According to Chris Broussard on True Hoop, the Chicago Bulls are trying to trade Kirk Hinrich, and they are using Tyrus Thomas as a sweetener in trying to get rid of Hinrich.

As for the Bulls, Kirk Hinrich is ahead of even Tyrus Thomas on their list of players they’d love to trade. In fact, Thomas is being offered around the league as a sweetener in any Hinrich deal. But with two years, $17 million left on his contract after this season, there’s not a great market for Hinrich.

It makes sense that the Bulls would like to move Hinrich. His contract could prohibit the Bulls from signing a free agent to a max contract if John Salmons opts in to his contract for next season, which could prevent some of the players from coming to Chicago in free agency this summer.

A trade that is thrown out in this article is Kirk Hinrich and Tyrus Thomas going to Houston, as the main components of a trade for Tracy McGrady, who is an expiring contract. However as Broussard writes, teams aren’t in a rush to trade for Hinrich’s contract, which is probably considered a bad contract around the league with the way Hinrich has played this year.

Broussard throws out the idea of Houston wanting Joakim Noah, as he writes:

Chicago, which has definite interest in McGrady, also has the combination of young talent and expiring contracts the Rockets are looking for. There is a Bulls player Houston covets, but it’s not clear who that is. Since the Rockets surely realize that Derrick Rose won’t be traded, logic suggests it’s Joakim Noah.

A package of Noah, Brad Miller and Jerome James (the latter two have expiring contracts) would work financially, but sources say the Bulls have no desire to part with Noah.

The Bulls would obviously want to take no part in getting rid of Joakim Noah for a half season rental of Tracy McGrady.

It appears that Chris Broussard is misinterpreting what the Bulls intentions would be in trading for Tracy McGrady are. If the Bulls were to trade for Tracy McGrady, they wouldn’t be trading for McGrady the player, they would be trading for his expiring contract. Therefore there is no reason that they would throw away a good young talent in Noah to have marginal cap space benefits for next season. If they are going to trade for McGrady, it will be some combination of expiring contracts, and a long term contract that they wish to get rid of (Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, or John Salmons).

I think the Bulls best bet might be to try to work out a package around John Salmons. Salmons has played better than Hinrich this season, and has at most, one less year left on his contract than Hinrich (and a smaller contract at that), and Salmons may even choose to opt out after this season, which would leave Houston, in this scenario, with no contracts going past this year.

Salmons could also choose to opt out if the Bulls keep him, but a trade like this where the Bulls package John Salmons with definite expiring contracts for another definite expiring contract would allow the Bulls’ front office to sleep easy at night, as they would have certainty that they will be able to offer someone a max contract in 2010 free agency.

1. Boston Celtics - 97.09110809
2. Los Angeles Lakers - 96.23695606
3. Cleveland Cavaliers - 95.96925995
4. Dallas Mavericks - 93.29128104
5. Orlando Magic - 92.74592282
6. Atlanta Hawks - 90.6801248
7. San Antonio Spurs - 89.85378126
8. Portland Trail Blazers - 89.11698158
9. Phoenix Suns - 88.8448073
10. Denver Nuggets - 88.78509466
11. Oklahoma City Thunder - 88.19723688
12. Miami Heat - 86.64786563
13. Houston Rockets - 86.54235316
14. Utah Jazz - 85.72642726
15. Memphis Grizzlies - 82.68375435
16. Toronto Raptors - 82.65221533
17. New Orleans Hornets - 81.58930876
18. Los Angeles Clippers - 81.48618476
19. Milwaukee Bucks - 80.87913298
20. New York Knicks - 80.733524
21. Charlotte Bobcats - 79.74848855
22. Sacramento Kings - 78.14215859
23. Chicago Bulls - 77.67040777
24. Washington Wizards - 77.62351403
25. Philadelphia 76ers - 76.79352679
26. Golden State Warriors - 74.71841182
27. Detroit Pistons - 74.05881037
28. Indiana Pacers - 73.71263082
29. Minnesota Timberwolves - 70.07581229
30. New Jersey Nets - 64.57433245

1. Los Angeles Lakers - 97.31343181
2. Boston Celtics - 96.70934681
3. Cleveland Cavaliers - 96.00231091
4. Orlando Magic - 93.80917918
5. Dallas Mavericks - 93.44483347
6. Atlanta Hawks - 91.17138088
7. San Antonio Spurs - 90.10669577
8. Portland Trail Blazers - 89.19846473
9. Denver Nuggets - 88.63571121
10. Phoenix Suns - 87.31533131
11. Houston Rockets - 86.72524182
12. Oklahoma City Thunder - 86.47244937
13. Miami Heat - 84.70969601
14. Utah Jazz - 84.48189577
15. Memphis Grizzlies - 81.98791773
16. Toronto Raptors - 79.5810086
17. Los Angeles Clippers - 79.56145316
18. New York Knicks - 79.29919319
19. Milwaukee Bucks - 78.23391633
20. New Orleans Hornets - 78.11032041
21. Sacramento Kings - 77.77323118
22. Chicago Bulls - 77.74640951
23. Charlotte Bobcats - 77.46536279
24. Washington Wizards - 75.92258969
25. Detroit Pistons - 74.77870483
26. Philadelphia 76ers- 74.35075076
27. Indiana Pacers - 73.9924849
28. Golden State Warriors - 72.68995327
29. Minnesota Timberwolves - 69.33966297
30. New Jersey Nets - 64.83572184

1. Boston Celtics - 98.61599297
2. Los Angeles Lakers - 94.32885139
3. Orlando Magic - 92.64145695
4. Atlanta Hawks - 92.12477223
5. Dallas Mavericks - 91.43577365
6. Denver Nuggets - 90.189023
7. Cleveland Cavaliers - 90.027552
8. Phoenix Suns - 87.2460405
9. Houston Rockets - 86.96593225
10. Oklahoma City Thunder - 86.45765016
11. Portland Trail Blazers - 85.05060155
12. Utah Jazz- 84.12495838
13. Miami Heat - 83.56653612
14. San Antonio Spurs - 81.57006081
15. Milwaukee Bucks - 79.66665728
16. Detroit Pistons - 79.1607668
17. Los Angeles Clippers - 78.59712519
18. Sacramento Kings - 76.8116151
19. New Orleans Hornets - 76.50493999
20. Indiana Pacers - 76.35917675
21. New York Knicks - 76.22681851
22. Memphis Grizzlies - 75.92817743
23. Toronto Raptors - 75.74750039
24. Charlotte Bobcats - 75.70946478
25. Washington Wizards - 75.05702002
26. Golden State Warriors - 73.20632655
27. Chicago Bulls - 72.65158055
28. Philadelphia 76ers - 70.04531128
29. Minnesota Timberwolves - 65.10387236
30. New Jersey Nets - 64.43645582

1. Boston Celtics - 97.41670302
2. Los Angeles Lakers - 95.79455195
3. Orlando Magic - 95.35119103
4. Denver Nuggets - 91.99905467
5. Cleveland Cavaliers - 91.87213907
6. Phoenix Suns - 90.81430009
7. Atlanta Hawks - 90.04026662
8. Dallas Mavericks - 89.92322872
9. Portland Trail Blazers - 87.67986983
10. Houston Rockets - 84.91429101
11. Oklahoma City Thunder - 84.3083509
12. Utah Jazz - 83.88613924
13. Miami Heat - 82.76348402
14. San Antonio Spurs - 80.79083727
15. Milwaukee Bucks - 79.58332963
16. Los Angeles Clippers - 79.02214963
17. Sacramento Kings - 77.96059083
18. Washington Wizards - 76.47618869
19. Toronto Raptors - 76.27227912
20. Charlotte Bobcats - 76.06008517
21. Memphis Grizzlies - 75.38169896
22. Detroit Pistons - 74.984861
23. New Orleans Hornets - 74.52658819
24. Indiana Pacers - 73.81922759
25. Chicago Bulls - 73.56375608
26. Golden State Warriors - 72.95615238
27. New York Knicks - 72.21380956
28. Philadelphia 76ers - 70.67590259
29. Minnesota Timberwolves - 65.70763399
30. New Jersey Nets - 62.64741569

1. Boston Celtics - 95.5581864
2. Los Angeles Lakers - 95.11305919
3. Phoenix Suns - 94.45843986
4. Orlando Magic - 94.22665253
5. Dallas Mavericks - 91.27628428
6. Cleveland Cavaliers - 90.32139609
7. Denver Nuggets - 89.397316
8. Atlanta Hawks - 89.05334704
9. Portland Trail Blazers - 87.88422835
10. Miami Heat - 84.59677079
11. Oklahoma City Thunder - 84.20420055
12. Houston Rockets - 83.29195114
13. Utah Jazz - 83.05030816
14. San Antonio Spurs - 82.24803077
15. Milwaukee Bucks - 0.73714803
16. Indiana Pacers - 78.18636228
17. Los Angeles Clippers - 78.13554784
18. Sacramento Kings - 77.48367953
19. Charlotte Bobcats - 76.43672343
20. Chicago Bulls - 74.65654209
21. Detroit Pistons - 73.95819815
22. Toronto Raptors - 73.5053964
23. New Orleans Hornets - 73.47975442
24. Washington Wizards - 73.12549831
25. Golden State Warriors - 72.89342885
26. Memphis Grizzlies - 72.81708527
27. Philadelphia 76ers - 71.59112682
28. New York Knicks - 68.48832999
29. Minnesota Timberwolves - 63.6484407
30. New Jersey Nets - 60.28057678

1. Boston Celtics - 96.47321456
2. Dallas Mavericks - 95.84620446
3. Orlando Magic - 95.05178503
4. Atlanta Hawks - 94.20733262
5. Los Angeles Lakers - 93.94380673
6. Phoenix Suns - 93.74761194
7. Cleveland Cavaliers - 93.72879927
8. Portland Trail Blazers - 92.56916513
9. Milwaukee Bucks - 91.65202397
10. Denver Nuggets - 90.73218204
11. Oklahoma City Thunder - 87.03157727
12. Houston Rockets - 86.5629274
13. Miami Heat - 86.53294427
14. Indiana Pacers - 86.2749347
15. Utah Jazz - 83.87026374
16. Chicago Bulls - 79.68301321
17. Toronto Raptors - 78.3435455
18. Detroit Pistons - 77.28783951
19. Philadelphia 76ers - 76.81418052
20. Los Angeles Clippers - 76.45054206
21. San Antonio Spurs - 76.35303896
22. Sacramento Kings - 76.03379184
23. New Orleans Hornets - 75.33009709
24. New York Knicks - 73.71542876
25. Golden State Warriors - 73.60976412
26. Memphis Grizzlies - 71.7302226
27. Washington Wizards - 70.44456409
28. Charlotte Bobcats - 68.6960711
29. Minnesota Timberwolves - 61.07017359
30. New Jersey Nets - 60.82915381