Chicago Bulls center
The theme that the former Duke Blue Devils center and third-year Bulls big man Wendell Carter Jr. faces this season will be starting to improve his offensive versatility, namely extending his shooting range. No one really questions the overall basketball IQ or defensive ability that Carter Jr. brings to the table for the Bulls.
But it is time for that fundamental shooting stroke and well-known court vision that Carter Jr. flashed at different times in the last few years comes to the forefront in his third-year in the NBA. He did start taking more looks from beyond 10-feet from the rim last season. Now it’s time for him to get more consistent looks from beyond the arc.
The way that the Indiana Pacers developed center Myles Turner’s game a few years ago by just letting him get an increased volume of looks from the top of the key is similar to how the Bulls can use WCJ this season.
During the shortened 2019-20 regular season, WCJ played in 43 games for the Bulls (all of which he started in). And he averaged 11.3 points per game, 9.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.5 blocks. WCJ shot 53.4 percent from the field, 20.7 percent from beyond the arc, and 73.7 percent from the free-throw line.
As is true for a lot of the other key pieces of the Bulls young core, WCJ must also stay healthy this season to make some true strides that he needs to in the near future.