The Bulls moved up from the ninth-best odds to the No. 4 overall selection in what could be a major boost to the franchise's impending rebuild.
The Chicago Bulls have secured the No. 4 overall pick in June's NBA Draft. They entered Sunday afternoon with the ninth-best odds in the NBA Draft Lottery after finishing the season with a 31-51 record, which gave Chicago a 4.5% chance at the No. 1 overall pick and a 20.3% chance at a top-four selection.
This is the Bulls' first top-four selection since 2020, when they picked Patrick Williams. The Washington Wizards were given the No. 1 overall pick in Sunday's lottery, followed by the Utah Jazz at No. 2 and the Memphis Grizzlies at No. 3.
Chicago also has the No. 15 overall pick, thanks to a prior trade with the Portland Trail Blazers. The Bulls traded Lauri Markkanen to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a three-team deal in 2021, and the final piece of that trade was conveyed when the Blazers clinched a playoff berth.
Since the year 2000, the Bulls have experienced mixed results in the NBA Draft Lottery. Chicago had moved up twice prior to Sunday, most recently when they climbed from the seventh-best odds to the No. 4 overall pick in 2020. In 2008, the Bulls drafted Derrick Rose with the No. 1 overall pick, despite entering the lottery with the ninth-best odds.
Armed with two picks in the top 15, the Bulls and new lead executive Bryson Graham have the opportunity to springboard their rebuild with a pair of young talents. The team has several players under the age of 24, including Matas Buzelis (21), Josh Giddey (23), Noa Essengue (19), Rob Dillingham (21) and Leonard Miller (22).
There are four prospects widely viewed as "franchise-changing" players at the top of the 2026 NBA Draft. BYU forward AJ Dybantsa, a 6-foot-9 wing, is the favorite to go No. 1 overall after a freshman season in which he averaged 25.5 points per game in Provo, Utah.
Behind Dybantsa are Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, Duke forward Cameron Boozer and North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson, each of which are also freshmen. There's no consensus for the order of Peterson, Boozer and Wilson, and all three could undoubtedly be the anchor for Chicago's impending rebuild.
Boozer is the son of Carlos Boozer, who spent four seasons with the Bulls from 2010 to 2014.
The first round of the 2026 NBA Draft is set to take place on June 23, while the second round will be a day later, on June 24.