As for the future: Steve Nash figures to be a central figure this offseason. Toronto has become increasingly desperate and they’ve reportedly offered him a three-year, $36 million contract. The Deron Williams saga may not pick up steam until today when he makes formal visits with Dallas and Brooklyn.

March 13, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) watches the ball go out of bounds as Portland Trail Blazers center Joel Przybilla (10) defends at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory credit: Michael Hickey-US PRESSWIRE

Roy Hibbert, Portland Trail Blazers* — four-years, $58.4 million

Instead of sending an offer to their own restricted free agent Nicholas Batum, Portland has decided to utilize their cap space to acquire the best big man on the market, Roy Hibbert (restricted).

Hibbert, 25, made noticeable improvements across the board this season — namely in his shooting and rebounding efficiency while cutting down on turnovers. This kind of contract is palatable for a guy that is quickly developing a formidable post game. Hibbert is already good enough to be considered among the best centers in the league and thus, regardless of how you feel about this contract, will likely produce enough to justify an average annual salary of $14.6 million. Centers are typically overpaid anyway. I wouldn’t mind “overpaying” Hibbert.

Gerald Wallace, Brooklyn Nets — four-years, $40 million

Now this deal is a lot less justifiable. Trading a 2012 first-round pick (top-3 protected) for one-year of Wallace was a desperate, misguided move that was intended to lure Dwight Howard to Brooklyn. But Brooklyn badly misjudged the value of their pick in a good draft — which turned into Weber State point guard Damian Lillard — and the Wallace’s declining athleticism. They could’ve left their mistake at that. Pursuing cheaper alternatives like an Ersan Ilyasova would make more sense given their limitless amount of cap space.

Instead they chose to compound their mistake by offering Wallace a $40 million contract. By the end of this deal Wallace will be 34 and, if this year was any indication, he’ll be even more inefficient then. Relying on athletic guys at the end of their careers is an easy way to get burned. San Antonio made a similar mistake on Richard Jefferson. Wallace isn’t worthless (why else would get this amount of money?) but in two years, Brooklyn will feel the heat of another poor contract.

Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics — three-years, $34 million

Simple. Boston merely re-signed their best player for an accurately valued contract. Garnett is an elite pick-and-roll defender and without his presence the Celtics’ defense wouldn’t be the same.

April 1, 2012; Oklahoma City OK, USA; Chicago Bulls center Omer Asik (3) reacts to a foul call during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Omer Asik, Houston Rockets* — three-years, $25.1 million

There is varying schools of though on Asik’s contract. I felt that John Hollinger accurately assessed the value of Asik’s deal (Insider).

    That’s a bit of an eye-of-the-beholder question. Asik’s     advanced stats support the subjective viewpoint that he’s     one of the five or 10 best defensive players in basketball,     and defense in general tends to be wildly underrated in     the free-agent market (although weirdly, not in the draft).     He is also, objectively, a monstrous rebounder, with his     20.1 rebound rate ranking sixth in the NBA last season.

I will admit that I was shocked that Asik netted an average annual salary of $8.4 million. I didn’t think a player who is generally useless on the offensive end could be worth that amount of money. But after analyzing further, I’ve changed my stance slightly. I still think Asik is worth less than his contract suggests but his defensive numbers quell his other deficiencies.

Andre Miller, Denver Nuggets — three-years, unspecified

All we know currently is that Miller signed a three-year deal with Denver. The rest is unspecified. I’m expecting this deal to be worth $10-14 million which isn’t a bad investment on Denver’s part. Miller’s primary attributes — lob passes, post game, awareness — haven’t waned. He’s still the same plodding, but efficient, weapon that he’s always been.

Lavoy Allen, Philadelphia 76ers — two-years, $6 million

Philadelphia is feeling the consequences of their curious decision. Instead of offering Allen two non-guaranteed deals at the tail end of his rookie contract, as is standard protocol for a second-round pick, they allowed Allen to become a free agent two years earlier than normal. Well, Allen made the most of a limited opportunity and worked himself into a nice contract. Philadelphia didn’t overpay but they did use a portion of their midlevel exception, lowering their chances of signing a free agent via MLE.

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Other free agency tidbits

– Toronto reportedly offered Steve Nash a 3-year, $36 million contract, a report that Marc Berman of the New York Post refutes. Nash’s top two teams are Toronto and New York. It’s expected, though, that Nash visits Dallas as well.

– Boston is prepared to offer unrestricted free agent Ray Allen a two-year, $12 million deal. Miami can only offer the mini-midlevel exception at about $3 million per year. Memphis has also joined the chase for Allen, offering their full midlevel exception over two years.

– Atlanta turned down a Josh Smith-Pau Gasol deal because the Lakers asked for too much.

– Key: * = restricted free agent. Hibbert and Asik aren’t technically members of their teams yet. Indiana and Chicago have three days to match their offer sheets.

Feb 20, 2012; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose (1) drives against Atlanta Hawks center Zaza Pachulia (27) during the second half at the United Center. The Bulls won 90-79. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-US PRESSWIRE

Offense:

The Chicago Bulls are an elite basketball team. But you already knew that. After delving into some advanced stats, I found that the Bulls are much better than I had possibly expected.

Their ubiquitous frontline — Omer Asik, Taj Gibson and Joakim Noah — rebounds at an elite rate, especially on offense, which leads to more possessions for a proficient offensive team (3rd overall in offensive efficiency).

Because continuity has increased in importance during a condensed season, the Bulls have benefited from a roster left mostly in tact. Ultimately, the rapport that the Bulls have established this season — only Jimmy Butler and Richard Hamilton are new to the team — has been one of the primary reasons that they are one of the most complete offensive teams in basketball.

To put it simply, they embody the ideal offense. Chicago creates extra possessions, shoots well from the perimeter (8th in effective field goal percentage from three), takes care of the ball (5th in turnover rate) and — largely because the impetuous Derrick Rose — creates many easy opportunities at the rim (32.9% of their shots are at the rim) where they also convert an above-average rate.

For a mediocre defensive team like the Spurs, there is no definitive weak point to exploit in the Bulls offensive attack.

Defense:

Did I mention that Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau prides himself in his defensive scheme? In the mold of the Boston Celtics, the Bulls pick-and-roll coverage is unmatched and their rotations are seamless. The defensive sagacity of small forward Luol Deng, Gibson and Noah provide the Bulls with a nice foundation. The team, give immense credit to Thibodeau here, realizes that with effort and communication that anything on the defensive side of the court is attainable.

Unlike most teams, they have a keen belief that there actually is intrinsic value in causing the opposing offense to toil in a state of hopeless stupor rather than granting them easy access to any spot on the floor. According to Hoopdata, the Bulls defense ranks third in defensive eFG% (.452) largely because of their ability to close out on shooters.

I could mention how the Bulls play hard defense without fouling or their tendency to allow teams to shoot long 16-23 feet jumpers but I’ve probably gotten my point across. The Bulls defense won’t do the burgeoning Spurs offense any favors tonight.

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What the Bulls do badly:

Interior scoring:

Well, I guess there is something that the Spurs defense doesn’t have to worry about. The Bulls, for all the defensive prowess from their frontline, lack that legitimate back-to-the-basket big man. Carlos Boozer was supposed to be that guy but then we found that he was just an above-average forward, undersized at six-foot-nine, that could step out and drain 16 foot jumpers rather than dominate the low block. Boozer’s PER sits at 20.5 so he’s certainly having a nice season but we can take solace with the notion that Tim Duncan won’t have to struggle tremendously defensively (although he might struggle in covering Rose-Noah pick-and-rolls). Tiago Splitter looks like a 50/50 bet to play so the lack of an interior presence like a Greg Monroe could help the Spurs out a little.

Getting to the free throw line and creating turnovers:

When I say that the Bulls are doing badly in these areas, I’m just being picky. No team can be perfect in every conceivable aspect. While the Bulls, as a whole, don’t get to the line they have this guy named Rose who I’m pretty sure can get to the bucket with impunity so, if anything, they will always have the threat of getting to the line.

Creating turnovers is nice and usually leads to easy transition points. But it’s not completely conducive to great defense. The Bulls are a prime example of this. As long as they are taking care of the ball and preventing good looks on defense, Chicago will still have an insurmountable edge (defensively) over just about any team.

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Final verdict:

I’m not feeling too confident about this one. To add insult to injury, Spurs beat writer Jeff McDonald reported that Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard will miss tonight’s game. Gary Neal and Splitter are questionable. But, hey, T.J. Ford could play! (Editor’s update: Ford, Neal and Splitter will play tonight.)

I’m just drawing at irrational conclusions now. The Spurs are great at home (13-1) but with a depleted roster against one of the best (if not the best) teams in the NBA isn’t a good formula for success. Bulls win convincingly and I curl up in the fetal position for the remainder of the 2nd half.