Bulls Get a Bump in NBA Front Office Rankings, But They Still Have Tons to Prove

In CBS Sports' front office rankings, the Chicago Bulls have consistently sat near the bottom of the NBA.

Bryson Graham of the Chicago Bulls at the introductory press conferences for Caleb Wilson and Dailyn Swain. | via Chicago Bulls

You know that popular meme of an athlete popping a bottle of champagne on a podium, only for it to zoom out and show him standing in 20th place? Well, I'd imagine that's many Chicago Bulls reading CBS Sports' latest front office rankings.

Sam Quinn has been ranking front offices over the last couple of years. And, to the surprise of no one, he's consistently had the Bulls swimming in the depths of the NBA. They have literally held each of the bottom three slots over the last handful of rankings, most recently improving to No. 28 in Quinn's February list. They got a slight boost for their massive sell-off at the trade deadline.

Months later, however, Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley would be shown the door. The Bulls have now welcomed a new brain trust that is led by the young Bryson Graham. A former Atlanta Hawks GM, this represents Graham's first time at the helm of a franchise.

This change alone has given the organization new life, so much so that Quinn has finally bumped the Bulls up a handful of spots in his offseason edition. Chicago now ranks No. 23, sitting just ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers and just behind the Orlando Magic.

To be sure, Quinn confessed that he wasn't totally comfortable with this jump for the Bulls, as Graham hasn't done much yet to earn it. But there is no denying the team seems to have a better sense of direction, and Quinn put it best when he wrote the following:

"So Graham represents a somewhat promising blank slate with the same questionable ownership. A blank slate is more promising than the known quantities of the Karnisovas front office and the seven teams below the Bulls in these rankings," Quinn wrote.

How Should We View the Bulls' Front Office So Far?

Jun 17, 2026; Chicago, Il, USA; Chicago Bulls Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Bryson Graham (L) introduces new Chicago Bulls head coach Tiago Splitter (R) during a press conference at Advocate Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

All things considered, I do find this to be a rather generous ranking from Sam Quinn. The truth is that the sample size for Bryson Graham so far has been incredibly thin, and he hasn't necessarily made any marquee moves that show off either his talent evaluation or savvy decision-making.

The Norman Powell signing was better than expected – I'll give him that. It's also the exact opposite of the kind of deals that the previous front office typically handed out. Instead of giving Powell a player option, he was able to get him to sign a team option and maintain immense flexibility.

This was also seemingly the thought process behind the Zach Collins two-year deal. While he only played 10 games in 2025-26, he's been solid when healthy. Best-case scenario, he is a trade chip. Worst-case scenario, you simply let him walk in free agency.

As for Nic Claxton, this will be a hard move to judge until we see him on the floor. They added him for absolutely nothing in return, so it's hard to criticize the decision. But his past few years have left a lot to be desired. If he can't return to being an above-average rim protector and finisher, his $20+ million owed this year and next could look like an eyesore.

Regardless, did any of those moves hurt the Bulls? No, but they didn't necessarily change their long-term future either. Graham really just kicked the can down the road, which is why it is pretty difficult to rank this new group.

I'll take this over not kicking the can at all, however. The Bulls were a directionless mess before Graham stepped in. While he still has to take advantage of the continued flexibility he's provided himself, it's at least comforting to know he's putting the team in a position to have this flexibility. Likewise, by doing this, he is telling fans that player development is the priority in Year 1. And that's a smart move with guys like Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis on the roster.

With all that said, for as much room as there is for Graham to climb the front office ranks, there is also plenty of room for him to slip back down. A rebuild needs to come with gradual growth. The further we get into this Year 1, the better understanding we should have of how he plans to set this organization up for success.

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