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Jase Richardson could be drafted by the Chicago Bulls
Over the past 18 months, the Chicago Bulls have traded away a string of veteran talents. Zach LaVine, Alex Caruso and DeMar DeRozan have all left the franchise. As such, the Bulls are at a crossroads, they can either go into a full-scale rebuild or look to re-tool on the fly.
Either way, Chicago will need to make smart decisions throughout the draft process. Cost controlled talent is at a premium thanks to the new Collective Barganing Agreement.
In a March 18 mock draft from Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman, the Bulls are prediction to select Jase Richardson out of Michigan State with the eighth overall pick.
“Jase Richardson enters March Madness after combining for 38 points and seven threes in two Big Ten tournament games,” Wasserman reasoned. “It’s become clearer by the month that he offers more creativity than the early numbers suggest. While he’s been incredibly efficient off the ball, he’s also been one of the nation’s most efficient ball-screen scorers thanks to his feel on drives, elite finishing and 49.1 percent pull-up shooting.”
Richardson is a sharpshooting guard, capable of knocking down threes off the catch or off the dribble. He would thrive in a rotation that features pass-first mastreos such as Josh Giddey and Lonzo Ball.
Bulls’ Tre Jones Continues to Impress
One reason why the Bulls may opt against drafting a guard, is the production they’re getting out of Tre Jones, who joined the franchise as part of the LaVine trade ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
On Monday, March 17, Jones notched the first double-double of his Bulls career. He scored 18 points and dished out 12 assists, shooting 80% from the field.
“The team I came into, isn’t the team we have right now,” Jones said during his postgame news conference. “We’ve had some injuries. Some guys that have gone out. That’s opened up an opportunity for myself…Trying to keep this thing rolling.”
Jones’ impressive performance helped the Bulls secure a 111-97 win over the Utah Jazz.
Bulls’ Billy Donovan Impressed With Jones
During a March 8 postgame news conference, head coach Billy Donovan praised the impact Jones has made since arriving in Chicago.
“He’s got something, he’s got the IT factor to me,” Donovan said. “He really does. He’s just a winner. You can look at size and length for position and he probably doesn’t have any of those things. But he has really good speed, he’s really tough, he’s got a high IQ, he understands competition. He can really stay in the moment and compete. The last two games on the road he’s been great. He’s got a lot of substance, a lot of competitive character to him.”
Jones will enter unrestricted free agency this summer. Chicago will likely look to keep the 25-year-old guard around, especially if he continues to produce at his current level. As such, Richardson might not be the most logical addition on draft night. Nevetheless, it’s fair to assume the Bulls are already doing their research and have a big board of talent they’re interested in adding to Donovan’s team.
The Bulls have plenty of options in the coming months, so, it will be interesting to see what path the front office decides to choose.
