Chicago Bulls rookie Caleb Wilson exploded for 35 points in his first NBA Summer League game, the second-best scoring output for a debut in the Las Vegas tournament's 22-year history.
He also had six turnovers in that contest and eight in his last one, which gives him one clear objective for the rest of the summer: Learn how to take care of the ball.
Wilson's ability to lead a fast break and turn defense into offense is part of why he's such a tantalizing prospect. A 6-foot-10 forward who can push the ball up the floor and make plays for teammates or finish emphatically himself is a unique player archetype.
But the 19-year-old has some serious work to do if he wants to take those explosive traits from Vegas and carry them into the NBA regular season.
Caleb Wilson has one clear area for improvement before opening night
To be clear, Bulls fans have much more to be excited about with Wilson than to be concerned with.
The No. 4 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft blew away expectations in his first NBA action, scoring those aforementioned 35 points. Only Marco Belinelli (37 points in 2007) scored more in a summer league debut, per ESPN.
Wilson also hit seven 3-pointers in that game; he made seven total last year at North Carolina.
But that game didn't come without its issues.
Wilson needs to cut down on turnovers
One of the knocks on Wilson heading into the draft was his loose ball-handling. Yes, the flashes of off-the-dribble creation were there, but it could be sloppy. At this point, he's far more comfortable carrying the ball in transition than in the half-court.
That was very apparent in Sin City.
Wilson committed 21 turnovers in his four summer league performances while only totalling six assists. That gives him an assist-to-turnover ratio of 0.29, which is really, really bad.
Of any player who appeared in at least four games in Vegas, Wilson was by far the most careless with the ball, averaging 5.3 turnovers per contest. Five players were tied for the second-most giveaways per game ... at 3.8.
It's fair to point out that shooting was the biggest question mark surrounding Wilson during the pre-draft process, and he just hit 41.9 percent of his 7.8 threes per game in summer league. He certainly has things to improve on, but he's already showing he can do that rapidly.
Taking care of the ball, especially in half-court settings, will be critical for Wilson if he hopes to make good on the immense potential he just displayed.
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