Noa Essengue looked like a work in progress for the Chicago Bulls at times during Summer League. One NBA draft insider thinks he’s going to skip the G-League, though. Essengue was drafted for his age and upside primarily, but the Bulls may end up using him a lot more than they initially anticipated.
Noa Essengue may be headed to the Chicago Bulls’ starting lineup
Noa Essengue was never seen as totally NBA-ready in the pre-draft process, especially at his age. That said, a solid Summer League has him positioned to make the leap into the Chicago Bulls’ starting lineup pretty quickly.
Bleacher Report’s draft expert Jonathan Wasserman said he has a few traits that should get him a starting role. “Noa Essengue may not start from Day 1, but he’s a good bet to play himself into the starting lineup alongside Matas Buzelis,” Wasserman argued.
“Though raw at 18 years old, Essengue has a knack for putting himself in position to make and finish plays from off the ball. He’ll generate the majority of his offense by running the floor, cutting, crashing the glass and hitting spot-up threes,” he added.
Perhaps the simple fact that Chicago needs to land a star in the draft somehow, even if it means letting one struggle at the NBA level for a little bit, is what’s driving this potential need for Essengue to start. The expert went on, “For a team that’s slightly stuck in no-man’s land, though, the flashes of driving, shotmaking versatility and improvisation should sway Chicago to let the rookie play through mistakes.”
Finally, the insider said that Essengue should quickly jump ahead of Patrick Williams on the Bulls’ priority list. Williams was signed to a huge, mistaken deal last offseason, but he’s been pretty bad for Chicago. Essengue at least represents an unknown with upside, so those minutes should go to Essengue instead of Williams.
This is a different take than team insider K.C. Johnson had. He believed that Essengue would split time between the NBA and G-League, but that would also mean his NBA time would largely be spent as a role player off the bench. That may not be the case.
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