NBA Free Agency 2011: Will Tracy McGrady Finally Become a Chicago Bull?

There's no secret that the Chicago Bulls are searching for a shooting guard to pair with MVP point guard Derrick Rose.  

Whenever the lockout ends, Chicago will add that missing 2-guard to the roster either via free agency or through a trade.

Who will it be? Options include names like Monta Ellis, Jason Richardson, Jamal Crawford, Nick Young and Shannon Brown, just to name a few.

Another name is unrestricted free agent Tracy McGrady, who played this past season with the Detroit Pistons. 

Due to injury, "T-Mac" can no longer contribute 32 points a night like he did eight years ago and no, he can't put up 24 points a night like Ellis can now. However, the seven-time All-Star and two-time NBA scoring champ can still help out a ball club like the Bulls.

McGrady played point guard at times during his only season in Detroit. In Chicago, he could take a little pressure off Rose with his solid ball handling and scoring abilities.   

McGrady averaged only eight points per game for the Pistons, his lowest scoring average since his rookie year of 1997-98.

But playing alongside one of the league's top players in Rose and for a title contender like the Bulls instead of the rebuilding Pistons, McGrady might be motivated enough to score a bit more. 

It would be interesting to finally see McGrady as a member of the Bulls. He's been linked to the team a few times since 1997 when he headed for the NBA straight out of high school. 

Leading up to the '97 draft, there were rumors that the Bulls were looking to trade Scottie Pippen and center Luc Longley to the Boston Celtics in exchange for the third and sixth overall picks. 

The Bulls were supposedly going to draft Utah forward Keith Van Horn with one of the picks and McGrady with the other, starting a rebuilding process in Chicago. 

The deal never went down. Pippen remained in the Windy City for another season, helping Michael Jordan and the Bulls win their sixth championship. And McGrady was drafted ninth overall by Toronto, where he would later team up with his high-flying cousin Vince Carter.  

After a few seasons in Canada, McGrady became one of the most sought-after free agents in the summer of 2000. And Chicago, who had an enormous amount of cap space at the time, was interested in the 6'8" swingman once again.

But after being wined and dined by the Bulls, McGrady would say "thanks, but no thanks" and took his talents to Orlando to pair with fellow free agent signee Grant Hill.   

With Hill sidelined with an ankle injury, McGrady would turn into a superstar in Orlando and one of the league's most unstoppable scorers. He would spend several seasons in Orlando, Houston, where he became hampered with injuries, and then half a season in New York.  

McGrady became a free agent again last summer and you guessed it, Chicago showed interest in him once again.

The Bulls came close to signing McGrady, but ultimately backed off because they weren't convinced he would be comfortable coming off the bench. He eventually signed a one-year deal with the Pistons.

Now, will T-Mac and the Bulls finally join forces?

Probably not, seeing that there's better options out there. But we shall see.