Of course, the primary development to monitor this season for the Chicago Bulls will be the progression of Matas Buzelis' and Caleb Wilson's games. Those two players are the future of this organization as it stands, and their ability to split touches and operate efficiently in the frontcourt on a game-to-game basis will be key to any positive outlook Chicago can take away from this season.
But this first year under Tiago Splitter is about more than just the identification of a pair of potential stars. His task is to evaluate the whole mass of talent that the Bulls currently have on their roster, helping Bryson Graham determine who fits the long-term vision of the organization and who doesn't.
Even if it doesn't lead to a single win over the course of the season (it will), the primary mission needs to be putting players in situations where they're not necessarily comfortable—stretching the limits of certain young pieces' games and seeing where that can push their development.
That's certainly been the case so far for Noa Essengue—who, after missing almost all of last season with a shoulder injury and exhibiting very little offensive upside in the preseason, has now been the first man off the bench in back-to-back games for Chicago. It's not something that necessarily shows up on the box score, but it's a quiet show of faith in young forward that will pay dividends eventually.
Tiago Splitter obviously has faith in Noa Essengue—and he's the type of prospect that needs to maximize his reps
There's a case to be made that Essengue isn't truly ready for NBA rotational minutes. He still looks awkward and uncomfortable with the ball in his hands, and the size and quickness isn't necessarily there yet to deal either with bigger attackers in the frontcourt or consistently keep quicker guards in front of him on the perimeter. He got driven back into the paint by Payton Pritchard yesterday before the Boston Celtics sixth man put a floater over him for an easy basket—just to provide an example.
Across a total of 53 minutes with the Bulls this season, Essengue has posted just eight points, eight rebounds, and two assists compared to four turnovers. He's shot 30% from the field, and the Bulls as a whole are -33 in his on-court appearances.
But these are the issues we knew Essengue, as a skinnier forward having missed essentially his entire rookie campaign, would need to deal with. Splitter knew that as well heading into the season.
And yet he stated in the preseason, while Essengue was similarly struggling on the offensive end, that the second-year wing was fighting for possessions every day in camp—and, more importantly, that he would have a chance to earn a real rotational role this season. And earn it he has. On Wednesday against the New York Knicks he was one of the first two subs off the bench, replacing Buzelis while Leonard Miller stepped in for Jalen Smith. On Friday against the Celtics, he was the lone sub made at the first juncture in the first quarter, stepping in for Buzelis again while all of Boston's starters outside of Mitchell Robinson were still on the court.
Swapping Buzelis out for Essengue at that point in the game is more than a tactical maneuver by Splitter. Having Essenuge routinely get even short stints of minutes against other teams' starters (which, in this case, included Jayson Tatum, Paul George, Josh Hart, and OG Anunoby) seems like a deliberate move to push him outside of his comfort zone.
Those minutes are going to look rough for a while. Essengue simply still has too many adjustments to make to acclimate to the speed and the physicality of the NBA court. But he has the archetypal frame and upside as a connective forward/wing contributor, and that is exactly what both Graham and Splitter seem to be looking to identify within this organization.
Essengue is a prospect that needs reps—and Splitter is clearly willing to give them to him as we round into this first portion of the regular-season slate.
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