Bulls appear on verge of settling for Mercer.(Chicago Tribune)

CHICAGO _ Since 1994, the Chicago Bulls have tried to trade, on various occasions, for three top young shooting guards, all of whom were free agents this summer_Eddie Jones, Tracy McGrady and Ron Mercer.

And then there was one.

That's Mercer, the much traveled shooter from the University of Kentucky, whom the Bulls were believed close to signing early Tuesday as the free-agent signing moratorium ended. Jones became the latest free agent to turn down the Bulls on Monday when he agreed to a sign-and-trade deal that will send him from Charlotte to Miami.

Mercer, who was drafted by Boston in 1997, was the second-leading scorer for the Celtics for two seasons but was traded to Denver before last season. During last season he was traded to Orlando, and he finished the season averaging 16.9 points a game. Though he once was regarded as among the top five free agents who would be available this …