2022 NBA Mock Draft: Version 1.0 midway through NBA season

Here we are at the point of the season for the first 2022 NBA Mock Draft. At the midway point in the NBA season, the Chicago Bulls are rolling through the Eastern Conference & out of the lottery.

It’s been a long ride for Bulls fans, patiently waiting on the lottery every year just to have the selection fall to seventh. The team has finally put it together this year, & they will have up to two selections in this year’s draft. The Bulls are owed the Trail Blazers’ 2022 first-round pick via the Lauri Markkanen trade. This selection is lottery-protected, thus, it is unlikely to convey this season.

Currently, the Bulls are slated to pick 26th overall. They won’t hold a second-round pick this season, as the selection was traded years ago in the Jameer Nelson deal to Detroit following the Mirotic deal to New Orleans.

The Chicago Bulls round out the first version of this 2022 NBA Mock Draft at pick No. 26

This isn’t class doesn’t appear to be near as talented as the NBA Draft class of 2021, but there is a bit of depth to be had in it. The first round should have plenty of quality players for the Bulls to add to their roster, even if the pick is late in the first round.

This mock draft will run through picks one through 26, providing players’ current statistics, scouting reports, and rationale as to why the team makes sense. All selections are assumed to be retained by the teams that currently hold them.