The Chicago Bulls 2025-26 season started off hot at 5-0, and then fell on hard times on both sides of the ball--more so defensively as far as the struggles go--and now sit at 9-14, good for 11th in the Eastern Conference. At the time of this writing, the Bulls have lost 8 of their last 10 games. Things may improve, but it is unlikely that the Bulls defense--currently ranked 23rd in Defensive Rating at (117.3) per NBA.com--is going to improve dramatically with the return of Zach Collins, and the eventual returns of Isaac Okoro.

In layman's terms: Coby White's shooting will get back on track at some point and likely improve the offense, but there doesn't seem to be much reason for hope with the defense. 

And if the Bulls defense continues to struggle, the losses will continue to mount and the Bulls may just yet find a major difference maker in the draft. 

So as we inch closer to the New Year, who are the names attached to Chicago in the latest NBA mock drafts?

Bleacher Report: 

11th, Chicago Bulls: Karim Lopez (New Zealand Breakers)

B/R has the Bulls selecting forward Karim Lopez, who certainly fits the mold of lanky, physical forwards that Arturas Karnisovas has valued over the years (think Patrick Williams, Julian Phillips, Noa Essengue, etc.). Lopez is also extremely young at just 18 years old, so he would fit the Bulls timeline. 

He has a solid motor, and is not afraid to get physical with bigger matchups. Lopez's physicality likely gives him an easier path to early minutes than most raw rookies, but like most raw rookies, the development of the jumper will play a large role in how much of a factor he can be at the NBA level. 

ESPN: 

13th pick, Braylon Mullins, SG, UConn Freshman

Mullins was a highly touted prospect who eventually settled on UConn to start his NCAA career. An injury slowed down the start to his season, but he is healthy now and looked the part against a ranked Florida squad, and Kansas.

In the game against Kansas, Mullins had 17 points, 5 rebounds, and a turnover in a Huskies win. He showed off his ability to create offense off the dribble, as well as his aggressive shooting from the perimeter (3-9 from 3-pt range). 

No Ceilings:

11th pick, Labaron Philon, PG, Alabama, Sophomore

The wonderful team over at No Ceilings have the Bulls selecting Philon, a pick that would likely drive Bulls fans a bit crazy, as it would be adding another guard to a team that seems like it's entire rotation is only made up of guards. But we've seen that passing over talent for fit is rarely a great move, and that could be the case with Philon-to-Chicago. He is an tough and athletic guard at 6-foot-4, and would add some perimeter defense to the Bulls rotation while exceeding at the things the Bulls currently do on offense (pace, 3-pointers, sharing the ball). 

Philon was solid as a freshman, but is in the midst of a breakout season in his sophomore year, averaging 21.4 points, 5.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and is shooting just over 40% from 3-point range on 5.2 attempts per game. 

CBS:

13th pick, Braylon Mullins, SG, UConn, Freshman

We discussed Mullins above a bit, and he shows up as the only player I found getting selected by the Bulls across multiple mock drafts so far in this early stage, including the CBS mock. Despite the Bulls guard-heavy roster, the selection of Mullins would make a ton of sense. Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu are going to be unrestricted free agents this upcoming offseason, but nd even with them on the roster, the Bulls could use more shot creation to help their struggling offense. Mullins provides that skill set as a true inside-out scorer, and playing next to someone like Josh Giddey would allow Mullins to find great looks, of which he is not afraid to pull the trigger quickly, catching defenders off guard often. 

Mullins was Mr. Basketball for the state of Indiana in 2025, and was also a McDonald's All-American. An ankle injury forced him to miss the start of the season, and would likely play a big role in Mullins falling into the later half of the lottery.

Tankathon:

11th pick, Jayden Quaintance PF, Kentucky, Sophomore

Finally, Tankathon currently has the Bulls selecting big man Jayden Quaintance out of Kentucky. This is perhaps the most realistic of the mocks to this point. Karnisovas has not particularly shown an interest in drafting athletic bigs, but no time like the present. A big reason for the Bulls struggling defense is a complete lack of rim protection.

Quaintance, theoretically, solves that problem completely. He is an extremely young--was 17 during his freshman season as he finished high school early--athletic, shot-blocking monster, who succeeds at the old-school, traditional big man skills. Now something Bulls fans won't like to hear is that Quaintance is still recovering from a torn ACL that he got surgery on in March.

But assuming the recovery goes fine, we should see him back on the court soon enough. What can't be argued though, is that Quaintance would immediately step into Chicago as the best shot-blocker on the roster. 

The pairing of Quaintance with the surprisingly effective shot blocker that is Matas Buzelis, would give the Bulls a great foundation to build around defensively.