Anybody who has followed the NBA for long enough should be familiar with the name Bill Simmons. He emerged as one of the first fan-to-analyst personalities in sports media two decades ago, working for ESPN and other prominent outlets. He’s also a diehard basketball fan, particularly the Boston Celtics. For most of the past several years, one of his favorite hobbies has been taking shots at the Chicago Bulls, calling them stagnant, directionless, cheap, and underwhelming talent-wise.
Just last year, he called their future “bleak.” Harsh? Sure. To be fair, he also made a good point. It was why Arturas Karnisovas was fired as VP of Basketball Operations. Bryson Graham has since taken over that position and just completed the 1st round of his first draft. Chicago came away with North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson with the #4 pick and Texas forward Dailyn Swain with the 15th pick. Not only did Simmons love what the Bulls did, but he went so far as to say it was the best performance of any team in the draft.
“They get Wilson at number four, with a chip on his shoulder. I love Wilson. I just think I’m completely all 100% in. I’m all in. he’s the first legit Bulls star since Derrick Rose. This kid has it. They’ll probably build the team around him. They’ll be playing up and down and everybody’s going to love him.”
Bill Simmons doesn’t make statements like that lightly.
While he might not be your traditional unbiased analyst, he’s also known for being fair in his assessments. If he doesn’t think somebody can play, he’ll say so. For him to come right out and claim Wilson is a future star is a big deal. This is the same guy who urged Portland to take Kevin Durant over Greg Oden and warned anybody who passed on Luka Doncic would regret it. He also stated Minnesota would forever rue the day they passed on Steph Curry in 2009. The guy knows basketball. So for him to speak this highly of Wilson is a big deal.
He was also complimentary of Swain. Bill Simmons sees the Texas product as another Kawhi Leonard type. Not specifically in terms of physical makeup, but more that one player who has every possible tool to succeed except one. If he can somehow find a way to develop that missing tool, he’s going to be great.
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“Every year, there’s the Kawhi Leonard of, ‘Wow, if this guy could just ____, he’ll be awesome.’ So with Swain, isn’t it if this guy can just figure out how to shoot, this kid’s going to be awesome?
He rebounds, he defends, like he runs the floor, he does everything else. But the shot is why he wasn’t a lottery pick. So what if he learns how to shoot?”
It’s true. Swain can run the floor, dribble, pass, and create his own shot. He attacks the rim at every opportunity and plays good defense. The one thing holding him back is that jump shot.
The Bulls suddenly have an identity.
VP of Basketball Operations Bryson Graham made it clear what he wanted from the beginning. That was a big, long, and athletic roster that can play physical defense. Wilson and Swain checked all of those boxes. These are easily two of the best pure athletes the organization has drafted in years. Both play above the rim and have the capability to create their own offense. At the same time, they show aggression and effort on defense. Combinations like this always tend to succeed in the NBA.
There is no denying that the 1987 draft, when the Bulls landed Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant, was the best in Bulls history. While it will be years before a proper assessment can be made, rest assured that 2026 has a real chance to be in the same conversation. That is how gifted these two players are. Simmons sees it. Everything comes down to development. All eyes are on Splitter. Considering he was an understudy of the great Gregg Popovich, the odds look pretty favorable.
