The Lakers have won the blind auction for the rights to claim the recently amnestied forward Carlos Boozer. Boozer was amnestied by the Bulls on Tuesday, collecting the $16.8M remaining on his contract. The Lakers were widely viewed as the big losers in free agency, failing to sign any noteworthy free agents, including Carmelo Anthony. Now it appears their consolation prize will be Boozer after they placed the highest bid in the blind auction to win the right to claim him. His fantasy value is still somewhat in question however, as he joins the loaded front court in L.A. that includes Ed Davis, Jordan Hill, and rookie Julius Randle. Even so, he should be able to at least reproduce his 13.8 points, and 8.3 rebounds he averaged last season in Chicago.

The Bulls waived Carlos Boozer via their amnesty provision on Tuesday, clearing his $16.8 million salary from their salary cap. This move has been long expected but the Bulls exhausted all possible trade scenarios before finally resorting to the amnesty provision. Boozer will earn the full $16.8 million and teams with salary-cap space can now bid for his services. If he lands in the right situation he may still return reliable fantasy value after a down season in Chicago last year.

Carlos Boozer has been told the Bulls that he will likely be amnesty waived or shipped out in a sign-and-trade, but a final decision hasn't been made. This will clear the way for Taj Gibson to become one of the league's most exciting power forwards, and even if Boozer somehow stays in Chicago, Gibson is nearly guaranteed the starting job next season.

The Knicks are reportedly not interested in conducting a sign-and-trade involving Carlos Boozer and Carmelo Anthony. Carlos Boozer has an expiring contract that will come off the books in 2015 to the tune of $16.8 million, but the Knicks are not interested in acquiring his services. Thus, if the Bulls hope to land Anthony they will likely need to go the route of free agency, which means ridding themselves of Boozer (via trade or amnesty) and probably having to also trade Taj Gibson for next to nothing.

The Bulls will do "everything they can" to trade Carlos Boozer rather than using their amnesty option this summer, according to ESPN's Marc Stein. Boozer is slated to earn $16.8 million in the final year of his contract in 2014-15 and he's still a productive offensive weapon at age 32, but his poor defense and Taj Gibson's rise have combined to nullify Boozer's value. If the Bulls fail to find a trade partner they can amnesty Boozer's contract from July 10-16.

Carlos Boozer has become more angry with coach Tom Thibodeau about his lack of playing time down the stretch during the playoffs, according to the Chicago Sun Times. He didn't play at all in the fourth quarter or overtime in either game this series, so this isn't surprising. Taj Gibson has been outstanding down the stretch and chances are Thibodeau won't be caving on his rotation because Boozer is upset. The Bulls are down 0-2 and will try to earn a win on Friday night in Washington.

Carlos Boozer played the first and third quarters on Sunday, as usual, finishing Game 1 with 11 points, nine rebounds and one assist. Boozer's role isn't likely to change in the postseason. He played exactly 24 minutes in all but two of the Bulls' final 17 regular season games, starting at PF before giving way to Taj Gibson in the second and fourth quarters. Gibson had another impressive game with 12 points, six rebounds and three blocks in 30 minutes, and the Wizards had trouble keeping him off the offensive glass.

Carlos Boozer played exactly 24 minutes for the 11th straight game on Sunday. He scored eight points with seven rebounds and five assists, but his limited playing time has been a drag for fantasy owners all season. Tom Thibodeau likes to play Boozer for the entire first and third quarters, while pairing Joakim Noah with Taj Gibson in the third and fourth, and if nothing else Thibs has been incredibly consistent with his rotations.

Carlos Boozer hit just 3-of-13 shots for six points and four rebounds in 24 minutes of Wednesday's win. Taj Gibson had 13 points, five boards, a steal and three blocks off the bench in the easy win, and Boozer has now played exactly 24 minutes in nine straight games. Of course, he didn't do anything with them, as Joakim Noah stole the show with his fourth triple-double of the season.

Carlos Boozer has played exactly 24 minutes in each of the Bulls' past six games. Boozer plays the entire first and third quarters before yielding to Taj Gibson, whose season average of 28.8 minutes per game is marginally higher than Boozer's 28.6. "He's rebounding well," coach Tom Thibodeau said of Boozer. "He's being aggressive early." The Bulls are rumored to have interest in amnestying Boozer's contract, which pays him $16.8 million next season, so there are no guarantees that he'll be in Chicago on opening day next year.