Chicago Bulls: Re-drafting the 2016 NBA Draft three-and-a-half years later

How does the 2016 NBA Draft shape out from a Chicago Bulls perspective as we’re nearing the halfway point of the 2019-20 regular season?

The last time that the Chicago Bulls didn’t pick seventh overall in the first round of any NBA Draft was way back in the 2016 offseason. In the 2016 NBA Draft, the Bulls were picking in the final spot in the lottery, at No. 14 overall.

Picking No. 14 overall in the 2016 draft got the Bulls the former Michigan State Spartans 6-foot-6 shooting guard Denzel Valentine. Since that point, Valentine brought mixed results in his fourth season with the Bulls. This season is actually seeing him become one of the Bulls breakthrough role players.

Moreover, the Bulls had a pick in the second round of the 2016 draft at No. 48 overall. That second round draft pick landed them the German native and former Bayern Munich wing Paul Zipser. That second round pick didn’t work out as well for the Bulls in 2016 as it did in 2019, when they landed former Arkansas Razorbacks big man Daniel Gafford.

Second round picks tend to be more like lottery tickets instead of guaranteed success. There’s not really any NBA franchise that consistently hits on their second round pick. About the most you can hope for consistently is a solid role player/rotational contributor.

However, in this re-draft, I’m going through all the picks in the lottery and who should’ve gone where in hindsight. It will also feature under-the-radar candidates that the Bulls could’ve used their second round pick for, instead of Zipser.

Here’s a look into the definitive re-drafting of the 2016 NBA Draft, largely from a Chicago Bulls perspective, more than three-and-a-half years later.