To get the obvious out of the way: The Chicago Bulls don’t have a great chance of landing Duke Blue Devils superstar Cooper Flagg in the 2025 NBA Draft. It would take a borderline miracle for the franchise to get the right combination of ping-pong balls to give Chicago the No. 1 pick this summer.

In fact, the Bulls could be preparing for the first round of the playoffs and scouting the Cleveland Cavaliers instead of draft prospects.

But miracles have happened before; just last year, in fact.

The Atlanta Hawks finished 10th in the East and played, fittingly, the Bulls in the opening round of the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament. The Hawks lost, finished 10th in the lottery standings with a 3 percent chance of landing the No. 1 pick … and proceeded to land the No. 1 pick.

This year, that prize just happens to be Flagg, not Zaccharie Risacher.

What if Chicago sneaks into the Play-In but loses, doesn’t make the playoffs and sets itself up with the same late-lottery odds that the Hawks had last summer? That’s a rather familiar scenario for the franchise. And if by those amazing ping-pong ball bounces, it grabs the No. 1 selection? What happens next?

Duke has given the NBA the blueprint for building around Cooper Flagg

In a piece centered around Duke Head Coach Jon Scheyer’s roster-building approach following Flagg’s commitment to the Blue Devils, Brendan Marks of The Athletic detailed how the 37-year-old completely rebuilt his team in one offseason to accentuate the strengths of his new superstar.

Seven players, including a quartet of former five-star recruits, left the program to make room for as much length and three-point shooting as Scheyer could land in the transfer portal. Purdue forward Mason Gillis, for example, shot 46.8 percent from deep in 2023-24 as a member of the National Champion Boilermakers and was one of the first transfers to land in Durham.

Maliq Brown, a 6-foot-9 forward, arrived from Syracuse having already made an ACC All-Defense team. Sion James, a chiseled, athletic 6-foot-6 wing, rounded out the new members of Duke’s rotation, along with fellow five-star center recruit Khaman Maluach.

Flagg’s athleticism, defense, effort and ability to get to the rim were complimented by length, shooting, experience and more athleticism.

The Blue Devils are favorites to win the 2025 National Championship.

Do the Bulls have the pieces to build around Cooper Flagg?

It would take some maneuvering for Arturas Karnisovas, Marc Eversley and Chicago’s front office to build a team like Scheyer has constructed at Duke.

Josh Giddey could fit the bill as a 6-foot-8 point guard who could lead a fastbreak alongside Flagg, and his recent uptick in three-point shooting accuracy would make him an even more functional piece. Coby White isn’t as lengthy as some of Duke’s supporting cast, but he’s still only 24 years old, and his floor spacing and scoring abilities would help take some of the offensive burden off Flagg.

Matas Buzelis would be an NBA sophomore next year and has the requisite size (6-foot-10), athleticism and defensive tenacity to fit snugly next to the 18-year-old Flagg, but his shot is a work in progress as he’s hitting just 32.0 percent from deep this season.

After that trio, it becomes a bit of a stretch. Lonzo Ball has the size, but his three knee surgeries and long absence have robbed him of some of his athleticism, and his three-point stroke hasn’t returned to where it was. Kevin Huerter, if he’s still around, has struggled as a shooter this year and isn’t a great defender. Patrick Williams is the ideal theoretical fit, but Bulls fans have almost certainly had enough of the words “Patrick Williams” and “theoretical.”

Julian Phillips and Dalen Terry have yet to prove they’re rotational-caliber NBA players. Jalen Smith is a center who can space the floor, but he’s four inches shorter, about 50 pounds lighter and far less athletic than Maluach.

Honestly, though, would any of it matter if the Bulls extraordinarily lucked into Flagg?