The Bulls were already short on big men before they traded Nikola Vucevic at this year’s deadline. Chicago should make a low-risk, high-reward move to help fix that issue by signing James Wiseman.
The Golden State Warriors selected Wiseman with the No. 2 pick in the 2020 draft to kick off their infamous two-timeline rebuild. The former Memphis star possesses elite physical traits: he stands at 7-foot-1 and weighs nearly 250 pounds, boasting a 7-foot-4 wingspan, a 9-foot-6 standing reach, and high-level athleticism and agility.
He had all the makings of a modern rim-running, shot-blocking center, but with a more promising offensive skill set. And he still does.
Unfortunately, a pair of serious injuries and an untimely trade derailed his career before it really got started. But he’s still only 24 years old and preparing for an NBA comeback with the Team USA program.
Chicago’s decision makers should take notice.
Bulls should be keeping tabs on former No. 2 pick James Wiseman
Billy Donovan has been stuck in a long-running, futile scramble for rim protection, and that was with a legitimate center on the roster. Wiseman would finally offer him that option.
Before he tore his meniscus 39 games into his rookie season, Wiseman was blocking 1.6 shots per 36 minutes as a 19-year-old. After missing all of 2021-22, he averaged 1.1 blocks per 36 in 2022-23. (And to be fair, he played 24 games on a Pistons team that lost 28 straight times. No one on that roster did much of anything positive.)
After playing a career-high 63 games the next season, Wiseman signed with the Pacers as a free agent … and tore his Achilles on opening night. He missed out on a magical run that almost brought a title to Indiana.
Now healthy (fingers crossed), the Nashville native scored 17 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked five shots in 40 minutes across two World Cup qualifiers with Team USA.
Finding a center should be Bulls' top priority this offseason
Vucevic held value in Chicago as an uber-reliable stretch five, rebounder, facilitator and veteran leader. But Donovan switched schemes last season and transitioned to an up-tempo, run-and-gun attack, and Vucevic’s lack of foot speed and any semblance of rim protection dragged it to a halt.
Zach Collins played 10 games this season and is set to be an unrestricted free agent. Jalen Smith has served as a small-ball center, but he’s too slight to play there full-time.
Guerschon Yabusele, whom the Bulls acquired at the deadline, has been starting most nights at center, but he’s 6-foot-8 and also an unrestricted free agent. Nick Richards, another UFA, has never been more than a third-stringer.
It’s taken Karnisovas far too long to find a big man to anchor the paint. Taking a flier on Wiseman as he attempts to restart his NBA career would be the kind of low-risk, high-reward move the Bulls need to be making right now.