The Chicago Bulls are openly in the early stages of a long-overdue rebuild, so it's understandable they would sit near the bottom of any NBA power rankings. But calling them the second-worst team in the league heading into the 2026-27 season is pretty brutal.
That's exactly where Law Murray of The Athletic (subscription required) places the Bulls — 29th, ahead of only the division rival Milwaukee Bucks.
It's a harsh take on the status of Chicago's new-look roster; sure, the team is mostly young and unproven, but it's not devoid of talent, and there are some solid veterans filling in the cracks.
Executive VP of basketball operations Bryson Graham deserves some praise for how quickly he's turned the franchise in the right direction.
Bulls receive harsh grade in latest preseason power rankings
Chicago won't be pushing for a playoff spot this season. Likely not even a play-in berth. But Murray's opinion that it's one of the two worst teams in the NBA seems unnecessarily harsh.
The Bulls nabbed Caleb Wilson with the No. 4 pick in the 2026 draft, and the former North Carolina star exploded onto the scene in summer league. Wilson was one of the best players in Vegas, rookie or otherwise.
The 19-year-old averaged 23.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.3 steals across four games and came out of the gates hot, hitting seven 3-pointers in his pro debut.
He'll slot in next to Matas Buzelis, who's entering his third season and primed to be one of the Bulls' best players, at forward.
Josh Giddey may not be an all-star, but he's a starting-caliber point guard who's improved dramatically as a shooter.
Graham added Nic Claxton to replace Nikola Vucevic/Nick Richards/Guerschon Yabusele at center. That's a significant upgrade. He also pulled off one of the summer's surprising signings, inking veteran guard Norman Powell to a team-friendly contract.
Powell is an upgrade over the Anfernee Simons/Collin Sexton pair the Bulls finished last season with.
Leonard Miller will provide intriguing depth up front. The 22-year-old played his best basketball when he got to Chicago and could be even better in a role behind Wilson and Buzelis.
The Bulls also brought in a new head coach, Tiago Splitter, who led an average Portland Trail Blazers roster to the playoffs last season, even earning a win over Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in the first round.
Will Chicago light the league on fire? No. But the Bulls should be better than the Pelicans, Kings and Nets, whom Law has ranked 28th, 27th and 25th, respectively.
Ranking them behind those teams seems a bit extreme.
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