|  Of all the trade rumors this offseason involving Kobe Bryant, one team above all else has been speculated to have the right stuff to make a deal with the Los Angeles Lakers for the most talented player in the league: the Chicago Bulls.
It should work well for all parties involved. The Los Angeles Lakers are in desperate need of a replacement for the disgruntled shooting guard and needs a good value for him. He is Kobe Bryant, after all. The Chicago Bulls, on the other hand, are quite possibly one superstar away from getting to the top of the Eastern Conference. Finally, Kobe Bryant wants to contend for the championship, and it's easy to say that a Chicago team with Bryant would have a better shot at it than the Lakers team he now is in. (Another reason why Bryant would possibly want to come to Chicago is the chance to upstage Michael Jordan in his old town, something only a player like Bryant would have the audacity to try.)
If Chicago's trading for Bryant, what would they have to give up? Reports say that the Lakers are demanding that Luol Deng and Ben Gordon be included in the package. However, if that's going to be the case, then we can all expect Kobe to dislike it because his destination would be significantly weaker without one of those two Bulls around. He'd rather have Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng (or Ben Gordon) around when he gets there, otherwise his championship dreams would be further from being achievable.
I'm thinking the Lakers should be fine with getting Ben Gordon, Andres Nocioni, Tyrus Thomas, Joakim Noah, and maybe a future draft pick for Kobe Bryant. Sure, Kevin Garnett got a lot more players traded for him when he came to Boston, but most of those players are no-name youngsters with a lot to learn about basketball. You couldn't say the same thing for Ben Gordon and Andres Nocioni. Tyrus Thomas, too, has a lot of upside, and he's going to be a nice trade piece for this deal.
Apparently, Luol Deng's the deal-breaker for the Lakers. If the Bulls consent to sending Deng to them, the deal's easily on for the Lakers. I say, the Lakers should not push their luck. They're already getting a lot from the said package, and if they don't seal the deal and content themselves with that, I don't know if they ever will.
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