Ecstatic Bryson Graham Talks Bulls' Draft Philosophy at No. 4

Bryson Graham practically levitated his way over to the corner of Festival Hall at Nay Pier. Only a few minutes prior, the new Chicago Bulls lead executive found out that he would have a Top 4 pick in one of the NBA's deepest drafts in years. He entered the afternoon with only a 20.3 percent chance of making the jump.

“I can’t believe it," said the 39-year-old vice president of basketball operations. "I just got the job, and I just got the fourth pick. This is crazy, man!”

Much like his initial introduction to the Bulls faithful earlier in the week, Graham toed the line of downright giddy and professionally composed. In one breath, he sounded like a kid who just completed his first cartwheel and couldn't wait to show mom. In the next breath, he sounded like the confident and realistic leader who's prepared to manage an entire organization.

Of course, whether or not the latter proves true is something only time will tell. But that's also likely a statement that Graham, himself, would agree with. Did he happily admit that the lottery luck could play a part in helping the organization get back on the right track? Sure, but does it really change anything about how he plans to approach what is still very much considered a rebuild?

"Same thing," Graham said of his team-building plans. "We want talented players. We have to infuse this team with more talent. We're not where we want to be, but this is a great step. And not just four, No. 15, as well as our two seconds."

How Will Bryson Graham Approach the Draft?

For months, the 2026 NBA Draft has been viewed as a four-player race. It's why jumping into the Top 4 – in any capacity – would have felt like a massive win for any organization. All four of AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer, and Caleb Wilson are considered superstar-level talents. In other words, any of these youngsters would instantly become the Bulls' most highly-touted prospect since 2008, when Derrick Rose obviously landed in their lap.

Even Graham couldn't help but admit that there are four very obvious candidates to come off the board first next month. However, he was also brutally honest about how the draft tends to work. Not every player manages to reach their potential, which is why going through the full process remains important to the Bulls' leader:

"You have an idea of where you think guys will go, but you never know," Graham admitted. "Sure, that's the consensus. But I'm not looking at it like that because this is a deep draft. There is a lot of good players all throughout it. Giannis went 15. Kawhi went 15. Devin Booker went 12. Maxey went 21 ... Let's not sit here and say because we have the fourth pick all of a sudden this franchise is back. It's just a good opportunity to add high level talent to our group."

Does this mean the expectation should be that Graham will go against the grain? Not necessarily. A lot of this is simply exec-speech. You're not going to show your hand this early on.

At the same time, Graham was a somewhat out-of-the-box hire with an unclear track record. We know very little about his draft process and what he looks for in a prospect. All we can do at this point is take him at his word, which is that everything remains on the table.

“You got to go through this process. There is so much more. The combine is this week. You get a chance to talk to these kids. You get a chance to bring them into your gym at some point and watch them work out, get their measurements. There is still a lot of work to be done. We’re excited that we’re in the Top 4, but I don’t want to draw a line."

Speaking to that similar point, Graham stressed that the organization does not and will not have any specific type of player in mind. It doesn't matter that Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis are in the fold. It doesn't matter that the Bulls have lacked frontcourt depth for years. All Graham is focused on is finding the best player available at No. 4.

"Whether it's a six-four guard or a six-eleven big man, you just want to take who you believe will have the best career at the end of the day at this point in the draft," Graham said. "With where we're at as a team, this team is fluid, so trying to find a fit is not the right way to approach it. You try to take the best player."

To be sure, Graham didn't necessarily give specifics when addressing what his pre-draft process will look like. While he did share the SLAP (Speed, Length, Athleticism, Physicality) philosophy during his introductory presser, Graham emphasized on Sunday how comprehensive his evaluation plan will be over the next month-plus:

“You’re looking at their body of work. You’re looking at them throughout the year. You’re going back to their grassroots. You’re going to implement your evaluation into it, your analytics into it, and obviously your intel," Graham shared. "It’s an eyes, ears, numbers combination, and whoever you project to be the best player over the course of their career, that’s who you take.”

It sounds like a lot of work, particularly when considering that Graham is still on the hunt for new front office colleagues and a head coach. The good news, though, is that he did arrive to Chicago with plenty of scouting work done. Serving as the Atlanta Hawks GM, who were also in the running for a Top 4 slot thanks to owning the New Orleans Pelicans' first-rounder, Graham said he spent a lot of time watching the top talent in person this past season.

Still, if Graham made anything clear on Sunday, it's that this stroke of lottery luck was only the beginning. A potentially franchise-altering decision awaits, and Graham couldn't sound more eager to put in the work.

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