Caleb Wilson’s early run in the 2026 NBA Summer League has done more than turn heads in Chicago. It has also added a little twist to the story of how the Bulls got him in the first place.
Selected fourth overall, Wilson arrived with the kind of expectations that follow a top pick, and he has backed that up by standing out right away. The buzz around him before the draft centered on his athleticism and two-way upside, with most of the offense projection pointing to work around the rim or in the mid-range. What has caught people off guard in Summer League is the three-point shot.
That development is especially notable because Wilson’s college profile at the University of North Carolina left plenty of questions about his range. He did not take many threes there, and that became part of how scouts and draft analysts viewed him. Wilson, though, sees that chapter a little differently now.
"I'm glad I didn't shoot threes in college because if I did, I wouldn't be here. I don't know where I'd be. I don't think I'd be a Bull," Wilson said about how his apparent shooting issues helped him reach Chicago.
Wilson has been working with shooting coach Chris Matthews, known online as Lethal Shooter, to sharpen that part of his game. The idea is simple: the form was already there, and the work has been about cleaning it up and making it more effective.
That matters because Wilson was never sold as a finished product. He was always viewed as a high-upside wing with room to grow, and that’s exactly the kind of player who can become a real fit for a team in Chicago’s position. He’s still just beginning his rookie year, but the combination of production, work ethic, and a better-looking jumper has given the Bulls plenty to like already.
In Other News...
Bulls May Have Seen Something In Caleb Wilson Everyone Else Missed
The Bulls had Caleb Wilson on their radar well before his name started drawing louder buzz around the 2026 NBA Draft. Chicago brought in the North Carolina forward for a pre-draft interview, and the early read inside the organization was that his confidence, maturity and work ethic stood out as much as his talent. For a team always looking for players who can grow into bigger roles, that kind of impression matters, especially when it comes from a prospect whose game already carried plenty of intrigue.
Wilsons shooting is the part that may have made Chicago look twice. At North Carolina, he was used mostly as a rim-attacking power forward in a fast-break offense, which meant the jumper did not always get the same spotlight it had in other settings. But his track record from high school and what he showed in Summer League suggest there may be more there than the college usage indicated, and that is the sort of detail front offices tend to circle long before everyone else catches on. [Read more 🡒]
Norman Powell Joins Bulls With Something To Prove In Chicago
Norman Powell is settling into Chicago with the kind of mindset the Bulls have to hope translates quickly. After officially signing with the team, the veteran guard said his focus is on being in the moment and helping Chicago win, a familiar message in a league where roster moves are rarely purely about basketball. For the Bulls, adding a proven scorer who understands the business side of the NBA is part of the larger push to keep reshaping the backcourt and finding players who can fit into whatever comes next.
There is also a layer of flexibility built into Powells deal, which gives Chicago some room to manage the partnership beyond the first season. That matters for a Bulls team trying to balance immediate competitiveness with longer-term planning, and it gives Powell a chance to show he can be more than a short-term addition. He arrives in Chicago with something to prove, and the early tone suggests he is embracing both the opportunity and the uncertainty that come with it. [Read more 🡒]