Your 2026-27 Chicago Bulls are unabashedly in a roster rebuild phase. If you deconstruct the “rebuild” euphemism (pun intended), there is an important implication that can’t be overlooked, and it is the generally destructive prep work that precedes a new construction project.
The Chicago Bulls waded their toes into roster teardown territory during the 2026 NBA Trade Deadline period when the remaining Bulls roster stalwarts of the Arturas Karnisovas-led Bulls front office were traded away, including guards Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu, along with then-starting center Nikola Vucevic.
Karnisovas’ successor, Bryson Graham, treaded lightly around continuing the Bulls roster teardown momentum started by his predecessor during the 2026 NBA offseason, except for trading guard Rob Dillingham for guard Buddy Hield in the twilight of the 2026 NBA offseason.
At the dawn of the 2026-27 NBA regular season, it is becoming painfully obvious that the Bulls’ roster is far from an object ready to be built into a durable structure for the long haul.
Through their first six games of the 2026-27 NBA regular season, the Bulls hold an anemic 1-5 win-loss record, which puts the team on pace for Tim Floyd-era depths of losing basketball. The team is bottom-ranked across the entire NBA in both offensive (26th) and defensive efficiency (28th), according to Basketball Reference.
If there are any positives about the 2026-27 Chicago Bulls, it is most certainly their newfound commitment to crashing the offensive glass to the effect of a 29.2% team offensive rebound rate (10th among all 30 NBA franchises), according to Basketball Reference.
The Bulls' betwixt circumstances of a putrid roster fit and slivers of roster promise with their glass-crashing and rookie sensation Caleb Wilson underscore an undeniable reality: the Chicago Bulls must engage in a thorough roster teardown that properly prepares the franchise for a successful roster build around Caleb Wilson.
A winning roster teardown example: the Memphis Grizzlies
Friday, The Ringer’s Kirk Goldsberry published his first “The Efficiency Landscape” graphic of the 2026-27 NBA season, which plots all 30 NBA teams on a graph according to their team offensive and defensive efficiency ratings.
The Efficiency Landscape. What jumps out? pic.twitter.com/CVGeZQOFIV
— Kirk Goldsberry (@kirkgoldsberry) October 30, 2026
Diametrically opposed in Goldsberry’s Friday graphic are the Chicago Bulls (bad efficiency) and the Memphis Grizzlies (great efficiency). This contrast is striking when taking into consideration that the Grizzlies finished the 2025-26 NBA season with a 25-57 win-loss record that put the Grizzlies one spot ahead of the Bulls in the 2026 NBA Draft lottery.
Why is an equally rebuilding Grizzlies roster jumping out of the gate of the 2026-27 NBA season looking like a renewed playoff contender while the Bulls look like the second coming of the 2000-01 Chicago Bulls?
The Grizzlies must be credited with intentional, consistent participation in the NBA Draft, both in hitting on lottery picks (Cam Boozer, Zach Edey, and Cedric Coward) and in respecting the value of second-round picks (GG Jackson and Jaylen Wells).
As it relates to Bryson Graham, he gets some grace in this comparison because of his predecessor. *Some* grace, because Graham also sold off his entire second-round draft board in his first Bulls NBA draft.
The mission for Bryson Graham
Bringing this all home to roster teardowns, the Grizzlies decisively jettisoned a popular and mildly successful roster core of guards Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, and center Jaren Jackson Jr. over the course of three consecutive transaction periods starting with the 2025 NBA offseason.
Because the Grizzlies value building through the NBA Draft, they have been prudent roster builders in making sure obsolete players don’t get in the way of their long-term future players, and this is the example that Bryson Graham must follow if he is to successfully win not only his roster rebuild but also the critically important roster teardown that needs to happen ASAP.
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