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The 2025 NBA Draft is less than a month away as it will get under way on June 25th. This is another big draft for the Chicago Bulls, who are in possesion of the 12th overall pick. There are going to be a lot of good players still available, but the focus for the Bulls is making sure that they have someone that fits into what they are trying to do.
There is a chance that the Maryland's Derik Queen is available for the Bulls, and he has a ton of potential. However, does he fit into this Indiana Pacers style that the Bulls are looking to emulate?
“Let's project and speculate, if Derik Queen falls to 12, would he be a fit with the Bulls? He's obviously a very skilled player,” Bulls insider K.C. Johnson said on Tuesday. “They do need some front court help. I will tell you this. One thing I've heard consistently about the Bulls is they are very focused on stylistically, how whoever they pick in the first round will fit with their new philosophy. They obviously are trying to emulate the Indiana Pacers.”
Queen would be an attractive option for the Bulls if he is available, but fit is definitely the most important thing.
“Get deep, play fast. Have two-way players, depth at the wing, depth in the front court,” K.C. Johnson continued. “Would Derik Queen fit into that? There are some question marks, and again, mothing is definitive here, and we're obviously even speculating that Derek Queen could fall to 12. There is some, you know, different discussions on that. But one thing to keep in mind is that fit with the Bulls new offensive style will be crucial to this draft pick.”
Fit is the most important thing for the Bulls, but at the same time, they aren't ruling out any positions. Everything is on the table for Chicago.
“The guard picture does thin out after the 2025-26 season, and that is when the Bulls project to have ample salary cap space,” Johnson added. “So you can see the Bulls maybe selecting a guard in this draft and fitting him in with their young core. The overall takeaway here is that the Bulls are not hung up on position. They will draft the best talent available, and when you're picking 12, you don't know what that's going to be, but there's a lot of potential excitement and potential possibilities there.”
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If the Bulls did end up with Queen, that could create a ripple effect with Nikola Vucevic. A lot of people think that he will be traded this offseason, but those two players might gel well together.
“Vooch (Nikola Vucevic) had his best year of his three years as a Bull last year,” Johnson said. “So you can say Vooch isn't athletic or is a plotter or whatever. I disagree. I think he's a very quick decision maker. He's a great trail guy, and obviously a way better shooter than Queen. So you have that pick and pop option and trail options. So again, we don't know the answer to this. We're just raising the questions right now, but it's a good question to ask, like, If Queen is there a 12 are the philosophical fit concerns, do they outweigh just making the pick of clearly a skilled player.”
Derik Queen has the traits necessary to excel in the NBA, but the Bulls will need to decide if his skillset is what the team is looking for.
“And we don't want to make this turn into like, a Queen bashing or a hater. He's a great player. He's gonna have a good NBA career,” Johnson stated. “It's just, you know, where does he fit? And that's a question I know the Bulls are asking, as well as other teams, particularly with, as I mentioned, how he tested athletically at the combine.”
There is a solid chance that Derik Queen isn't even available when it's time for the Bulls to make their pick. If he is, it's going to be interesting to see if Chicago pulls the trigger.
