Bulls pushing for incentives in Chandler contract dealings
By Kent McDill
Daily Herald Sports Writer

Posted Thursday, August 18, 2005

Tyson Chandler didn’t agree to contract terms during a face-to-face meeting with Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and general manager John Paxson on Tuesday in Pasadena, Calif.

But Paxson remained optimistic that a long-term deal for the 7-foot-1 forward will get done.

Chandler’s camp has asked for $75 million over six years, according to a team source. That’s well above the Bulls’ offer, though they had to revise their thinking when Philadelphia re-signed center Sam Dalembert for what turned out to be $64 million over six years. Chandler posted better numbers than Dalembert last season.

The Bulls are trying to convince Chandler and his agent Jeff Schwartz that players don’t get paid on potential and have offered to include incentives to raise the value of a new deal.

“In a perfect world, every player should have incentives in his contract to push toward,” Paxson said. “But it’s a difficult thing to work through.”

Paxson is leaving today for Philadelphia, where he expects to meet with Eddy Curry’s agent, Leon Rose, in the next two days. Paxson admitted that negotiations with Curry are in a preliminary stage, with an assortment of medical and insurance issues to sort through.

The Bulls have yet to make a formal offer to Curry, according to a team source