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Why TNT Was Able to Get Collins AgainDoug Collins hadn't been a TNT analyst for nine years and now the network wanted him back. He had been fired by the Washington Wizards with two and a half years left on his contract, and during the July 4th weekend, he decided that he wanted to call N.B.A. games again. ESPN and ABC also wanted him and dangled three different deals: ABC's Sunday games; an ABC-ESPN deal or ESPN's Friday night package. To accommodate Collins - who wanted to work only in a two-man booth - ABC and/or ESPN would have had to move Bill Walton and Tom Tolbert as the joint No. 1 analysts. "I don't care who's No. 1 or No. 2,'' Tolbert said yesterday. "All I know is that I get to call basketball games - from the court, a studio or as a No. 1 or a No. 2.'' In their first year together, Walton, Tolbert and their play-by-play partner, Brad Nessler, struggled to be cohesive. ABC has begun discussions with Al Michaels that might lead to his replacing Nessler on all or some of its games. Unlike Walton, who found a basketball nirvana by working in almost every outlet ESPN owns, Collins had little interest in doing that. "There would be no ESPN.com, no columns, no 'SportsCenter,' no ESPN Radio," said John Langell, Collins's agent. TNT had three advantages: a Thursday night schedule, giving Collins plenty of time for his family; his loyalty to the network; and TNT's superior production. "Doug remembers that he was here before, and that we gave him his first opportunity when he left coaching the Bulls,'' said David Levy, the president of Turner Sports. "I truly believe he felt comfortable here." Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Gill gets wish, signs 1-year deal with BullsIt took 13 years, but Chicago native Kendall Gill finally fulfilled his boyhood dream Wednesday when he signed a one-year, $1.07million contract to play for his beloved hometown Bulls. The Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets, Atlanta Hawks and his most recent team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, also made offers to the 35-year-old former Rich Central and Illinois standout. ''But I knew I wanted to play here all along,'' said Gill, a 6-5, 215-pound shooting guard. ''So it really didn't matter once the Bulls expressed interest. There are only three uniforms that I ever wanted to wear in my basketball career. One is the Rich Central Olympians in Olympia Fields. The [second] is the University of Illinois, and the other is the Bulls. All the other five NBA teams [Charlotte, Seattle, New Jersey, Miami and Minnesota] in between don't matter. ''I was a fan of the Bulls long before I became a basketball player. I was only about 8 or 9 years old when I first started coming to the old Chicago Stadium along with my cousin, Efrem Hayes, and a few other friends. ''We didn't have the money to go inside to see the games. But we got a thrill from just standing outside the Stadium at Gate 3-1/2 watching the players drive up in their luxury cars.'' Bulls operations chief John Paxson confirmed a Sun-Times report that the Bulls made room for Gill on the roster by releasing Dalibor Bagaric, a 7-1, 290-pound center from Croatia. Bagaric, who is playing with the Croatian national team, will be paid most of the $1.4 million he was guaranteed when the Bulls exercised the option on him for next season. But he will play in Europe. ''This way we are being fair with Dalibor by giving him a chance to go where he will get more playing time to facilitate his development,'' said Paxson, who left for vacation with his family after signing Gill. ''We feel real good about adding Gill to our team. He is another quality veteran who has an unbelievable workout regimen, which has kept him healthy and afforded him a lot of success over the years. He can play several positions and will join Trenton Hassell and Eddie Robinson filling in for Scottie Pippen in busy stretches of our schedule.'' Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Bulls sign GillThe Chicago Bulls today signed veteran free agent Kendall Gill. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not released. “We are extremely happy to add Kendall to our roster. He has an unbelievable workout regimen which has afforded him a lot of success over his 13 years in this league. He has played with quality teams and he is a veteran who will help us tremendously,” said Bulls Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations John Paxson. A 6-5, 215-pound guard, Gill has appeared in 896 games in 13 NBA seasons, averaging 13.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.2 apg and 1.61 spg, shooting .437 from the field, .302 from 3-point range and .754 from the free throw line. He averaged double figures in scoring in each of his first 10 seasons in the NBA, including his career-high 21.8 ppg during the 1996-97 season with New Jersey. He has spent his career with five different teams before Chicago (Charlotte, Seattle, New Jersey, Miami and Minnesota) and helped all but one of those clubs to playoff appearances. In 27 playoff appearances, Gill has averaged 11.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.1 apg and 1.44 spg, shooting .408 from the field and .686 from the free throw line. Last season, Gill was with the Minnesota Timberwolves and appeared in all 82 games, averaged 8.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg and 1.9 apg, shot .422 from the field, .322 from behind the arc and .764 from the free throw line. He also appeared in six playoffs games versus the L.A. Lakers. Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Bulls Aug 2003 Archive
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