Rookie Fit Preview: Chicago Bulls

Let's just be honest right off the bat. The Bulls don't have an army of rookies. In fact, they only have one, and it's questionable how much he'll play given Chicago is firmly in win-now mode, and have a ton of players in the rotation expected to get the lion's share of minutes.

Even so, the addition of Dalen Terry via the No. 18 overall pick a few months ago is a sound long-term play. Let's get into why.

The Rookie Class

Dalen Terry (Guard | No #18 overall)

Athletic 6-foot-7 combo guard who can play the wing position, and is keen on defense.

Roles and Opportunities

Terry is playing behind the following players: Zach LaVine, Lonzo Ball, Ayo Dosunmu, Alex Caruso, Goran Dragić, and Coby White.

That's a lot of names to beat out for minutes. However, Terry might have an in due to some disappointing news about Ball, as the veteran may not be ready for training camp due to a deep bone bruise in his knee.

Additionally, Dragić is getting old, which makes you wonder if the Bulls are going to sit him sporadically over the course of the year to save his legs for the playoffs.

Finally, there's simply no telling what the plan is with White, who likely seems to be the odd man out after the conclusion of this season, thus making more room for Terry.

All that said, Terry's size is working in his favor. At 6-foot-7 and with a 7-foot wingspan, Terry is roughly the same size as Mikal Bridges, which seamlessly allow him to slide all the way up the wing slot. Heck, Terry being used as a small-ball four when the Bulls wish to have multiple playmakers on the floor at the same time can also not be ruled out.

So while the rookie won't come into the year with a set role, he's going to be able to plug holes over at least three positions.

Projections

The skeptic will see Terry as a low-scoring utility player. The optimistic will call him the guard version of Draymond Green. Neither is entirely true, but both claims have shades of truth in them.

Terry does everything. He handles the ball, plays defense, initiates the offense, rebounds, runs in transition, spots up from behind the three-point line, and is generally pretty decent at making himself available to whatever his team needs of him.

That means Terry shouldn't be expected to post crazy box score numbers, and he isn't likely to find himself on Sportscenter anytime soon either, but that's actually fine. Terry does the smaller things. The things that don't come with glory and immediate fame. For a team like the Bulls, that is very much needed.

What Terry's ultimate long-term upside is... well, that remains a bit of a mystery. Much depends on his ability to hit open shots at the NBA level, and whether he can stay offensively relevant.

If he can, there's nothing preventing him from becoming a highly influential two-way player who seamlessly glides in between positions. If he can't, he'll become a specialty player who can only be relied upon for certain things, and likely for only a limited amount of minutes over the course of a game.

Fortunately for him, there's a lot of firepower on that Bulls roster, which should make his life easier.

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