Mr. James will not be gracing us with his presence.

We'll be even sadder by tomorrow night.

But, oh wait, it gets worse.

Thunder star forward Kevin Durant won't be a free agent anytime soon either, with his decision to stay in Oklahoma City for the next five seasons. Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony could accept an extension with Denver that will pay him roughly $20 million per season for the next three or four seasons.

In other words, the free-agent bonanza of 2011 won't be happening, and the free-agent bonanza of 2010 isn't happening in the city of Chicago.

The city now has to focus on... Chicago Cubs baseball?

But, hey, at least we got the Olympic bid.