Oct 12, 2012; Champaign, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson (22) dunks the ball during the second quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Bradley Leeb-US PRESSWIRE

On September 12th, I speculated that Taj Gibson could have been a great player for the Celtics to target in a sign & trade with the Chicago Bulls in the summer of 2013, as he is on the final year of a rookie contract.  Gibson has served as Carlos Boozer’s backup, but the Chicago Bulls realize the value of the defensive (yet undersized) power forward may in fact be greater than Boozer’s value.  He’s younger, a better defender, and has the athleticism to continue to carve out a nice career for himself in the Association.

The extension that is likely going to be tendered to Gibson, according to Marc Stein of ESPN, will mean that the Bulls will likely amnesty Carlos Boozer.  It would be a bit of bad news, if not for the fact that the Celtics may be all set at power forward with Brandon Bass re-signing this offseason and Jared Sullinger looking more and more like he may be the steal of the draft—and the C’s starting power forward of the future.

Nonetheless, it’s worth taking note of the Bulls’ move to re-sign Gibson, who is 27 and just about to enter his prime.  It’s one less player for teams to covet next offseason, and while the C’s likely wouldn’t have made a run at him anyway, now they definitely can’t…