ESPN’s latest NBA Rank list gave Bulls fans a jolt of hope and a dose of reality all at once.
Chicago rookie Caleb Wilson landed at No. 97 in the outlet’s projection for the 2026-27 season, placing him ahead of players like RJ Barrett and Jalen Suggs. That’s a serious statement for a first-year big man, and it shows ESPN is buying into the upside. But the ranking also came with an important reminder: Wilson is still a rookie, and rookies make mistakes.
Zach Kram of ESPN called Wilson the Bulls’ "most compelling" rookie since Derrick Rose, while also pointing to the learning curve that comes with his first NBA season.
"Like all rookies, he'll undergo growing pains this season -- he committed 21 turnovers to just seven assists during summer league -- but he's the Bulls' most compelling prospect since Derrick Rose."
That’s the balance Bulls fans need to keep in mind. Wilson’s talent is obvious, but the path from exciting prospect to franchise centerpiece is rarely smooth.
At 6'9" with a 7'0.25" wingspan and a 39.5" vertical, Wilson brings the kind of physical tools that jump off the page. He can use that size and athleticism on both ends of the floor, and in college he showed he can be a force in a lot of different ways.
He’s a strong rebounder, a three-level scorer and a versatile defender who can affect the game in multiple spots. In 2025-26, Wilson posted 19.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.8 offensive boards, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.4 blocks per game as a true freshman. Then he turned heads at summer league by confidently taking and making threes, even though he attempted just 27 of them in college.
That kind of package is exactly why the buzz around him has been so loud. It’s not hard to see why Chicago fans are already thinking big.
Still, the NBA is a different level, and Wilson has never played there before. Turnovers, shaky shot choices and missed defensive rotations are going to happen. He may wind up with more rough nights in 2026-27 than he has in the next two years combined.
For the Bulls, the key is letting him grow through it. For the fans, the challenge is patience - not letting the early bumps erase the bigger picture of what Wilson can become.
In Other News...
Bulls Keep Reshaping Bryson Grahams Front Office Before Year 1
The Bulls are still building out Bryson Grahams basketball operations group before his first season in charge even begins. Chicago announced another round of staff updates, with the front office continuing to take shape under the new lead executive after already making major moves by adding Acie Law IV and Stephen Mervis to prominent roles.
Brian Hagan has been elevated to Senior Vice President of Player Personnel, and the Bulls also filled out more of the organizations support structure with Alex Kaufman, Dionne Calhoun, Jarrett Sutton, Justin Irwin and Noah Fox joining in different capacities. The latest changes show how much of the day-to-day infrastructure around Graham is still being assembled, with the G League side and the medical and scouting areas all getting attention as the Bulls put the finishing touches on the staff. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Starting Lineup Could Finally Reveal Chicagos Real Direction
The Bulls are still trying to sort out what the next version of the roster is supposed to look like, but the projected 2026-27 starting five offers a clearer hint than most of the recent chatter. Josh Giddey and Norman Powell give the group a steady backcourt presence, while Matas Buzelis is expected to keep growing into a bigger offensive role. The shape of that lineup suggests Chicago is no longer just patching holes from one season to the next, but trying to build something more coherent around young talent and a few established pieces.
Caleb Wilson is part of that picture too, giving the front office another high-upside piece to develop as the rebuild takes hold. Tiago Splitter is stepping in on the bench, and his arrival adds another layer to a transition that has been moving in this direction for a while. The unanswered question is how quickly all of those parts can fit together into a team that looks less like an experiment and more like a direction. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Move On From Keon Johnson And Raise An Immediate Question
Keon Johnsons stay with the Hawks was short-lived, with Atlanta waiving the former first-round pick soon after bringing him in on an Exhibit 10 contract. It leaves him back on the market at a time when a few teams with room to keep looking for back-end roster help could at least take a hard look, and the conversation around him has quickly shifted to which clubs might be willing to give him another chance.
Among the teams mentioned as possible fits are the Nuggets, the Bulls and the Trail Blazers, though nothing has been confirmed by any of them. For Chicago, the interest is more about roster context than anything else, as the front office continues to sort through training camp options and evaluate whether another camp body makes sense in a group that is still taking shape. [Read more 🡒]