Thanks to some surprise lottery luck, our Chicago Bulls earned the No. 4 overall pick on Sunday, knocking the Indiana Pacers to the No. 5 pick — which thus conveyed to the Los Angeles Clippers, thanks to a hilariously harebrained Pacers deadline trade for Ivica Zubac.
While there’s a semi-consensus top four this year in AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer and Caleb Wilson in some order (with a handful of exceptions), experts project far more variability in the middle of the first round.
Given that new Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham will also have the No. 15 pick at their disposal next month, let’s run through six expert mock drafts and see how Chicago fares.
Texas Longhorns forward Dailyn Swain celebrates. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn ImagesRicky O’Donnell — SB Nation
13. Miami Heat — Karim Lopez, PF, New Zealand Breakers 14. Charlotte Hornets — Nate Ament, F, Tennessee 15. Chicago Bulls — Dailyn Swain, F, Texas 16. Memphis Grizzlies — Bennett Stirtz, G, Iowa 17. Oklahoma City Thunder — Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, WashingtonO’Donnell offers a rave review of Swain:
“Swain intrigued in his first two college seasons at Xavier as a long and bouncy wing who brought it on the defensive end. Upon transferring to Texas this season, he exploded offensively as a slasher to become one of the more complete prospects in this class. Swain still took on the toughest defensive assignment most nights for the Longhorns, and showed he could still get into the passing lanes and disrupt the offense’s flow even when carrying a higher usage rate. With more offensive freedom, Swain unleashed an improved handle that helped him create space one-on-one and get to the parts of the floor where he could score efficiently. Swain finished well at the rim (64.3 percent) with 83 percent of those looks being self-created. His mid-range touch was also awesome at 47.6 percent on non-rim twos with 95 percent of them coming without an assist. His three-point shot remains a work in progress, but he’s made huge strides to go from 11 makes combined as a freshman and sophomore, to 32 made three-pointers this year at a 34.8 percent clip. If you want positional size and athleticism with two-way adaptability on the wing, Swain is your guy.”
J. Kyle Mann — The Ringer
13. Miami Heat — Dailyn Swain, PF, Texas 14. Charlotte Hornets — Yaxel Lendeborg, F, Michigan 15. Chicago Bulls — Cameron Carr, G, Baylor 16. Memphis Grizzlies — Ebuka Okorie, G, Stanford 17. Oklahoma City Thunder — Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, WashingtonHere’s Mann’s take on Carr:
“Now that Bryson Graham has taken over as the lead decision-maker, we can’t count on Chicago leaning toward the hyper-long, bouncy athlete still learning to really play. Everything is on the table, considering this roster has no real identity and its core players don’t exactly fit well together.
Carr is the type of athletic two-way wing who can fit in anywhere. He can get out and finish on the run, hit movement 3s to space the floor, and create deflections and blocks on defense. That skill set would be valuable even if Graham decided to shift the focus away from Matas Buzelis and Josh Giddey as the Bulls’ centerpieces. But it’d be especially helpful right now, as Chicago doesn’t really have a wing contributor of Carr’s archetype after sending Ayo Dosunmu to Minnesota at the trade deadline. Carr wouldn’t erase the memory of dealing Dosunmu for second-rounders, but he’d at least be aloe for the burn.”
Sam Vecenie, The Athletic
13. Miami Heat — Labaron Philon J.r, PG, Alabama 14. Charlotte Hornets — Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, Washington 15. Chicago Bulls — Cameron Carr, G, Baylor 16. Memphis Grizzlies — Koa Peat, SG/SF, Arizona 17. Oklahoma City Thunder — Morez Johnson Jr., F, MichiganVecenie offers up a second vote of confidence in Carr.
“Carr had a nuclear hot start to the season and then largely settled in as one of the best high-major scorers in the country. He averaged 18.9 points per game while shooting 49.4 percent from the field, 37.4 percent from 3 and 80.1 percent from the foul line. Carr is a terrific shooter with great straight-line slashing instincts, using his long strides and length to cover ground quickly before getting to the rim.
It’s very difficult to find players who are in the ballpark of 6-6 with incredibly long arms like Carr’s who can shoot. His lack of physicality and his high waist show up defensively, as he still doesn’t impact the game unless he’s rotating across for a weak-side contest. Carr needs to keep putting on weight and getting stronger and also has to work on playing with more bend and accessing leverage better. New Bulls’ head of basketball operations Graham played a big role in drafting Trey Murphy III in New Orleans, and there are some real points of comparison that can be made between he and Carr due to Carr’s length and athleticism.”
Gary Parrish, CBS Sports
13. Miami Heat — Labaron Philon Jr., PG, Alabama 14. Charlotte Hornets — Morez Johnson Jr., F, Michigan 15. Chicago Bulls — Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, Washington 16. Memphis Grizzlies — Christian Anderson, PG, Texas Tech 17. Oklahoma City Thunder — Karim Lopez, PF, New Zealand BreakersParrish projects that Chicago will take a chance on Steinbach.
“You might’ve noticed this mock is light on prospects currently playing overseas, and that’s because lots of the top international names have been lured stateside via big NIL/revenue-share payments. Steinbach was one such player. The 20-year-old German proved to be an elite rebounder on both ends in his one season at Washington. The Bulls need help everywhere in an aknowledged rebuild. Getting Boozer and Steinbach in the top 15 could expedite the process.”
Kentucky center Jayden Quaintance celebrates after a play. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn ImagesRaphielle Johnson and Kurt Helin, NBC Sports
13. Miami Heat — Karim Lopez, PF, New Zealand Breakers 14. Charlotte Hornets — Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, Washington 15. Chicago Bulls — Jayden Quaintance, C, Kentucky 16. Memphis Grizzlies — Labaron Philon Jr., PG, Alabama 17. Oklahoma City Thunder — Dailyn Swain, F, TexasNBC Sports clearly hates the Bulls. What other logical explanation would there be for them predicting that Chicago will select injury-prone sophomore big man Jayden Quaintance, whose two-year collegiate career has been brutally hampered by a lingering ACL injury? Bulls fans know a thing or two about career-altering ACL surgeries, to say nothing of high-upside centers. No thanks. Raphielle Johnson unpacks the fit.
“Due to a torn ACL suffered during his lone season at Arizona State, Quaintance was limited to four games at Kentucky before being shut down in early January. His medical reports will obviously be reviewed by any team evaluating the 6-foot-10 pivot, and the Bulls are in a position where they need to strongly consider drafting a post player. Quaintance’s athleticism and rim protection abilities are why he’s projected to be a first-rounder despite the knee concerns.”
Jeremy Woo, ESPN
13. Miami Heat — Labaron Philon Jr., PG, Alabama 14. Charlotte Hornets — Aday Mara, C, Michigan 15. Chicago Bulls — Jayden Quaintance, C, Kentucky 16. Memphis Grizzlies — Christian Anderson, PG, Texas Tech 17. Oklahoma City Thunder — Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, WashingtonPlease no.
“Quaintance is viewed by teams as a wild-card prospect with a wide range. He was a lottery candidate entering the year, but has health questions to answer in the pre-draft process. Now a year removed from ACL surgery, he played just four games this season, with knee issues flaring up after he attempted to return. His physicality and defensive upside carry long-term intrigue, considering he has yet to turn 19. How his medicals check out and how much he can participate in on-court workouts will determine his next month.
The Bulls are one of four teams (Memphis, Oklahoma City, Charlotte) that hold multiple picks inside the top 20, setting up interesting potential trade dynamics. Quaintance’s physicality as a play-finisher and shot blocker should make him an appealing consideration for Chicago at this spot. A hypothetical pairing with Caleb Wilson would give them an extremely physical young frontline to build around.”
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