CHICAGO (104.3 The Score) – A new era of Bulls basketball has what it hopes is the face of the franchise for years to come.
The top of the NBA Draft played out as expected Tuesday evening for the Bulls, who selected North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson at No. 4 overall. Wilson was the first draft pick of the new regime that’s led by executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham, who was hired by Chicago in early May. Wilson was selected after BYU forward AJ Dybantsa went No. 1 overall to the Wizards, Kansas guard Darryn Peterson went No. 2 to the Jazz and Duke big man Cameron Boozer went No. 3 to the Grizzlies.
Just more than an hour after Graham and the Bulls selected Wilson, they then nabbed Texas wing Dailyn Swain at No. 15 overall.
“We’re establishing an identity,” Graham said in lauding the toughness, versatility and defensive prowess of Wilson and Swain.
Both players fit Graham’s desire to add size and athleticism. The 6-foot-10, 211-pound Wilson has a strong feel for the game and is an incredibly explosive athlete who led college basketball in dunks before he was injured early this past February. Defensively, he was a high-impact player at North Carolina with the ability to switch and defend smaller guards, which should give the Bulls versatility as they build their team.
And make no mistake – Wilson will come to Chicago with big goals.
"I'm always going to do whatever it takes to get better," Wilson said. "I want to be the greatest player of all time. Yall got one of the GOATs in yall's history right now. So it's time for another one. I'm hungry. I'm hungry to be the greatest."
Wilson, who will turn 20 in July, averaged 19.8 points. 9.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.4 steals 31.3 minutes across 24 games for North Carolina last season while shooting 57.8% overall from the field. He earned second-team All-America honors from the Associated Press.
“We’re really, really, really excited about it,” Graham said of the Bulls’ addition of Wilson. “He just brings so much to the table. He’s such a good athlete. He’s a really high-character (person). He’s extremely skilled and very versatile. I’m just excited about him being a part of this organization, helping build out this culture and re-establishing our identity as a team.”
Wilson suffered a hand fracture in February and then suffered a broken thumb in practice in early March as he neared a return to action, so the last game he played for North Carolina was on Feb. 10. He has no lingering effects from those injuries, he said.
Wilson will need to add weight and muscle to his 211-pound frame to deal with the physical nature of the NBA as he projects to be the Bulls’ long-term answer at power forward. Wilson isn’t an outside threat, as he shot just 7-of-27 on 3-pointers at North Carolina. The development of an outside shot could prove to elevate him to another level in the NBA.
The 6-foot-7 Swain is a slasher who's good at getting to the rim and is a really strong rebounder for his position. Swain averaged 17.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.6 steals for Texas last season, when he shot 54.2% overall and 34.4% on 3-pointers.
Swain played his first two collegiate seasons at Xavier. He was a 29.3% 3-point shooter for his college career.
“He’s tough, he’s versatile,” Graham said. “He can play multiple positions on both offense and defense.”
Graham acknowledged the Bulls lack 3-point shooting as constructed, but he’s confident that will improve.
“Both Caleb and Dailyn, they fit the bill (of who we want to be),” Graham said. “We’re not addressing every skill yet. A lot of people (might say), ‘Where’s the shooting at?’ and things of that nature. I’m not typically worried about that right now. There’s a certain mentality and a certain profile in a way that coach Tiago (Splitter) and myself want to play, and we feel like today was a good layer for that.”
Cody Westerlund is an editor and reporter for 104.3 The Score.
