Chicago Bulls 2019 Draft Workout Tracker

With the 2019 NBA Draft quickly approaching, the Chicago Bulls have a lot of scouting to do. Slated to have a very high draft pick, there are a lot of options for the Bulls to choose from. While some of the guys they work out might not be exactly high on their draft board, it could mean something for potential signings on their Summer League or G-League roster.

Let’s take a look at some of the guys the Bulls have worked out. If there is news I missed comment below and it will be updated. Happy draft season!

Last updated: 6/26/19

Alpha Diallo, Providence

As tweeted by the Bulls own Twitter account, they worked out six players this past weekend. One of them was Providence Friars forward Alpha Diallo. He had his best year as a Friar in the 2018-19 season, averaging 16 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. Diallo would certainly be a candidate to compete for a reserve spot in Chicago’s backcourt. However he hasn’t been slated to be taken in a lot of mock drafts and certainly not in the first round. Diallo also has the chance of going back to school with the new NCAA rules.

Fletcher Magee, Wofford

Magee was another guard candidate the Bulls worked out. He was the main catalyst on a very good Wofford team, leading one of the more efficient offenses in the country. Magee’s best attribute is shooting as he shot over 40% from deep in his four years with the Terriers. Despite his poor performance against Kentucky in the Round of 32, Magee showed he was an threat on offense to be reckoned with and teams have to be wary about letting him get hot from three-point land. Magee’s name isn’t much talked about when it comes to mock drafts. He is expected to be a late second round pick so again this is an option for Chicago at 38 if they so choose or their Summer League team.

Isaiah Roby, Nebraska

Like Alpha Diallo, Nebraska’s Isaiah Roby is another one of the prospects the Bulls worked out who is testing out his draft stock. Roby had his best season to date as a Cornhusker, averaging 11.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Not much of a perimeter player, Roby does much of his work in the paint and has some nice moves with his back to the basket. At 6’8 there certainly is some upside with Roby. He still does have the option to return back to Nebraska and be a part of Fred Hoiberg’s roster for the 2019-20 season.

Justin Turner, Bowling Green

Turner is a scoring guard who can offer a lot inside and in the mid-range. Only a 37.2% in his most recent season with Bowling Green, Turner’s projections as a multi-facet scorer isn’t that high. Averaging 18.2 points per game, Turner led BGSU to the MAC Tournament Final where they lost to a very good Buffalo Bulls team. Only a redshirt sophomore, Turner still can go back to BGSU if he so chooses.

Quinndary Weatherspoon, Mississippi State

Weatherspoon is an interesting prospect and could be a solid pickup in the second round for Chicago. He averaged 18.5 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 50% from the field on a decent Mississippi State Bulldogs team. Weatherspoon also was solid from three-point land as well, shooting 39.6% from there. Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Woo had Weatherspoon as someone who stood out in the Portsmouth Invitational last month. He’s certainly a name to look out for in mock drafts and is an option at No. 38.

Zach Norvell Jr, Gonzaga

A Chicago native, Zach Norvell Jr. was part of a very loaded Gonzaga squad with a lot of potential NBA talent. With an uptick in minutes the sophomore played a bigger role for Mark Few’s team, averaging 14.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. He saw his defensive box plus/minus jump up from 1.9 to 2.5 and it bodes well for him turning into a really good two-way player. At 21, his age doesn’t help him but with his defense, ability to stretch the floor (37%) and hit clutch shots, Norvell is an interesting prospect. He’s projected to be a high second round pick and should be there when Chicago selects at 38. Norvell Jr. would be a solid second round pick for the Bulls.

Clayton Custer, Loyola Chicago

As first reported by Darnell Mayberry of the Athletic, the Bulls worked out a local player in Loyola-Chicago’s Clayton Custer. Many remember him from the Ramblers memorable run to the Final Four two years ago. His stats in his final year at Loyola dropped off a bit as he averaged 11.1 points, 2.7 assists, and had an eFG% of 52.4. A career 41% three-point shooter, Custer can certainly spread the floor and offer shooting depth for any team. But at 6’1, there are concerns about how his height would affect his overall draft stock. Custer is certainly a candidate for the Bulls Summer League squad or Windy City Bulls team.

Quentin Grimes, Kansas

The latter list of the players the Bulls worked out on May 20th was reveled by their own Twitter account. Grimes was one of the three Kansas players to be present in the workout. He was one of the more hyped high school prospects coming into the 2018-19 college season but a disappointing year at KU has seen his draft stock take a tumble. Grimes only averaged 8.4 points last season and shot 38.4% from the field. His shooting was also a concern as he didn’t shoot well from deep, hitting only 34% of his attempts. Grimes is certainly a candidate for the Bulls with their second round pick at 38.

Charles Matthews, Michigan

Charles Matthews was a leader for the Michigan Wolverines last season. He averaged 12.2 points, 5 rebounds, and posted a defensive box plus/minus of 4.8 on one of the better defensive teams in college basketball. He can certainly find a role as a defensive stopper on some teams but his lack of offense is a bit worrying. Matthews only shot 29.1% from three and posted an eFG% of 47.2 in his final year at Ann Arbor. Matthews is projected by most mock drafts as a late second round pick.

Derek Pardon, Northwestern

Another local prospect was part of the group in Northwestern’s Derek Pardon. The 6’8 center posted his career best numbers for the Wildcats in his senior year. Averaging 14 points and 7.8 rebounds on 57.1% shooting, Pardon was a force in the middle for Chris Collin’s team. However, he doesn’t have some of the floor stretching abilities which you want to see in modern big men. He only shot 21.4 % from deep and averaged less than a shot a game from there. Like Custer, Pardon could be a guy to watch for on Chicago’s G-League team.

Shamorie Ponds, St. John’s

One of the best players in the Big East conference, Shamorie Ponds is an interesting draft prospect. Despite averaging slightly less points than the season prior, Ponds had much better efficiency numbers in scoring the ball. He saw his TS and eFG% jump up by at least 5 percentage points. Ponds is a great scorer and has flashed potential to score at all three levels. However his size at 6’1 will be a problem on defense and against the bigger guards he will see in the NBA. Ponds is projected as a late first round-early second round pick.

Silvio De Sousa, Kansas

De Sousa was another big men worked out by the Bulls and he has a very interesting backstory. He has been suspended by the NCAA last year due to rule violations was slotted to miss this year as well. Kansas has since appealed that decision but De Sousa has decided to test his NBA draft stock in the process. The sample size on De Sousa is very small but he certainly find a role in Europe or in the G-League team as a project. But it was recently reported that the NCAA reversed their decision to suspend him and he will be back at Kansas next year.

Amir Hinton, Shaw

After showing out in the G-League Elite Mini Camp, Amir Hinton has been drawing some eyeballs from NBA teams. A player from D2 school Shaw, Hinton averaged 29.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 4 assists on 48.8% shooting from the field. He showed he is a capable scorer and that ability has impressed a lot of NBA teams. Hinton certainly has a long way to go if he wants to be drafted in June. But a team calling his name in the second round isn’t an unrealistic probability. At 6’5, he has decent size and can matchup with NBA guards.

Dedric Lawson, Kansas

Lawson was the third part of the KU trio to be worked out. After transferring from Memphis, he was one of Bill Self’s more productive players, averaging 19.4 points and 10.3 rebounds on 49% shooting. Lawson was productive on both sides of the court, posting a box plus minus score of 10.2 for the Jayhawks. At 6’9 he has the potential to possibly play as a small ball four but will likely be playing most of his minutes at the 3. His shooting numbers look ok with him averaging 39.2% from three last year on 2.5 attempts per game. Most mock drafts have him as a second round pick.

Javin DeLaurier, Duke

Playing on a team which will likely feature three lottery picks, Javin DeLaurier didn’t have the biggest impact on this Duke Blue Devils team. In his third year at the program, DeLaurier failed to grab the attention of scouts and his stats didn’t help him either. DeLaurier averaged 3.8 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Although he did shoot 74.7% from the field, he averaged a mere 2.1 shot attempts per game and 7 per 100 possessions. DeLaurier got an invite to the G-League Combine so this could just be a workout to gage his draft stock. He has till May 29th to return back to school.

Justin James, Wyoming

This isn’t the first time going through the pre-draft workout circuit for Justin James. The Wyoming guard, who averaged 22.1 points per game last season, entered his name into last year’s draft class before withdrawing. He had a good senior year for the Cowboys and was one of their best players. James showed he was clearly a scorer but also showed he needs to make a lot more improvements. He only shot 29.6% from three last season and had a career eFG% of 49.3. James could be a guy for the Bulls Summer League roster.

Miye Oni, Yale

Yale were one of the better underdog programs last season in college basketball and a big part of it was due to Miye Oni. The 6’6 guard averaged 17.1 points and 6.3 rebounds on 37.1% three-point shooting for a team which made the NCAA Tournament. Oni showed the ability to be a solid two way player with his length and his scoring efficiency for the Bulldogs was ok with an eFG% of 51.5. Most mock drafts project him to be a second round draft pick so he could be someone the Bulls should look at with the 38th pick. But he’s only a junior so there is a chance he can go back to Yale for his senior season.

Simi Shittu, Vanderbilt

With Darius Garland out for much of the season, there was another prospect in Vanderbilit which got a lot of attention in Simi Shittu. He averaged 10.9 points and 6.7 rebounds during his only year at Vandy and announced he’s not coming back to school. Looking at his stats, he needs to improve in becoming a more efficient scorer and his three-point shooting, which was basically non-existent last year (.056% !!). At 6’10, he has good size for a forward and is slotted to be taken in the second round. If the Bulls are willing to take on a player who is more of a project in terms of development, Shittu could be a candidate.