Roman Modrowski of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that new Bulls GM Jon Paxson isn't quite sure that Jamal Crawford and Jay Williams can play alongside one another.

"Two small guards, it's tough to play them together all the time,'' Paxson said. "But there are situations where it can happen.

"I don't want to lump it all into one thing--can they or can't they? I do believe they can. But all the time, probably not.''

Crawford is up for a contract extension this summer and that is one of the first things Paxson will have to address.

"You have until Oct. 31 to sign him to an extension,'' Paxson said. "He's played well.

"You have to find out where he's at [in contract demands]. I called [Goodwin] to introduce myself, which I'm in the process of doing with all our guys' agents.''

Crawford is said to be seeking a six-year extension.

"It's all up to Chicago,'' Goodwin said. "Jamal has played himself into a situation where there's a lot of interest.

"He's showing he's one of the top guards out there. It's a good situation for Chicago if Chicago wants to step up and extend his contract, and it's a good situation for Jamal to test the free-agent market if they don't extend him.''

While Crawford and his agent know the amount of years they would like to see, they are not ready to throw out a monetary figure, which could be the max amount should Crawford continue to develop. That would pose somewhat of a problem for Paxson with Eddy Curry and Tyson Chandler likely seeking max contracts after next season.

"Not everybody can be paid maximum salary,'' Paxson said. "These guys haven't tasted winning yet. They don't understand how good that feels and how special it is to be a part of a team that does win. That's why you're in a hurry to win.

"That may sound like an idealistic thing, but I'm going to at least try to approach these guys in that manner.''

Money may not be a problem though, as Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf has said he would pay the luxury tax for a championship team.

"What Jerry told me was it's not so much about making money, but he certainly doesn't want to lose money,'' Paxson said. "The luxury tax becomes a problem.

"As he proved the last time around when this team won, he's more than willing to spend money.''