With the NBA Lottery in the books and the first round order set, mock drafts are beginning to pour in. Rotoworld's Ed Issacson took his first stab, and his pick for the Bulls may surprise you. Here's what he had to say about what Gar Forman and John Paxson may do at No. 22:
Sam Dekker, SF, Wisconsin – With the uncertainty around the head coaching position for the Bulls still an issue, it is tough to determine what direction they want to go with this pick, but Dekker is easily the best player left at this point, and he could certainly help them on both ends of the floor. At 6’9”, Dekker has very good size for the small forward position, and though he played in a very structured offense at Wisconsin, he has the skill and athleticism to blossom into a versatile offensive threat on the wing. The Bulls might want to add more perimeter shooting here, or a big man to eventually replace Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah; you really can’t go wrong adding a talent like Dekker.
Getting a talent such as Dekker this late in the first round indeed would be a steal. The Badgers sharpshooter averaged 13.9 points on 53 percent shooting, including 33 percent from beyond the arc, in 31 minutes per game for Bo Ryan's championship runner-up group. He grew in his three years at Wisconsin and would be able to blossom in a less structured, more free-flowing offense than the one he played in with the Badgers. He's also much more than a shooter, showing in his final two seasons the ability to slash to the basket, rebound well for his small forward position and take care of the ball.
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But it also wouldn't address much of a need for the Bulls. Mike Dunleavy will be a free agent on July 1, though there's a chance he returns this offseason. Behind Dunleavy, however, the Bulls have spent their last two first-round picks on outside shooters. Though Tony Snell and Doug McDermott haven't been world beaters in their short stints with the Bulls, it's far too early to tell what the future holds for each. Adding Dekker almost certainly would push one of Snell or McDermott out of the rotation next season.
Also, the Bulls have significant needs at both backup point guard and center. Still, a talent with the kind of upside Dekker has ultimately would be hard to pass up.