2015 Draft: 10 possible Bulls picks

Here we go. With the 22nd pick Thursday in the 2015 NBA draft, the Bulls…pass?

Certainly not, but if I could I would. Not just letting the pick go. If I were the Bulls, I’d try to trade the first round pick for a future first in, say, 2018 or 2019. Find someone who wants to get into this draft. Certainly, they’d want lottery protection and perhaps to No. 20 in a deal. That’s OK. I don’t see much help for the Bulls in this draft. The likelihood is that whomever is selected will sit on the bench all season.

Better to pick up another veteran with a minimum salary to fill that spot. The Bulls have done great with those kinds of signings, like Aaron Brooks, Nate Robinson and D.J. Augustin.

Not that the Bulls are loaded and a certainty to reach the 2016 NBA Finals. But the Bulls have a deep team with plenty of youth and no real openings in their depth chart.

The Bulls, effectively, will be trying to work two near rookies into the rotation next season in Doug McDermott, who basically didn’t play in his rookie season after minor early season surgery, and Nikola Mirotic, who wasn’t in the regular rotation until about midseason. Plus, there should be a regular role as well for Tony Snell, whose playing was in stops and starts. It’s time to find out whether to keep him going forward.

The Bulls prime offseason move has been the hiring of Fred Hoiberg.

Not so much that he is replacing former coach Tom Thibodeau, but that the Bulls likely will alter their style of play with more speed and pace and shooting. Plus, individual playing time will likely diminish.

The narrative has been the Bulls were overloaded in the front court and needed to create room for Mirotic to play. Thus a trade of Joakim Noah or Taj Gibson was reasonable, the speculation went. But that’s really unnecessary as Pau Gasol likely will play fewer minutes per game than last season while Noah could well come off the bench like Andre Iguodala with the Warriors. The Warriors and Iguodala showed starting doesn’t matter as much as playing your role and being a good teammate, and that coming off the bench can enhance your reputation and value as much as starting.

With Noah heading into the last season on his contract, coming off the bench as a center likely will make him more effective and valuable. Plus, with Gibson undergoing ankle surgery, he certainly is off the market as far as trades.

Though the Bulls were not said to be considering it, there was national speculation the Bulls could or would package their No. 22 pick with Gibson and move up in the draft. That’s obviously not possible with Gibson’s surgery, and it seems virtually certain the Bulls stay at No. 22 and use their pick.

Even with my suggestions to trade ahead. Imagine that.

The reason I suggest that is I believe this group has a two-year title window. The contracts of Derrick Rose, Gibson and Gasol expire after the 2016-17 season. I also think that’s another reason Jimmy Butler is considering a two-year deal. He likely sees a possible restructuring at that point. Obviously, if the Bulls win in that time things change and contracts are extended. But if they don’t, perhaps you move on and with the enhanced salary cap make a major move into free agency and then have draft picks for extra leverage and sweeteners to make deals.

Because the roster is pretty set now.

Rose and Butler start in the backcourt and Butler will return. The only question is whether it’s for one, two, three or five years. They’ll be backed up by the newest Brooks/Robinson/Augustin as well as Snell.

The Bulls likely will try to resign and bring back Mike Dunleavy and he is said to be inclined to return. He’d be backed up by McDermott. Then you have the four big men—Gasol, Noah, Gibson and Mirotic—up front.

Kirk Hinrich likely will return on a player option along with E’Twaun Moore and Cameron Bairstow, who both have partial guarantees for next season.

That’s 13 players, and if the Bulls use their draft pick that’s 14. Given the Bulls will be well into the luxury tax with a multiplier on players brought in above that amount, they’ll likely keep the roster at 14.

So free agency probably will consist of a resolution with Butler for some period and later in the summer adding a backup guard. At this point, it doesn’t seem likely the Bulls can trade for a future pick.

The conventional wisdom is the Bulls would most like a point guard in the draft. But they won’t stretch to get one. Their success selecting players in the 20s has been built on taking the best player who falls to them no matter the position. They’ll probably lean to a point guard if it’s close, but they could select a player with a different skill. After all, if you’re not playing this season how much does it matter what position you are not playing at?

First, here are the players who certainly figure to be taken before the Bulls pick: Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, D’Angelo Russell, Kristaps Porzingis, Emanuel Mudiay, Justise Winslow, Trey Lyles, Cameron Payne, Mario Hezonja, Willie Cauley-Stein, Stanley Johnson, Frank Kaminsky, Bobby Portis, Myles Turner, Devin Booker, Sam Dekker and perhaps Tyus Jones.

Here’s a look at 10 possible and hoped for choices:

Here’s a roundup of mock drafts and their picks for the Bulls at No. 22:

Totals: