The NBA Draft has come and gone and the Chicago Bulls decided to select 18-year-old Noa Essengue from France with their 12th pick. Essengue was the second youngest player in the draft, and is only a few days older than Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg. The beginning of the draft happened as expected with Flagg going first overall and Rutgers guard Dylan Harper getting picked second overall by the San Antonio Spurs.
After the first two picks, the draft got interesting, as predicting who would go where was like finding a needle in a haystack. The Bulls did have options available when the 12th pick came around, but they decided to take someone like Essengue, who could wind up being the steal of the draft.
The Chicago Bulls named one of the winners of last night’s draft
Essengue getting selected at 12 came as a surprise to some Bulls fans, who were hoping the Bulls would take a big man like Maryland’s Derik Queen, who got selected right after Essengue. Bulls fans had mixed emotions when they heard Essengues’ name called, but he does have a bright future ahead of him and a high ceiling to reach, which should give fans some hope.
Thankfully for the Bulls, they were named one of the winners of last night’s draft, with Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report saying that finding a talent such as Essengue at 12 is “a bit of a coup.” Essengue was the fourth-best prospect according to Bleacher Report’s final big board projection.
“Entering the draft, Bleacher Report’s final big board had 18-year-old French forward Noa Essengue at No. 4.
‘When it’s all said and done, Essengue’s ceiling could prove to look more like that of a top-five player,” Wasserman wrote. “He consistently finds ways to score by running the floor, timing his cuts, putting back misses and attacking defenders in space.’
And to get that kind of ceiling at No. 12, where the Chicago Bulls took Essengue, is a bit of a coup.
If he develops some of the more technical aspects of his game, he and Matas Buzelis can play together as sort of a hyper-lengthy, athletic and philosophically positionless duo at the forward spots.”
According to Bulls’ beat writer Will Gottlieb, who broke down the Bulls’ new draft pick, called Essengue a “Giannis-type of swing.” Gottlieb also describes Essengue as “a good defensive player who can protect the rim and switch.”
“.@Will_Gottlieb breaks down the Bulls Noa Essengue pick:
“This is maybe the Giannis-type of swing at 15 of his draft class”
.@Will_Gottlieb breaks down the Bulls Noa Essengue pick:
“This is maybe the Giannis-type of swing at 15 of his draft class” 👀 pic.twitter.com/oOgknwEFQU
— CHGO Bulls (@CHGO_Bulls) June 26, 2025
Essengue could end up being the steal of the draft
Essengue is a project, and he will need a lot of teaching from Billy Donovan and his coaching staff to mold him into a solid NBA wing. If he can develop his strengths and limit his weaknesses, the Bulls could have a nice duo of young and athletic forwards in Essengue and Buzelis, who could end up being the focal point of their offense.
The NBA summer league will start in a couple of weeks, where Bulls fans will get their first look at the Essengue. Hopefully, he does well during the summer league and can show glimpses of what he’ll bring for the 2025-2026 season.
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