Entering the 2022 NBA Draft, the Chicago Bulls find themselves in strange and unfamiliar territory. For the first time since 2015, the Bulls have earned a playoff spot and will not be selecting a player in the lottery portion of the draft. While fans are undoubtedly happy to be watching quality basketball again, it also just got quite a bit more difficult to continue improving the team with the addition of young talent.
That isn’t to say all hope is lost, however, as just last year the Bulls proved they can find talent late in the draft by scooping up Ayo Dosunmu in the second round at No. 38 overall. While it’s always rewarding to find a diamond in the rough, the Bulls may not need to look so hard to find a great prospect this year.
As owners of the No. 18 pick in this year’s draft, the Bulls find themselves in a middling position with a lot of flexibility. Chicago could trade down to recoup future draft capital lost in the DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic trades. They could also swap the pick for a talented veteran player and shore up the team’s bench depth.
But perhaps most interestingly of all, the Bulls could still trade back the lottery to lay claim to a prized young prospect.
The Bulls could still swing a trade to move up from their No. 18 position in the 2022 NBA Draft to select a true game-changer
Due to the DeRozan trade, the Vucevic trade, and the penalties incurred by tampering to sign Lonzo Ball, the Bulls are admittedly a bit depleted on draft capital. This makes moving up in this year’s draft all the more difficult — but not impossible.
Assuming Chicago’s core of Zach LaVine, DeRozan, Vucevic, Lonzo Ball, Patrick Williams, and Alex Caruso are untouchable, here are the assets the Bulls will have to make any draft day trades:
- The No. 18 pick in 2022
- Portland’s future first-round pick (lottery protected through 2027)
- Chicago’s first-round pick in 2027
- Chicago’s second-round picks in 2026, 2027, and 2028
- Coby White
- Ayo Dosunmu
- Javonte Green
- Marko Simonovic
As you can see, it’s not exactly a lot to work with, so don’t expect the Bulls to be jumping into the top five or anything like that, especially when Dosunmu is extremely unlikely to be traded after a very promising rookie campaign. However, the Bulls may not need a top-five pick to draft a great rookie after all.