Utah Jazz: Carlos Boozer finds the Bulls' 'really good, really young' club attractive

SALT LAKE CITY — Playing in Karl Malone's shadow in Utah didn't bother Carlos Boozer the past six seasons.

The soon-to-be unrestricted free agent apparently wouldn't be fazed by continuing to do that — or by following in Michael Jordan's footsteps in Chicago, either.

Boozer even believes other big-name free agents might look at it as "an attractive thing to have that history, where M.J. played, where (Scottie) Pippen played for those six championships," the power forward said during an interview on Windy City-based ESPN 1000's "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on Wednesday.

"I think everybody, whoever it is this summer, can remember watching M.J. do his thing in Chicago," he said. "So I think that will be more of a positive thing than a negative thing."

It was on that Chicago sports-talk program last summer that Boozer divulged he'd love to play in Chicago and dropped the bombshell that he believed he'd be traded before Utah's 2009 training camp.

Boozer didn't share any sizzling sound bites this time, though.

In fact, he reiterated two things he told Utah media during the Jazz's locker cleanout session earlier this month: (1) "Winning a championship" is his top priority for his impending free agency, and (2) Utah "absolutely" remains on his list of future playing homes.

"I think we have a chance in Utah; we'd have a chance to win a championship there as well," Boozer said. "I want to make it clear that's the No. 1 thing is winning a championship."

At the same time, Boozer, on the phone from his Miami home, said the Bulls will be a team "everybody is intrigued by" and claimed to be impressed with a "really good, really young" Chicago team.

"They have a lot of talent, a lot of guys who can play," he said. "It's going to be interesting to see what happens with that franchise this summer."

Boozer didn't give an indication of which way he's leaning now.

"I don't know what I'm going to do yet," he said. "Looking forward to it."

But Boozer added that he wouldn't be surprised if some big-name free agents pair up to make "one hell of a basketball team."

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