Facing a 10:59 p.m. deadline Wednesday on whether to accept the one-year qualifying offer, Bulls guard Ben Gordon played it like an NBA general manager on draft night, letting the clock wind down to zero while all options were explored.
The Bulls finally made the official announcement late in the evening that Gordon would take the qualifying offer worth $6.4 million and become an unrestricted free agent next summer. In the meantime, he cannot be traded without his consent.
The Bulls offered a six-year deal worth about $59 million and were reluctant to go any higher because they would be faced with paying the luxury tax if their payroll grows beyond $71.1 million.
