Tiago Splitter doesn’t exactly inherit a finished product in Chicago. He gets a blank slate, a rebuilding roster and a short runway to start shaping the Bulls into something that actually looks like a team with direction.
That makes the early weeks of training camp matter a lot. Splitter is new to the head coach job and new to this group, so he’ll need time. But some decisions are going to arrive fast, and the biggest ones are tactical.
The first one is pace. On paper, this roster screams up-tempo basketball.
Josh Giddey thrives when he can grab and go and spray the ball to teammates in the open floor. Matas Buzelis and Caleb Wilson bring the kind of length and bounce that can turn a missed shot into a quick strike the other way.
Nic Claxton has already made a living running the floor, and Jalen Smith got plenty comfortable in an uptempo system in 2025-26 under Billy Donovan.
Norman Powell also fits that style. The Bulls’ biggest free-agent addition came from a Miami Heat team that ranked No. 1 in PACE and No. 2 in fastbreak points. He’s 33, but the motor and the quick-release jumper still make sense if Chicago wants to play fast.
The question is how far Splitter wants to push it. This team does not have a surplus of steady ball-handlers and playmakers, and Splitter has also talked about the importance of crashing the glass. That creates a built-in tension: the more bodies you send after rebounds, the harder it can be to get out and run.
There’s also the simple reality that fast basketball takes discipline. You have to fill lanes correctly, read the advantage and keep from tripping over yourself.
This is a young Bulls team, and young teams can lose the plot in a hurry when the game gets sped up. The benefit is obvious.
The execution is the hard part.
Splitter’s Portland team finished Top 9 in PACE last season and regularly put pressure on the rim. Chicago has the athletic pieces to chase something similar.
But there may also be a counterweight here, especially with player development such a central part of the job. The Bulls could lean more on halfcourt creation for Buzelis and Wilson, and Claxton may be the best pick-and-roll center Giddey has played with, which opens the door for slower stretches too.
Then comes the late-game problem, and it’s one Chicago has not handled well. Last season, when the year started sliding off the rails, the Bulls still refused to fully accept reality.
Billy Donovan and the staff kept pushing for wins even after a trade deadline that turned over nearly half the roster. Instead of leaning into the rebuild and giving inexperienced players room to grow, they kept veterans in front of them.
Rob Dillingham and Leonard Miller had trouble getting consistent minutes over Collin Sexton and Guerschon Yabusele, which only reinforced the sense that the franchise had no clear plan for development.
That puts the focus on how Splitter handles crunch time. Does he trust Tre Jones next to Josh Giddey because he trusts Jones more? Does Isaac Okoro stay on the floor for defense over Dailyn Swain or Miller?
No one is arguing the Bulls should stop trying to win games. The new lottery rules make outright tanking less appealing anyway.
But those fourth-quarter reps still matter. They’re valuable teaching moments for young players, and Splitter has to decide how to balance that with the need to put the team in the best position to win.
The third big question is shooting. Chicago simply does not have much floor spacing to work with.
Powell helps, and he helps a lot. But one reliable shooter is not enough in today’s league.
Jalen Smith might end up as the team’s second-best three-point threat, and he has never taken more than 4.2 attempts per game. Matas Buzelis could keep growing in that area, Caleb Wilson showed encouraging flashes in Summer League, and Giddey eased some concerns with his jumper last season.
Even so, there aren’t many proven long-range weapons on the roster.
That makes the shot profile worth watching closely. The Bulls may be better built to attack the paint with drives and cuts than to live and die by threes. Still, Splitter’s Portland team last season was not shy about launching from deep, finishing with the third-most three-point attempts per night despite ranking third-worst in field goal percentage.
It was an odd approach, but it worked reasonably well because that team could clean up misses. They were strong on the offensive glass, using size and length to create extra chances. Whether Splitter thinks this Bulls group can replicate that formula is another question entirely.
The absence of a big like Donovan Clingan matters here. He was an elite rebounder, and that made the whole thing more sustainable. Claxton has declined in that area in recent years, while Buzelis and Wilson still need more physicality.
For Chicago, the early version of this team will reveal a lot about what Splitter values most: pace, patience, shooting volume, rebounding or development. That’s the real story now.
In Other News...
Bulls Linked To A Lakers Roster Move That Could Be Worth Watching
A roster squeeze in Los Angeles has created a situation worth monitoring in Chicago, where the Bulls could be looking on with interest as the Lakers sort through their numbers. The Lakers are currently over the roster limit and are weighing ways to clear a spot, which has put a few fringe names into the conversation as possible trade or cut candidates.
One of the more intriguing possibilities is a young wing with a manageable deal, the kind of asset that can draw attention even when the on-court production has been uneven. For the Bulls, the appeal would be obvious if that market opens up, but for now it remains only speculation, with no trade or move confirmed as the Lakers continue deciding how to handle the logjam. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Suddenly Have A Real Taj Gibson Decision To Make
The Pelicans latest shuffle has created a familiar name worth watching around the Bulls. New Orleans reportedly moved Jordan Hawkins, Micah Peavy and a future second-round pick to Memphis for AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson, a deal that briefly sends Gibson to the Pelicans before the veteran is expected to hit the market again. For Chicago, it is the kind of low-risk, high-familiarity opening that can come with a player who knows the league, knows the grind and has long been valued for the steadiness he brings in a locker room.
Gibsons appeal for the Bulls is less about minutes than fit. He would give them an experienced presence who could help younger players navigate the day-to-day demands of the season, and his rsum still carries weight in a room that values professionalism. The question now is whether Chicago sees enough reason to bring him back into the fold, especially with a roster that has spent plenty of time balancing development against the need for dependable veterans. [Read more 🡒]
Noa Essengue Could Decide A Big Piece Of The Bulls Rebuild
Noa Essengue arrived in Chicago with the kind of profile the Bulls have been trying to stockpile in this rebuild, a young wing with two-way upside, shooting touch and the kind of length that can matter on the defensive end. As a former first-round pick, he was always going to draw extra attention, and the early signs before the injury suggested why the organization was intrigued by his athleticism and ability to fit as a modern 3-and-D piece.
For now, though, the path to real minutes is crowded, which is part of what makes his development so interesting. The Bulls have other wings ahead of him in the pecking order, and the bigger question is not whether Essengue has a place in the long-term picture, but how patient the team will be as it waits for him to grow into it. [Read more 🡒]