Bulls restricted free agent Marcus Fizer's timing could not have been worse.  Roman Modrowski of the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that Fizer most likely will require a second surgery on his right knee.

With the Bulls unlikely to extend a qualifying offer to him even before the injury, Fizer will now become an unrestricted free agent without a contract.

''It's disappointing,'' said Henry Thomas, Fizer's agent. ''But he's doing good, and he's anxious to get done whatever has to get done, so he can start rehabbing before reporting to somebody's camp.''

''We knew something wasn't quite right when he took a physical right after the season,'' Thomas said. ''It wasn't swollen, but something was wrong.

''It's too soon to tell how bad it is. I don't think next season is in jeopardy. I'm not sure if this changes anything with how we'll approach free agency this summer.''

It looks more and more like Eddy Curry will be the returning player out of the trio of players the Bulls looked to build around.

All indications have pointed to GM John Paxson breaking up the trio of Curry, Tyson Chandler and Jamal Crawford, with Curry considered the most valuable to the team.  These beliefs were strengthened with Curry being asked to attend an individual meeting with Reinsdorf on Tuesday.  

In it, Reinsdorf stressed Curry's value to the franchise and reiterated management's desire for the center to attack his off-season conditioning with a vengeance.  Reinsdorf is not known for doing such actions, leaving this kind of thing up to his GM and coach.

Bulls GM John Paxson is expected to meet with representatives of disgruntled forward Eddie Robinson in the near future according to Chicago Tribune writer K.C. Johnson.

Robinson, upset over being benched through the final games of the season by coach Scott Skiles, failed to attend his postseason meeting with the Bulls coach and GM.

It is no suprise that the Bulls will be leaving the athletically gifted forward unprotected in the June 22 expansion draft to stock the new Charlotte Bobcats franchise and, if unclaimed, he shopped in trade talks.

Despite having two years and $14 million remaining on his deal releasing him is not out of the question, the Milwaukee Bucks going to such lengths last season with forwards Anthony Mason and Jason Caffey.

After spending much of the season hidden at the end of the bench, Bulls forward Eddie Robinson did something noticeable Friday.

He didn't show up for his postseason evaluation with management.

The two sides would love to part ways this summer, but it won't be easy. Robinson will be left unprotected for the expansion draft, but the Charlotte Bobcats are looking for players with expiring contracts. Robinson has two years and $14 million left, but Bulls operations chief John Paxson will try to sweeten the deal by adding $3 million, which is the maximum allowed.

It won't help Robinson's chances of landing in Charlotte that he couldn't find playing time on the second-worst team in the league. Management made it known the reason was Robinson's poor work ethic, and that won't entice Charlotte, despite the fact Robinson played well there during his first two NBA seasons with the Hornets.

''I wouldn't even mind going to the Charlotte expansion team,'' Robinson said recently. ''It's obvious they don't want me here.''

Tyson Chandler showed up to face the music after a disappointing season, during which back problems limited him to 35 games. Chandler came out of talks with Paxson and coach Scott Skiles flashing a guarded smile.

''I would be surprised if they traded me,'' Chandler said, ''but I wouldn't be mad.

Everything written until now about the Chicago Bulls pointed to a roster overhaul, with two of the Chicago's "three C's" (Eddy Curry, Tyson Chandler, Jamal Crawford) most likely in new uniforms next season.  Not so, says Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald.

Of course, anything is possible after a 23-59 season. Any reasonable trade offer will be considered, and no one on the roster is truly untouchable. Several Bulls qualify as unwanted, but that's another issue.

Paxson gives a clear impression that he's eager to see how Eddy Curry, Tyson Chandler and Jamal Crawford respond this summer after absorbing coach Scott Skiles' lesson on the proper NBA work ethic.

"I think they've learned more in the last four months than they had the previous couple years," Paxson said. "They have to fight through barriers this off-season and really make the commitment to wanting to become better players.

"I'll find that out rather quickly, I think."

Tempting as it may be to tear up the Bulls' young nucleus, Paxson knows there could still be a huge payoff to Chandler and Curry, neither of whom turns 22 until later this year.

Unless the players association agrees to an age limit, future NBA drafts are likely to keep churning out teenagers. So perhaps it's better to stick with a promising 21-year-old when the potential replacements will still be 18.

"The guys following them are going to go through the same process," Paxson said. "If Tyson and Eddy work at their games hard this summer and make a jump, all of the sudden our guys look pretty good compared to what's coming up. And some of the older guys are getting even older. You can't just throw it all away, that's for sure.

"I've never considered myself the most patient individual, but that's obviously a big part of doing this job, being patient."

And what about Jamal Crawford, who was involved in many trade rumors this season?

"We've invested a lot of time and energy and resources into our young guys," Paxson said. "That includes Jamal. I think we put Jamal in a very good position this year when we made our trade (with Toronto) and got rid of scorers (Jalen Rose and Donyell Marshall).

"It gave him a lot of freedom, a lot of leeway. And he responded pretty well.

"We still have the ability to keep him. (If the Bulls didn't match an offer), that's losing an asset you had for nothing."

Suppose Chicago came to Conseco Fieldhouse to play the Indiana Pacers tonight with a starting front line of Brad Miller, Ron Artest and Elton Brand.

Where would they be in the NBA standings? For that matter, where would the Pacers be?

The answers should serve as a warning for all those NBA general managers planning to splatter their rosters and start a new building process. Change can be good, and it often brings short-term relief. But patience is the greater virtue if a few of the right pieces are in place.

The Bulls, for example, had Miller, Artest and Brand locked up, all with reasonable contracts, just three seasons ago.

Brand was in his second NBA season, fresh off winning co-Rookie of the Year honors. He already was among the elite group of players averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds, and was one of the league's most solid citizens.

Miller and Artest were less proven, but full of promise. Artest, averaging 11.9 points in his second season, was one of the league's better defenders. Miller, averaging 8.9 points in his third season, was enduring an injury-plagued season because he hadn't reported in shape, but was undeniably a strong 7-footer with exceptional hand-eye coordination.

But Bulls management dealt them all away in trades that, with the perspective of hindsight, stand as major blunders.

"It could have been a hell of a team with the three of us," Miller said during the All-Star break in Los Angeles. "We all play so hard and we play together. Elton at four (power forward), Ron at the three (small forward) and me at the five (center) -- that's like a perfect front line. It definitely would have been fun."

"We'd definitely be a playoff contender," added Artest, using "we" in the past tense.

Imagine how the current Bulls feel, knowing who could be their teammates had management exercised patience.

"There's nothing you can do about it now, but that's three all-stars that are gone," Jamal Crawford told Chicago reporters earlier this season. "You look at it like, 'Man, what were the Bulls doing?' "

How important was the 50 point effort Jamal Crawford put up earlier in the week for the Bulls?  Considering his contract status and the personnel currently on the Bulls, Roman Modrowski of the Chicago Sun-Times thinks it was important, as is the Bulls need for the four year phenom.

There wasn't much demand for him before the Feb. 19 trading deadline, likely because of the team's record, but Crawford is bound to find a market this summer when he becomes a restricted free agent.

GM John Paxson will consider various sign-and-trade scenarios, but if none materialize and Crawford is offered more than $6 million, the Bulls may let him walk.

That could prove to be a huge mistake. Crawford still isn't consistent defensively, although Skiles has helped him improve, but he's a young player who has improved by almost seven points per game from last season while doubling his rebounding production.

Crawford's first 50-point game could be a haunting memory for the Bulls if his next one comes in another uniform.

Is there anyone counting down the seconds until the season finishes as much as Eddie Robinson of the Bulls? The forward didn't play Monday despite the Bulls having just eight healthy players. He has played 22 minutes in the last 22 games.

Robinson will be left unprotected in the expansion draft to stock Charlotte, where he played when it housed the Hornets.

General manager John Paxson is expected to entice Charlotte with the maximum $3 million to take Robinson and the $14 million remaining on his contract off his hands.

"I had a huge fan base there, so it wouldn't be a bad thing," Robinson said. "But of course I'd rather stay here?as long as things change. [Coach Scott] Skiles made it personal with me. I should be playing basketball no matter what the relationship is. Kobe [Bryant] and Phil [Jackson] don't see eye to eye, but Phil plays Kobe. There's no reason for Skiles to do what he did."

"He knows the reason," Skiles fired back.

Robinson's lack of work ethic and lack of execution of plays have been well documented. Many of Robinson's teammates think he should be playing.

"I'm the kind of guy that the night before our first practice next year, I'll tell everybody that every spot is up for grabs," Skiles said.

"I don't come back with any preconceived notions. But if somebody has been an absolute failure in the way they've approached the game, they would have to take some very significant strides to ingratiate themselves to me."

Scottie Pippen said he wouldn't travel to Indiana for the Bulls' season finale Wednesday. Thus, the future Hall of Famer could have attended his last game as a player Monday, albeit in street clothes.

"I'm done for the season, but I may not be waving goodbye," Pippen said.

Pippen finishes with averages of 5.9 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 23 games, all career lows.

It's hard to tell what Pippen will do, although his words suggest that accepting a buyout of his guaranteed second year is out of the question.

"I'll continue to work to get my knee better this summer," he said. "But I don't know what I'm going to do."

This is Pippen's 17th season and his first that won't end in a playoff berth.

"It's been a tough season," Pippen said. "We're all looking forward to it coming to an end."

Tracy McGrady, Allen Iverson, Vince Carter and LeBron James will be watching the NBA playoffs on TV when the first round begins Saturday. Yet if you were the Bulls, you'd figure your problems would be solved if you had one of those players. So just how do you build a successful team?

Among the Bulls' many rebuilding plans, the centerpiece always was to get a star, whether it be through free agency--like their pursuits of McGrady, Grant Hill and Tim Duncan in 2000--or through the draft with Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry.

 

Now look for the Bulls to pursue what is becoming the new, popular rebuilding option in the NBA, practiced best these days in Milwaukee and Memphis.

"When you take over a team," one veteran general manager said, "all you hear is you have to go out and get a star and you'll be OK. But there's a lot of merit in building a team first and when it's the right team, see if you can add a star. Just having a superstar doesn't guarantee you success.

"Look at Toronto, Philadelphia and Orlando. If you don't have a team, you're not going anywhere. Maybe you can only go so far with that kind of team, but at least you can be successful until you figure out how to get that guy."