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Projected Chicago Bulls depth chart & rotation entering the regular season

Who does Billy Donovan roll with? Can Matas Buzelis and other young players crack the starting lineup?

By Andrew Hanlon

Oct 8, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan reacts in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images
Oct 8, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan reacts in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images
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The Chicago Bulls ended their five-game exhibition schedule with a dramatic (if there are such things in the preseason) 139-137 overtime win against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

There were some bright spots over those five games, like Lonzo Ball's NBA return and flashes of star-level potential from rookie Matas Buzelis. It was good to see Coby White seemingly continue his rise from last year.

There were also some not-so-bright spots; Patrick Williams' struggles, for instance.

It's go-time now, though, as the Bulls first regular season contest comes on Oct. 23 on the road against Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans.

Who will head coach Billy Donovan start against the Pelicans and which players are locks to be in the rotation?

Projected Chicago Bulls starting lineup entering the NBA regular season

There's not much to glean from who Donovan chose as his starting five in the preseason.

Sure-fire starters like Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic were held out for an entire contest in favor of young players the team wanted to get a glimpse of. Josh Giddey missed the final game against the Cavaliers.

If there's anything to take away from the Bulls preseason lineups, it's who Donovan went with in game one. That starting lineup looked like this, which could be his chosen five against the Pelicans:

  • PG: Josh Giddey
  • SG: Coby White
  • SF: Zach LaVine
  • PF: Patrick Williams
  • C: Nikola Vucevic

Williams is entering the regular season on Chicago's injury report with a "day-to-day" designation. If he does miss the season opener, Buzelis could be first in line to grab his spot.

Arguably, Buzelis should start ahead of Williams regardless. Maybe that's what happens, but Donovan could lean toward a more veteran group, at least to begin the year.

Projected Bulls rotation entering the 2024-25 NBA regular season

Ayo Dosunmu appears to have the sixth-man spot locked up. Buzelis will see significant minutes every night, assuming he's healthy.

The rest of Chicago's rotation isn't set in stone and will likely change over the course of 82 games, but certain players may have forced their way into the conversation with their play in the preseason.

Julian Phillips was a pleasant surprise, and as a 3-and-D wing, gives the Bulls an archetype they don't have anywhere else on the roster.

Dalen Terry performed well, and even as a guard in a guard-heavy rotation, would give Donovan some versatility at 6-foot-7.

Jalen Smith will likely soak up the backup center minutes behind Vucevic. As perhaps the team's best rebounder, Adama Sanogo could also get a look.

Those players may move in and out of the rotation fluidly as the season goes along, especially toward the back half of the year when the Bulls put on their tanking caps to hold onto the top-10 protected first-round pick they owe to the San Antonio Spurs.

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