HoopsHype.com Rumors

“I don’t get discouraged,” Scalabrine was saying when I asked him about those fans chanting his name despite such a limited contribution. “I’ve heard ‘I’m not good enough’ plenty of times. I really don’t care what people say. I don’t care if people think I’m not good. It doesn’t bother me. Because I think I am a good player. I know the game. And even now if someone says I suck as a broadcaster, I’m not going to be offended. “The way I look at it is if that’s the case (people are mocking me), then—and no disrespect—you’d have to be an idiot,” he says, getting just a tiny bit red other than in his hair. “That I won some contest to be in the NBA? Or that I don’t have to fight every day? That I’m not the first guy on the floor and the first in the weight room and the last to leave? That I haven’t been waking up 5:30 my whole life to train? I’d have to think you’d are an idiot to think I’m a joke. They might, which would be disappointing. Maybe it is that. But I know why I’m here.” NBA.com

Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine 

“I don’t recall exactly the winning numbers when he started or the plus/minus, but they were crazy good,” said Thibodeau. “That’s why to me what he brings to a team is invaluable: Readiness to play, positive attitude. He can start, come off the bench, be inactive and then if you need him he’s ready. He’s smart, executes on offense and defense, is not a mistake player. Whatever role you ask him to do, he does great.” NBA.com

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine, Tom Thibodeau 

Even though he won't be back, fan favorite Brian Scalabrine will sign autographs from noon to 1 p.m. Monday at the Bulls/White Sox training academy in Lisle. Chicago Tribune

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine 

Then, on his way out of the arena, Pietrus took a detour across the court to where teammate Brandon Bass was conducting a postmortem with Comcast SportsNet New England commentators Mike Gorman and Brian Scalabrine. You can always discuss who made shots and who didn't, but making sure fans know you love them should never wait. So, naturally, Pietrus commandeered the spot. Behold: Yahoo! Sports

Boston Celtics, Brian Scalabrine, Media, Brandon Bass 

"He's like that a lot, isn't he?" Gorman asked after Pietrus exited stage right. "Yeah. That's Mickael Pietrus," Bass replied. Yahoo! Sports

Boston Celtics, Brian Scalabrine, Media, Brandon Bass 

Now we don't know exactly what Scalabrine said to him, but Scal offered us a bit of insight into the meeting. In a nutshell: be aggressive. "Rajon, they're collapsing on you," Scalabrine said of his message to Rondo on Comcast SportsNet New England's pregame show. "Use your instincts, make plays. That's what you want to do. That's why you're so special. Your instincts are off the charts. If you see a layup, shoot a layup. If you [see] a pass, make the pass. Trust your guys: trust Ray Allen, trust Paul Pierce. And I feel like he feels that he needs to be more aggressive making basketball plays . . . If 20 shots is what it takes, that's what it takes. Rajon Rondo needs to be more aggressive in making his players around him more better." CSNNE.com

Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine, Rajon Rondo 

Adrian Wojnarowski: At 34, Brian Scalabrine wants to play summer league in July. "Hopefully for the Bulls," he tells Y!, "but if not, with another team." Twitter

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine, Summer League 

Jessica Camerato: Former #Celtics in the building: Jeff Green, Brian Scalabrine, Walter McCarty Twitter

Boston Celtics, Brian Scalabrine, Jeff Green, Walter McCarty 

Paul Pierce glanced across the dressing room before yesterday morning’s shootaround and spotted Brian Scalabrine, microphone in hand, interviewing Greg Stiemsma. “Smooth transition,” said Pierce. “Smooth transition.” Scalabrine is still technically a reserve forward for the Chicago Bulls, a designation that will last at least until the end of next month when his contract runs out. And while he still plans to play, it is clear that even after retiring from active duty, we will not have seen the last of the former Celtic. “I’ll play in the NBA as long as I can,” said Scalabrine, who’s working the Celts playoffs for CSN now that the Bulls have been eliminated. “I’ll get cut one day. That’s just the only way I can really go. To just retire would be like quitting to me. They’ll have to kick me out.” Boston Herald

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine 

At 34, he has had ample time to consider his hopes and options. During his five years in Boston, Scalabrine seemed to go back and forth on whether he’d pursue coaching. But that now seems like his direction. “What I’ve realized as I’ve got older is that coaches have a lot of control over what goes on, but it’s hard,” he said. “In the NBA, sometimes you get dealt a bad hand or you’ve got a team that turns on you. “That didn’t seem like a life that I wanted to live or a road that I wanted to go down. But with talking to our coaches (with the Bulls) and even with Doc (Rivers), it’s more about the relationships you build. Doc’s relationship with Kevin (Garnett) and (Rajon) Rondo and even me, who never really played much — those are bonds. I still have a bond with Doc. I think that’s the thing that’s kind of pulling me back toward (NBA coaching). It’s that camaraderie that you get with a team in basketball.” Boston Herald

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine 

“My daughter is now starting kindergarten, and you have to wonder whether it would be stressful for the family,” he said of going foreign again. “But if it was up to me, I would play as long as I could. “Whatever happens, I don’t think I’ll leave basketball, even if I just do color commentary on games. I don’t really think I’d be a very good studio guy, but I think I could do a really good job with color commentary.” Boston Herald

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine, Media 

It’s not clear if Brian Scalabrine is ready to retire yet, but he’s already in preparation for his next career. Comcast SportsNet New England, which broadcasts Celtics games, hired Scalabrine to provide pre-and postgame analysis during the Celtics-Sixers series. NBA.com

Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine 

John Schuhmann: Scalabrine just finished Rondo's presser w/ the best question of the night, regarding the Celtics' coverage on PHI's side pick-and- roll. Twitter

Boston Celtics, Brian Scalabrine 

I’ve covered pro sports for 20 years and never have been around a more hard-working or tighter-knit group of athletes than these Bulls. From Rose to Brian Scalabrine, these guys genuinely care about and play for each other. There’s real value in that. The respect around the league for the Bulls is off the charts. To find a group of players that plays as hard and unselfishly as this team does is extremely rare at any level in any sport, which is why vice president John Paxson and general manager Gar Forman will be reluctant to compromise what the Bulls have built. Chicago Sun-Times

Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine, John Paxson, Gar Forman 

You ever think about being a coach someday when you’re done playing? You sound like one right now. Brian Scalabrine: Yeah I have, we are working on some things as far as that goes. I think not so much in the NBA, but more college would be the route for me though. In the NBA, you could be blessed with a good team like this one, or you could be cursed with a bad team, it’s less in your control. In college you have control, you decide who to recruit, you decide who to give scholarships to, you decide what to run, how to prep. And it’s really a better fit for me as far as developing kids too, making them better, and teaching them what’s important in basketball. You see it all the time, there are guys you never hear of in college who make the NBA because they’re good, solid, players who can do one or two things really well. If you get these kids in college, teach them how to do one or two things, you can really help some kids out that way I think. SLAM

Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine 

Scalabrine, who repeatedly talks about how much his misses his wife and two young daughters, explains that he is living the type of life that any college kid can appreciate. Sometimes he just sits in front of the television or the computer, eats in his boxers, and watches movies or basketball games. "I keep it in super perspective," he said later about the type of star studded life the general public believes that he leads. "I don't even have a car, so 99 percent of the time I'm either traveling on the road or in a hotel room. Tonight would have been no different. If my computer didn't break, I wouldn't have came to the mall. I would have just sat at home and watched movies. Maybe went back to the facilities, shoot, maybe go in the steam room. It's a simplified life that I live and sometimes it's good to get a break from the hustle and bustle of normal life." ESPN.com

Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine 

If Ronnie Brewer is frustrated with the addition of Rip Hamilton, he isn't showing it publicly. The veteran guard said all the right things on Friday morning when it came to adding a new teammate who will probably take up some of his minutes this year. "I think it's great for this team," Brewer said of the Hamilton acquisition. "It adds another weapon. It does a lot for this offense. [He] moves well without the basketball. [Has a] great mid-range game. Great leadership, and he's won championships. That's something that guys on this team are chasing to get. [With] the addition of him., he knows what it takes to get there. [Brian Scalabrine], Coach Thibs, those are the only guys who have experienced winning a championship. That's what we're trying to do. He practiced [Thursday]. We've been pushing each other hard in practice and working together to try and get better, so I like it." ESPN.com

Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine, Richard Hamilton, Ronnie Brewer 

Jessica Camerato: #Bulls re-sign Brian Scalabrine. Terms not disclosed. #NBA #Celtics Twitter

Chicago Bulls, Brian Scalabrine, Free 

Scalabrine, a favorite of fans, coaches and teammates, is in camp on a non-guaranteed contract. "I have a good chance," he said. "I have to earn my way, same as last year. There's an opportunity. I was playing 35 minutes a night in Italy, so I'm in shape." Chicago Tribune

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine, Italy, Benetton Treviso 

Brian Scalabrine tried to soothe any hard feelings his departure from Benetton Treviso created after officials from that Italian team criticized him for leaving early to try out for the Bulls. Scalabrine had played well overseas, making good on his plan that he first shared with the Tribune last spring. "I really enjoyed learning from the coach (Alexander Djordjevic)," said Scalabrine, who has not been officially cleared by FIBA to return to the NBA. "The organization treated me unbelievably fairly. When I left, I gave them back all the money they paid me. I went over with the intent to stay all year if the lockout lasted that long. "The only thing they were upset about was me leaving Friday instead of, say, two days before training camp. But I was trying to put myself in the best position to make the Bulls. I didn't want to be on Italian time while I'm trying to make the team." Chicago Tribune

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Brian Scalabrine, Italy, Benetton Treviso