In all probability, Ben Wallace?s agent, Arn Tellem, will be negotiating for a four-year deal for his client this summer.

If the Pistons elected to give Wallace a full maximum, they could pay him as much as $132.5 million over six years.

The most any other team could pay him over six years, possibly Atlanta, Chicago, Toronto or Charlotte, would be roughly $126 million.

In reality, a competing team may be able to lure his away with a package just over $100 million.

Even though the Eddy Curry trade has yielded the number two overall pick in this June's draft, it isn't being considered a runaway success by all NBA executives.

"Are the Bulls going to get a better player than Curry? No," one Eastern Conference GM said. "But for all the things that are going wrong in New York, Curry's underachievement just multiplies it. Everyone likes his offensive ability, and he still has upside, but he's gradually moving toward bust. Either he doesn't love the game, or he's uncoachable. Because he sure doesn't hustle on defense, and he just isn't maturing at an acceptable rate."

Arn Tellem is representing Texas product LaMarcus Aldridge. Sam Smith is reporting that he will work to get Aldridge to the Bulls.

Tellem has been close with the Bulls and the team bought out his client Tim Thomas, a move that has increased his impending value on the free agent market tremendously.

Minnesota's Kevin Garnett reportedly is on the market, writes David Brown of the Northwest Herald.

The Bulls are a team who may be able to put an attractive deal together for the longtime member of the Minnesota Timberwolves.  Out of a group of Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, Andres Nocioni and Kirk Hinrich, at least one player would all but certainly have to be included

"I like our perimeter players," Paxson said. "They're all young, they're all going to get better, they all have a unique talent."

Bulls GM John Paxson said he felt the club was "lucky" to land the No. 2 selection in June's Draft.  He also further clarified the motives for the trade and what he hoped came out of the deal.

"We didn't do it with the belief that we were trying to win a deal or get the better of a deal," he said. "That's never been the issue with me....It was about our decision in trying to do the right thing for Eddy. When we realized that couldn't happen, we decided to make the deal."

Chris Duhon had surgery on his lumbar spine this morning at Rush University Medical Center.

The surgery was performed by Dr.?s Howard An and Brian Cole.

The surgery to remove a herniated disc went well and without complication.

Duhon will rest at home for the next several days before beginning rehabilitation. He is expected to make a full recovery and return to full basketball activity next season.

While Gonzaga small forward Morrison does not care which team selects him, he made particular mention of the Chicago Bulls.

When asked about playing for Chicago, Morrison replied... "It would be great to play in Chicago for the Bulls.''

Morrison was also asked about his diabetes and what effects it has on his game.

The decision to trade Eddy Curry was an emotional one for the Chicago Bulls and it depended on the team receiving the Knicks' pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.

"Eddy's a very good basketball player, a very good center in this league, and I'm sure that over time the Knicks will be very happy."

Curry was drafted out of high school by the club and they watched him mature into a young man and a productive inside scorer.  The Bulls and Curry weren't able to agree on a deal that satisfied both parties in light of the questions surrounding his health.

Paxson confirmed what New York had been quietly saying ? that the Bulls would not accept any conditions on the pick. "It would have been a deal breaker," Paxson said.

With the Bulls being the only team attending the NBA Lottery tonight that made the playoffs, GM John Paxson can consider himself lucky.

''If there's a good way to get in it, this is the way to do it,'' Paxson said Monday.

The Bulls find themselves in Secaucus in place of the New York Knicks, who acquired Eddy Curry in exchange for their unprotected first round pick and then crashed to the league's second worst record, giving the Bulls the second best shot at the top pick.

After seeing New York's misfortune become his good fortune, Paxson isn't going to press his luck by bringing any good-luck charms with him.

''There's nothing I can put in my pocket that's going to affect the outcome,'' he said. ''I'm not going to have any lucky charms or anything. Not my style.''

The NBA's minimum age requirement for entry into the draft was a big hit with team executives last summer.  As Marlen Garcia from the Chicago Tribune writes, teams with a chance of getting the No. 1 pick in Tuesday's lottery drawing in Secaucus, N.J., might not be quite as happy about it now.

"All of us thought to get us out of high school gyms, something had to be done," Bulls general manager John Paxson said last week. "In theory, it was a great idea. Now when you're sitting with a high pick, you want the best the game has to offer."

Thanks to last fall's trade of Eddy Curry to the New York Knicks, the Bulls have the second-best chance, behind Portland, of getting this year's No. 1 pick.

Too bad Greg Oden isn't eligible. Every team would want the 7-foot senior at Indianapolis' Lawrence North High, who is bound for Ohio State next season. But Oden, 18, is at least a year away from the draft.

The new collective bargaining agreement requires players to be 19 and one year out of high school.