With the Bulls’ coaching search still dragging through postseason schedules, new basketball operations chief Bryson Graham is turning his attention to the roster—especially the forward spot. Matas Buzelis has looked like the most promising building block, and
The Bulls’ coaching search is still a slow burn—at least until candidates can finish their playoff runs and actually get in for interviews.
Heat assistant Chris Quinn and Cavaliers assistant Johnnie Bryant are the latest known candidates to meet with the Bulls’ ever-expanding front office as they press for Billy Donovan’s job. Thunder assistant Dave Bliss remains on the docket. Spurs assistant Sean Sweeney is closing in on a deal to coach the Magic. a reminder that this process isn’t happening in a vacuum.
But while the search continues. new executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham has more on his plate than just hiring a coach. He has been gathering intel about the roster. talking with coaches still on the payroll and anyone else around the league who has an opinion about what he is working with from a talent standpoint.
Questions exist everywhere, but none loom as large as the forward position.
Can Patrick Williams ever get unlocked? Can Noa Essengue hold up physically in Year 2? Was Leonard Miller a find or just in the right place at the right time on a bad team? What can Matas Buzelis actually become?
That last question carries the most weight for Graham—because even if he tries to start fresh, he still needs something sturdy to build on. For the Bulls, Buzelis might be the closest thing they have.
In his second season, Buzelis kept moving toward the kind of production that can change a team’s ceiling. He averaged 19 points and 1.6 blocks in the second half of the season. He also joined the “150/100 club”—the group that requires 150 three-pointers made and 100 blocks in a season. That list includes Dirk Nowitzki, Rasheed Wallace, Kevin Durant, Brook Lopez and Myles Turner.
The case for Buzelis isn’t only statistical. The source of Graham’s interest also seems to be how Buzelis has carried himself in losing. In his two seasons with the Bulls, he’s been unhappy with the losses and has put it on himself, taking it personally.
That attitude fits what Graham would want from the kind of player who doesn’t just want better numbers. but a different direction. Last month. Buzelis said. “I want to win and win as many games as we possibly can.” He added. “We’re struggling. obviously. but it can’t rain forever. The sun has to shine.”.
Buzelis insisted he would be ready for whatever comes this summer—whoever is added, whoever is in the mix. “I believe that whatever [the Bulls] do in the summer, I’ll be ready. I don’t care whatever 10 or 15 guys we have. I believe if you bring unity to those 10 or 15 guys, you can win anything. If you’re all on the same page, you can achieve anything.”.
And in the way he framed it, winning wasn’t just the goal—it was the measure of whether his time in the league means something. “Your time in the NBA is so limited. You want to make something of yourself. You want your team to make something of itself.”
The Bulls don’t have a lot of room for false starts. Buzelis’ third season might be where that becomes clear.
The forward picture around him is complicated and, in places, unforgiving.
As it stands, the Bulls’ forward rotation includes Matas Buzelis, Noa Essengue, Leonard Miller, Patrick Williams, Isaac Okoro, Jalen Smith, Guerschon Yabusele and Mouhamadou Gueye.
There are also names the organization could reshuffle soon. The Bulls have $2.4 million team options on Miller and Gueye, and Miller played well enough to have his option picked up and receive a serious look as a rotation player.
Buzelis and Essengue are on rookie deals, so they aren’t going anywhere. Williams, though, has an “unmovable” contract: two years and $36 million left, plus an $18 million option for the 2028-29 season.
After that, the certainty drops. “No one is guaranteed to return,” with Yabusele expected to be elsewhere.
Okoro has one year left on his deal and is viewed as a defensive finishing piece on a playoff team. Smith has $9.4 million left on an expiring deal. and the profile in the material is clear: he would be an ideal acquisition for some stretch help. Yabusele is the one whose future looks least tied to Chicago.
The draft could sharpen the Bulls’ choices—especially if they decide they need more than one forward foundation piece.
In mocks as they stand right now, the Bulls could add a power forward in Cameron Boozer or Caleb Wilson with the No. 4 pick. If that happens, Buzelis would likely shift to small forward, a position described as more natural for him.
The idea of adding two forwards isn’t dismissed either. The Bulls have the No. 15 pick, and Karim Lopez or Nate Ament might be available.
Then there’s free agency, where Graham’s “no-shortcut approach” is said to carry a lot of weight in how the Bulls handle all their salary-cap money. The idea is that the money won’t be spent unwisely.
One name to watch in the restricted free-agent market is Tari Eason, but the scenario is conditional—only if something unforeseen happens with the No. 4 pick.
And if the forward situation remains a puzzle even after the draft. the wildcard prediction is blunt about where the Bulls might look for fit. After landing Wilson with the No. 4 pick and finding no takers on a trade for Williams. the approach described is that Graham would send Okoro to the Lakers for a package that includes future draft assets.
Taken together, the Bulls’ summer decisions may hinge on one simple question: can Buzelis become the foundation they need? Everything else—coach interviews, draft options, salary-cap choices, and the fates of other forwards—seems to orbit that answer.
Chicago Bulls Matas Buzelis Bryson Graham coaching search Billy Donovan forward position Patrick Williams Noa Essengue Leonard Miller NBA draft Cameron Boozer Caleb Wilson Tari Eason