Bulls Linked to Surprise Draft Move Nobody Saw Coming

Few franchises in the NBA are going through as much of a makeover as the Chicago Bulls. The team has a new front office, and they’ll have a new head coach soon, and these moves are happening under new vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham, who’s the team’s No. 1 decision-maker.

The pace at which Graham is working shows he’s serious about not just crafting a turnaround for this team but creating something totally fresh and new that represents his era with the Bulls.

With that in mind, don’t be surprised if the Bulls take a surprise draft pick in the 2026 NBA draft. While mocks almost exclusively have them linked to Caleb Wilson or Cameron Boozer, they could look outside and snag Darryn Peterson.

In a mock draft from USA Today out on Tuesday, May 19, Bryan Kalbrosky gives his predictions for what will happen in the draft now that Combine has wrapped up. “After the conclusion of the scouting combine in Chicago,” he notes, “talent evaluators are walking away with new opinions on some of the players after they completed measurements and athletic testing.”

He links the Bulls to Peterson, and it’s not a crazy idea.

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“While he is certainly no longer perceived as the near-certain No. 1 overall pick that he once was due to relative inconsistency and injury issues, many scouts and evaluators still feel that Darryn Peterson is the most talented player in this class,” he states.

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My Take: Should the Bulls Consider Darryn Peterson?

The Bulls need to simply take the best player available at No. 4, and that could very well be Peterson. It’s fair to think that Wilson and Boozer could both go in the top three. Knowing that, the Bulls are likely doing their homework on Peterson, and they should be happy with what they see.

According to ESPN’s Jeremy Woo, Peterson had “largely positive” feedback at the NBA Combine and was “quiet but serious” when doing his interviews. That’s the sign of a mature prospect who could be a starter for the Bulls and add some much-needed energy to the lineup. Putting together the pieces, Peterson is a shining prospect for the Bulls and one who would bring an elite scoring ability to the team and the chance to be a franchise guard.

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This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 1:45 PM.