2021 Chicago Bulls Depth Chart

Position	1	#	2	#	3	#
Point Guard	Tomas Satoransky	31	Coby White	0
Shooting Guard	Zach LaVine	8	Denzel Valentine	45	Garrett Temple	17
Small Forward	Patrick Williams	44	Garrett Temple	17	Troy Brown Jr.	7
Power Forward	Lauri Markkanen	24	Thaddeus Young	21
Center	Nikola Vucevic	9	Daniel Theis	27

After a rough season in which the Bulls managed to win just 27 games, Chicago heads into the 2020 season looking to develop their young core of players and will also be looking to find out if Fred Hoiberg is indeed the coach of the future for this team. Hoiberg has done a fantastic job of getting his young players to play hard for him but that has translated to just a 110-136 record in his three years on the job. The Bulls faced tremendous scrutiny when they chose to sign Jabari Parker, along with signing Zach LaVine to a very large contract, but Parker’s signing is relatively risk-free for the Bulls. They also drafted Wendell Carter Jr. in the first round of the draft, a move that should pay dividends for years to come if Carter’s career trajectory goes in the direction that most think it will. The Bulls are all but certain to be one of the worst defensive teams in the league this season but with a lot of young and versatile playmakers, they will be enjoyable to watch on the offensive end of the floor and should be able to improve on their 102.9 points per game from last season.

While the Bulls have plenty of depth at several positions this season, point guard is definitely not one of those positions for them. Kris Dunn will once again assume the reigns as the team’s starting point guard and will look to improve on last season where he averaged 13.4 points and six assists per game. He only shot 42.9 percent from the floor overall, so improving on his efficiency will need to be a primary focus for Dunn. Things get ugly behind Dunn as Cameron Payne and Ryan Arcidiacono are the backup point guards. Payne has always had the potential to be a quality guard but has never been able to put it all together, while Arcidiacono could have inside edge as the primary backup due to his defensive ability. After playing in just 24 games last season, a healthy Zach LaVine will lead a crowded group of players at the shooting guard position for the Bulls. LaVine averaged 16.7 points per game last season but did so shooting just 38.3 percent from the floor, a number that has to improve and can help Hoiberg fill in some minutes at the point guard position if needed. Rookie Chandler Hutchinson looks to be in line to get a lot of minutes behind LaVine, assuming Justin Holiday doesn’t slide down to the small forward position, while Antonio Blakeney, Antonius Cleveland, and Rawle Alkins will battle each other for the remainder of minutes.

Chicago finds themselves with plenty of depth at the small forward position with Jabari Parker slated to be the team’s starter at the position. Injuries have prevented Parker from living up to the hype of being a number two overall pick but he heads into this season healthy after playing in just 31 games last season. Both Denzel Valentine and Justin Holiday figure to be heavily used in Chicago’s rotation this season, with Valentine being the one that seems more likely to make a big impact, but Holiday can also spend time playing behind LaVine at small forward. The Bulls also happen to be really deep at the power forward position where they have Lauri Markkanen and Bobby Portis. Markkanen is entering his sophomore season with Chicago after averaging 15.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game on 43.4 percent shooting overall. He made the 2017-18 All-Rookie team and has a great chance at an All-Star bid should he continue to show off the skills he flashed all of last season. He has spent time packing on weight and muscle so he can move down to the five, creating matchup nightmares for opponents, and figures to be heavily involved in the offense once again this season. Portis gives the Bulls an efficient scoring option off the bench when Markkanen is not on the floor.

At center, the Bulls have plenty of avenues they can explore this season. Robin Lopez doesn’t figure to be a part of the team’s plans long term but he is still a valuable big man in the NBA and will likely be the team’s starter early on in the season. First-round pick Wendell Carter Jr. is being compared to Al Horford in his skill set and abilities so getting him minutes early on in the season should be a priority for Hoiberg.