Chicago Bulls: A look back at NBA Draft history before 2019

The Chicago Bulls own the No. 7 and No. 38 picks in the 2019 NBA Draft. Will these picks transform them into a playoff contender in Year 3 of the team’s rebuild?

To say that the Chicago Bulls’ 2018-19 campaign was a difficult one would be an understatement. They began the season by dropping 19 of their first 24 games. Because of the horrific start, the team relieved Fred Hoiberg of his coaching duties and promoted associate coach Jim Boylen.

The injury bug hit the team hard this season as a total of 290 games were missed due to injury or illness. As a result, the Bulls finished with the fourth-worst record in the league at 22-60, their first 60-loss season since 2001-02.

This win-loss total represented the fifth-worst record in franchise history. Along with that, this season also included the worst home loss in franchise history. This occurred back in early December 2018 when the Boston Celtics beat them by a 133-77 margin.

Unfortunately, the Bulls’ misfortunes continued up through the 2019 NBA Draft Lottery as well. Despite having the fourth-worst record, Chicago slipped to the No. 7 spot. This will be the third straight year in which the Bulls have the seventh overall pick. It is also worth mentioning that the Bulls will pick at No. 38 as well.

Here’s a look at how the team has fared at these spots in years past.

There have been four instances in which the Bulls have owned the No. 7 pick. The first occurrence took place back in 1982. That year, Chicago selected Quintin Dailey from the University of San Francisco. Dailey spent four seasons in the Windy City, posting averages of 16.4 points, 2.9 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game on 46.6 percent shooting.

Sadly, Dailey’s tenure with the team will be remembered more for his problems away from the game rather than his production on the court. He went on to play for both the Los Angeles Clippers and Seattle SuperSonics for 10 seasons. He averaged 14.1 points per contest during that stretch. Dailey passed away in November of 2010 at 49 years of age due to hypotensive cardiovascular disease.

It would be nearly 20 years before the Bulls would own the rights to the seventh overall pick again. In the 2000 NBA Draft, they selected Chris Mihm from Texas. This selection would be short-lived however, as the Bulls subsequently traded Mihm to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for their No. 8 pick, Jamal Crawford.

During his four years with the Bulls, Crawford compiled averages of 11.2 points, 3.8 assists and 2.4 rebounds per contest. He shot 39.7 percent from the floor and 33.9 percent from beyond the arc. Crawford most recently appeared in 64 games for the Phoenix Suns in 2018-19. His 7.9 points per contest marked the first time he wasn’t a double-digit scorer since the 2001-02 campaign.

Three years later, the Bulls were at the No. 7 spot again. That draft class included LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony. With none of these players on the board when the Bulls were on the clock, they selected Kirk Hinrich from the University of Kansas.

Hinrich played a total of 11 seasons with the Bulls. During that span, he averaged 11.4 points, 5.1 assists and 2.7 rebounds per contest on shooting splits of .408/.376/.797. Hinrich is still the Bulls’ all-time leader in 3-point field goals (1,049) and 3-point field goals attempted (2,792).

The most recent occasion in which Chicago owned the No. 7 pick was just a year ago. With that pick, they took Wendell Carter Jr. from Duke. Not only was Carter a decent scorer (10.3 points per contest), and rebounder (7.0 boards per game), he could also play a little defense as well.

Unfortunately, a thumb injury would limit the rookie center to just 44 games this season. No, Carter did not earn a spot on the All-Rookie team. However, he did become just the fifth rookie over the past seven seasons to average seven rebounds and 1.3 blocks per outing. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he could have a bright future in Chicago.

There are only two instances in which the Bulls owned the 38th overall pick. In 2004, the Bulls took Chris Duhon at No. 38. During his four seasons in Chicago, Duhon averaged 6.9 points and 4.5 assists per contest on 38.7 percent shooting and 35.6 percent from 3-point range. He went on to play five additional seasons with the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic and the Los Angeles Lakers. His last NBA season was in 2012-13 and he finished with career averages of 6.5 points and 4.4 assists per outing.

The other instance in which the Bulls were slotted at No. 38 took place in last year’s NBA Draft. With that pick, the Bulls selected Jordan Bell and immediately sent him to the Golden State Warriors for cash considerations.

While this move raised a few eyebrows initially, John Paxson later explained that the driving force behind the decision was based on the team’s frontcourt depth and the players they wanted in the second round had been selected. Taking those factors into consideration, the front office thought it would be better to build up equity within the organization for future decisions.

Bell averaged 4.6 and 3.3 points per contest during his first two seasons with the Warriors. Bearing that in mind, the jury is still out on whether they made the right decision.

From a historical perspective, the Bulls have had some success with being associated with the seventh pick outside of their own selection. For instance, they acquired the rights to the No. 7 pick from the Phoenix Suns in 2004. In exchange, Chicago gave the Suns their 31st pick in the second round of that year’s draft, a conditional first round pick in 2005 and $3 million in cash.

Deng spent 10 years in the Windy City, posting averages of 16.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.7 assists per contest on 46 percent shooting from the field. In 2017, the Bulls sent Jimmy Butler to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the No. 7 pick, Lauri Markkanen.

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Markkanen exceeded expectations in his rookie season, averaging 15.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per outing en route to earning All-Rookie honors. Despite missing 30 games in Year 2, Markkanen’s production improved to 18.7 points and 9.0 rebounds per contest. Based on his numbers, it is of little surprise why he’s considered one of the future building blocks of the franchise.

A former two-time MVP was also taken at the No. 7 spot in the 2009 NBA Draft. The player in question is Stephen Curry, who has helped the Dubs become just the second team in NBA history to make it to the Finals five times in a row.

The only other squad who can make that claim is the Boston Celtics – who reached the Finals from 1957-1966.

A few other notable players taken with the No. 7 overall pick include Jamal Murray, Julius Randle, Harrison Barnes, Bismack Biyombo, Greg Monroe, Eric Gordon, Corey Brewer, Nene Hilario, Richard Hamilton, Jason Williams, Luc Longley, Kevin Johnson, Chris Mullin, Vinnie Johnson (a.k.a. the Microwave), Bernard King, Pat Riley, Mel Counts and John Havlicek.

Notable draft selections at No. 38 include Jud Buechler, Chandler Parsons and Spencer Dinwiddie.

Based on the historical trends from years past, if the Bulls have any hopes of drafting a game-changer, they will more than likely find that player at the seventh spot.