Luol Deng, the Chicago Bulls newly annointed franchise player after signing a Bulls record, $80 million contract, talked with Great Britains Sun Sport about his buddy Ben Gordon.

LUOL DENG has pleaded with the Chicago Bulls to re-sign team-mate Ben Gordon — so he can make his Great Britain debut this summer.

London-born Gordon, 25, has told GB management he will make his debut in next month’s Euro qualifiers only if he has signed a long NBA deal.

Deng said: “I’d love to see him back in Chicago and here with me playing for Great Britain.

“I’ve never been on a court without him and we know what he’s capable of. The Bulls and GB will be better with him.”

Source: Sun Sports

It probably isn’t the best decision for the Bulls to quickly have their franchise player sour on them. Prolonging the Gordon negotiations for no reason will be a personal hit from the Bulls organization against Luol Deng. Luol Deng is working hard to get Great Britain to qualify for the 2009 European Championships. Having Gordon on the team this summer for the qualifiers would greatly help Deng’s cause.

The Bulls are heading to disaster this season if they let this Gordon situation fester. Ben Gordon is one of he most popular players on the Bulls, and if he is not brought back, the Bulls chemistry could be ruptured. In addition to Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah have also pleaded with Bulls management to bring back Ben Gordon. ((http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=9651))