The draft positions have officially been set for the 14 teams who missed out on the playoffs. While the NBA lottery is still to come the teams all know their odds at this stage. The Bulls were in a 3-way tie with Sacramento & New Orleans upon the season’s conclusion. The 3-way tiebreaker was determined today and the Bulls officially have their draft spot.
NBA Draft tiebreaker results:
No. 8: Chicago Bulls*
No. 9: Sacramento Kings
No 10: New Orleans Pelicans*May be conveyed to Orlando (if outside top-4 post-lottery)
(pre-lottery drawing)
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 25, 2021
I want to make sure everyone understands this is not the official place where the Bulls would pick in the draft. This simply gives them their odds heading into the lottery. It’s important to remember that if the Bulls pick is outside of the top 4 the Orlando Magic will own that pick. The midseason acquisition of center Nikola Vucevic sent the Bulls first-round pick in the upcoming draft. With this announcement, we have a better idea of how much luck the Bulls will need.
What are the odds?
Upon hearing the news this seemed like a good thing for the Bulls. Instead of being at the 10th spot, they are at the 8th. That’s a good thing, right? Yes and no. The way the draft lottery odds shape up it wouldn’t have mattered if the Bulls were at 8 or 10 because they would have the same odds.
This doesn’t change Bulls’ Top 4 odds. Them, Kings, Pels still each have 20.3% chance of jumping.
But if pick stays out of Top 4, this is win for Magic. https://t.co/B6SYAgYJf8
— Rob Schaefer (@rob_schaef) May 25, 2021
The Bulls have a 20.3% chance of landing in the top 4 picks of this year’s draft. This is the only way they will keep their first-round pick. The Bulls currently have a 4.5% chance of landing the #1 pick. This is certainly a good spot to be in if you are Orlando. They are sitting in a position to have two top 10 picks in this year’s draft. While it may seem like a long shot let’s not forget what happened last year.
Can fate be on the Bull’s side two years in a row?
Ahead of the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery, the Bulls were in a very similar position. They were at the 7th position with a 31.9% chance of landing in the top 4. Fate would have it that the Bulls did in fact get the #4 selection in the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery. While they had an 11.6% higher chance last season than this one it still isn’t impossible. There’s absolutely nothing the Bulls can do to improve their chances now. They will just have to cross their fingers and hope they receive some luck again.
prayer circle:
🕯 🕯
🕯 🕯🕯 20.3% 🕯
🕯 🕯
🕯 🕯— Artūras Karnišovas Fan Club (@arturasfanclub) May 25, 2021
The Bulls are certainly going to have all eyes on the draft lottery as it will decide if they can bring in a big-name draftee or if they will watch Orlando take their top pick.
Less than a month away
The good news here is the NBA Draft Lottery is less than a month away. The date for the lottery is set for June 22nd. This will let all Bulls fans know if they should be excited for the draft on July 29th or not. The odds are slim but there’s still a chance for this team to keep their first-round pick. If not they will only have one pick in the 2nd round to focus on. The Bulls are going to look to free agency and trades to improve this team as they most likely won’t have a first-round pick to bank on. Thankfully we will know soon enough whether they will actually get that first pick or not. Did the Chicago Bears take the rest of Chicago’s draft luck by landing Justin Fields this year? Maybe there’s some luck left in the tank for the Bulls. Keep your eyes peeled on June 22nd to see whether the Bulls will be on the clock in the first round of the 2021 draft.
