Four square: There’s an obvious path for Bulls, Graham to follow on draft night

Now that the Bulls have settled on a head coach, the important decisions can begin.

And don't get caught off guard. The NBA decided to move the first round of the draft up two days. So now it's happening on Tuesday, not the traditional Thursday night. Like last year, the second round gets its own day to shine, for no obvious reason.

Actually, this should be a no-decision draft. The Bulls own the fourth pick, thanks to some lottery luck, and there's a clear top-four in this draft.

They can just wait for the player who is still on the board at No. 4, and most every mock draft has the Bulls landing North Carolina power forward Caleb Wilson.

Make it easy

For a team that's lacked any sort of physical presence for roughly a decade, Wilson would be a nice addition. Matas Buzelis should be playing on the perimeter, so landing a true power forward is a nice step for the new Bulls brain trust.

Wilson measured 6-9¼ at the draft combine, with a 39.5-inch max vertical, so he's very athletic, long, handles the ball well. His outside shot needs work, but he was productive in college.

During a single season in Chapel Hill, the Atlanta native averaged 19.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.4 blocks. He played his final college game on Feb. 10 due to a broken left hand. He planned to return but suffered another injury in practice and needed surgery to fix a broken right thumb.

So this feels like a night when the Bulls can fill out their draft card ahead of time, using a permanent marker. As of Sunday afternoon, there were higher odds on DraftKings of the Bulls taking Wilson (-475) than A.J. Dybantsa going No. 1 to Washington (-380).

Dybantsa and Kansas guard Darryn Peterson feel like a lock to go 1-2. The best chance for a surprise is probably Memphis opting for Wilson with the No. 3 pick, in which case the Bulls would have another easy choice, taking 6-9 forward Cameron Boozer from Duke, who used to run around the Berto Center with his twin brother, Cayden, when their father, Carlos, played for the Bulls.

Boozer is less athletic than Wilson but a more versatile scorer. He shot 39% from 3-point range and won most every college player of the year award.

Upward potential

The Bulls also have the No. 15 pick, a remnant from the Lauri Markkanen sign-and-trade. There have been rumors about the Bulls trying to trade into a higher slot.

The idea makes sense on the surface. Vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham should be exploring every option and trying to load up on young talent. But the price would be high, which makes this a steep long shot.

What would the Bulls even offer? Not Buzelis (no chance), or next year's first-rounder (bad idea). So this move doesn't make sense — unless, Graham has his sights set on replacing Josh Giddey as the lead guard.

Would taking on a bad contract in exchange for Giddey and maybe No. 15 be enough to put the Bulls in a spot to take a point guard of the future, like Illinois freshman Keaton Wagler? A trio of lead guards could go in the next three picks after the Bulls choose fourth — Wagler, Arkansas' Darius Acuff Jr. and Louisville's Mikel Brown Jr.

Giddey's value is difficult to peg. Now a five-year NBA veteran, he'll be just 24 on opening night and nearly averaged a triple-double last season, but he hasn't affected winning as much as the Bulls would like, especially in late-game situations. An obvious next step would be for coach Tiago Splitter to put the ball in Buzelis' hands late in games and see what happens. Maybe that's the plan.

The Clippers, who have the fifth pick, already invested in Darius Garland and don't have an obvious big contract to unload. But with no need at point guard, maybe the Clips listen to offers. The Nets at No. 6 could use a point guard and might as well just draft one. Anyway, this talk of the Bulls trying to move up will probably go nowhere.

Lucky 15

Don't forget, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard were No. 15 picks, so maybe this one will pay off for the Bulls.

If the Bulls go big at No. 4 with Wilson, and stick with Giddey at point guard, then a shooter would make sense here. Two names to watch are Baylor's Cameron Carr and Iowa's Bennett Stirtz.

Carr stood out at the combine with an elite 42.5 max vertical. He measured 6-4 ½ without shoes and has a 7-foot wingspan. Carr is 21, having spent two unproductive years at Tennessee before moving to Baylor and averaging 18.9 points on 37% shooting from 3-point range.

Stirtz is a late-bloomer who started in Division II, then followed his coach, Ben McCollum, to Drake and Iowa. He averaged 19.8 points for the Hawkeyes and showed a talent for the step-back jumper. The negatives are he measured just 6-2½ at the combine and shot a mundane 35.8% from 3-point range for Iowa.

Another option is the Bulls land someone to play center. Washington's Hannes Steinbach, Kentucky's Jayden Quaintance or Houston's Chris Cenac are potential fits. Steinbach could bring some Alperen Sengun vibes if he falls out of the lottery.

The Bulls could go all in on physicality with Michigan's Morez Johnson Jr., a South suburban native; or maybe someone drops surprisingly, like Buzelis did two years ago.

Graham helped make some good draft picks in New Orleans, which was probably the biggest factor in him getting hired. Now sitting at the head of the table for the first time, Graham can do what everyone's expecting or maybe pull off a big surprise.

The Bulls just need this draft to pay off somehow.