The Bulls’ handling of Kam Jones is already raising a bigger question about how Bryson Graham wants to run this thing.
Chicago brought in Jones on draft night in a move tied to the 38th overall pick, then turned around and planned to waive him about a week later, according to Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype. Scotto reported that Jones had a deadline that would have fully guaranteed his $2.15 million salary, and that the Bulls intended to cut him before that kicked in. Jones was the 38th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers before being traded to Chicago on draft night.
For a front office that has otherwise put together a strong start to its rebuild, this is the kind of move that sticks out.
It’s not that one questionable transaction wipes out everything Graham has done since taking over basketball operations. But it does feel like the first real crack in the blanket trust he’s earned.
When a new lead executive gets off to a good start, there’s usually a little grace attached to the early misfires. This one may have used up some of that cushion.
The broader issue is asset management. The Bulls got the 38th pick in the 2026 NBA Draft from Boston in the deal that sent Nikola Vucevic and a 2027 second-round pick to the Celtics.
That same transaction also brought back Anfernee Simons, who is now an unrestricted free agent. If Simons walks, and Chicago ends up with no real surplus draft capital after dealing away that 38th pick, the front office’s return starts to look thin fast.
That’s where the optionality talk comes in. Graham has framed some of these decisions around preserving flexibility, and he used similar logic when explaining why the Bulls moved both of their second-round picks Wednesday, including No. 38 overall.
Asked why Chicago traded those picks, he said none of the players on the board were targets and added, "How can we get some future assets and push this pick forward?" That was the thinking.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting room to maneuver. Flexibility has real value, especially when a roster is still being shaped.
But there’s a point where flexibility starts sounding like a catch-all explanation for not liking what’s actually available. That’s the concern here.
The same front office has already shown it can be patient and thorough in a different setting. Graham’s long coaching search eventually ended with Tiago Spliter, and the process clearly reflected a desire to keep options open.
The second round of the draft is a different animal, though. If the Bulls truly couldn’t identify a single target there, that raises a fair question about the evaluation process itself.
NIL has changed the draft landscape and, yes, the second round can be a tougher place to find value than it used to be. Still, scouting is supposed to be one of Graham’s strengths. The Bulls were praised for the three years of scouting work he put into Dailyn Swain, whom Chicago selected 15th overall in the 2026 NBA Draft.
That’s why the Jones situation lands oddly. The Bulls have every reason to believe in Graham’s eye for talent, but if flexibility becomes the default answer every time a decision gets murky, the message gets fuzzy. And once that happens, the front office starts sounding a lot more like the regime it replaced.
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