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The Chicago Bulls were quite close in booking a playoff spot. Unfortunately, they fell at the 2025 Play-In Tournament. Currently, it looks like Chicago has plenty to be excited about, given that they're inching closer towards a rebuild thanks to their young core. However, it's a fact that the franchise is still reeling since the departure of Michael Jordan and the major injury to Derrick Rose.
But while the Windy City continues their pursuit back to relevancy, the team does have the privilege of making some upgrades through the 2025 NBA Draft.
The Bulls will be tasked to select with the 12th and 45th overall picks in the 2025 NBA Draft. By owning a lottery pick, the Bulls must maximize it with the hopes of snagging a talent from the deep draft class.
Although the Bulls are one of the most decorated franchises, they have also committed their fair share of draft day fumbles. Here is a look at the Chicago Bulls' 10 worst NBA Draft day mistakes in history.
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10. Marquis Teague – 2012
The Bulls only had one draft pick at the 2012 NBA Draft, but it was still a first-round pick. They selected Marquis Teague, who was fresh from winning a national championship with Kentucky. However, it was a move that they'd soon regret, given that Teague wasn't ready for the NBA level. He averaged just 2.1 points per game in a Bulls uniform. To make the selection worse, the Bulls missed out on future All-Stars Draymond Green and Khris Middleton, who were picked in the second round.
9. Jay Williams – 2002
At the 2002 NBA Draft, the Bulls made Duke star Jay Williams the second overall pick. Although Williams showed flashes of greatness in his rookie season, his NBA career was cut short after he suffered a motorcycle accident that put an end to his career. Although the failure had nothing to do with the front office, Williams' exit from the NBA added more darkness to a franchise that was still trying to move on from life after Michael Jordan.
8. Chandler Hutchinson – 2018
Another first-round pick who didn't pan out was Chandler Hutchinson. Chicago picked Hutchinson with the 22nd overall pick, as he was coming off a stellar season with Boise State. Unfortunately, he found limited opportunities in the Windy City. To make matters worse, a bone injury in his foot derailed his career, eventually forcing him into early retirement at only 26 years old.
7. Eddy Curry – 2001
Drafted out of high school, the Bulls were hyped about Eddy Curry due to Shaquille O'Neal comparisons and his dominance at the high school level. As a result, the team decided to select Curry with the fourth overall pick of the 2001 NBA Draft.
Unfortunately, the Bulls were given a harsh reality slap as the 7-foot big man failed to acclimate to the league. Furthermore, his poor eating habits and health concern marred his NBA tenure. On the bright side, he did register a string of productive seasons before his unceremonious exit from the league.
6. Dalibor Bagaric – 2000
With European talent gaining traction in the NBA, Chicago started to do a little of their own scouting and had their eyes on Croatian center Dalibor Bagaric. But unlike other European players, Bagaric was far from polished. To make matters worse, he ultimately failed to translate his success in Europe into the NBA, which is a big fumble for a first-round pick. The 24th overall pick only averaged 2.6 points and 2.5 rebounds per game in three seasons with the Windy City.
5. Marcus Fizer – 2000
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To make matters worse, Bagaric wasn't the only first-round mistake the Bulls committed at the 2000 NBA Draft. With their fourth overall pick, Chicago selected Iowa State star Marcus Fizer. On the bright side, Fizer actually registered decent seasons in a Bulls uniform before tearing his ACL, which ultimately hampered his performance. After that, he was never the same. Fizer eventually took his act overseas.
4. Denzel Valentine – 2016
Coming off a remarkable stint with Michigan State, it made sense as to why the Bulls were to select Denzel Valentine with the 14th overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft. The 6-foot-4 forward was theoretically going to inject some firepower to the Bulls' wing rotation. Unfortunately, Valentine never developed other facets of his game with isolation scoring as his primary calling card. Unfortunately, the Michigan State star just wasn't good enough to take up that particular role at the NBA level.
3. Trading for Doug McDermott – 2014
Like several teams, the Bulls were one of the teams that made costly errors at the 2014 NBA Draft. The Bulls selected Jusuf Nurkic and Garry Harris with the 16th and 19th overall picks, ultimately missing out on eventual three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic. But to make matters worse, they traded away both Nurkic and Harris to acquire the services of Doug McDermott, a player who failed to live up to the hype.
2. Patrick Williams – 2020
The last time Chicago fumbled in the draft was as recent as 2020, when they selected Patrick Williams with the fourth overall pick. For quite some time now, the Bulls have been patient in the development of Williams, hoping he'd become a franchise building block. But after five seasons, Williams has remained unimpressive and is far from a major contributor that the team hoped for him to become.
Currently, the Florida State standout only averages 9.6 points per game. Some players drafted after him have already had better careers in the form of Tyrese Haliburton and Tyrese Maxey.
1. Trading LaMarcus Aldridge – 2006
The biggest draft night fumble for the Bulls front office was their 2006 NBA Draft trade. On draft night, the team selected LaMarcus Aldridge for the second overall pick only to trade him to the Portland Trail Blazers for veterans Tyrus Thomas and Russian star Viktor Khyrapa.
Aldridge went on to become the face of the Blazers and became a seven-time All-Star. On the other hand, Thomas and Khyrapa registered underwhelming stints with the franchise. It's one of the most lopsided trades in draft night history.
