A risk the Bulls wouldn’t take
NBA draft enigma: OG Anunoby
If you haven’t already met him, allow me to introduce you to Ogugua “OG” Anunoby. Once a consensus three-star, unranked high school recruit out of Jefferson City, Missouri, Anunoby committed to Indiana University and blossomed in Bloomington. He began his college career completely unknown and morphed into a lottery-bound NBA prospect after two seasons with the Hoosiers. OG’s days of going unnoticed are long gone. That’s what happens when you’re throwing down 360-dunks in the NCAA Tournament:
The game after that, Anunoby put on a defensive clinic against a talented young Kentucky team, chipping in two steals and three huge blocks. His length and athleticism were on full display as he helped shut down eventual Nuggets’ scoring machine, Jamal Murray.
Less than a month later, OG first appeared on a mock draft by Draft Express, projected in the first-round. Anunoby’s short-lived sophomore year at IU allowed him to show only flashes of his freakish yet graceful athleticism. An ACL tear on Jan. 18, 2017 cut his second season short, but OG’s draft stock hasn’t tumbled — he is still projected to be a late-lottery pick. His recovery from the injury is ahead of schedule, and if he can maintain health, the sky is the limit for OG Anunoby.
How does this tie in with the Bulls? It is unlikely OG will be available when Chicago is on the clock, but you never say never on draft night. Even if the Bulls have the opportunity to pick Anunoby, recent history shows they might not even entertain the idea. Although the draft has largely proven to be a crapshoot, the Bulls have taken an exceedingly “conservative” approach in recent years. In this context, conservative generally translates to more experienced college players. Chicago has attempted to minimize risk when it’s basically impossible to do so. Let’s dive into some examples.
Since the Bulls won the draft lottery in 2008, the only rookie under the age of 20 Chicago has signed was Marquis Teague in 2012. Teague went on to play a whopping 9.5 minutes a game in 67 games for the Bulls and found himself out of the league after just two years.
Chicago’s first lottery pick since Derrick Rose was spent on a four-year college player with a history of knee problems. If the Bulls were severely desperate for an “experienced” rookie last year, they could have aimed for Rookie of the Year candidate, Malcolm Brogdon; or even OG Anunoby’s former college teammate, Yogi Ferrell, who went undrafted.
In fairness, the results of NBA prospects are unpredictable. Age, on the other hand, is quite predictable. Dating back to 2009, 10 Bulls rookies have begun their NBA careers aged 22 or older. The lone two exceptions are Teague and the youngest player on the Bulls current roster, Bobby Portis.
Portis had youth on his side as a 20-year-old rookie, but he was not considered by scouts to be athletic. Neither was Denzel Valentine, Paul Zipser, Doug McDermott, Cameron Bairstow, etc. At 19 years old, OG Anunoby is the very definition of athletic. Standing over 6-foot-7 and weighing 230 pounds, he has had an NBA-ready body since he was a high school senior. OG possesses incredible leaping ability and quickness for his size. The following two drive-and-dunks show Anunoby calmly beat his man off the dribble from the 3-point line and obliterate the rim:
Watch as fellow top-prospect, Louisville’s Donovan Mitchell, gets switched onto OG off a dribble handoff. Despite being five inches taller than Mitchell, OG sprints past him and dunks all over 7-footer, Anas Mahmoud.
Here is a similar situation against another elite prospect, Maryland’s Justin Jackson, who will return to college for his sophomore season. Anunoby catches Jackson gambling for the steal, instinctively blows by him and destroys another big man at the rim.
“ACL” is practically a curse word in the NBA, but recovery has become quicker and more effective. As we’ve seen with players like Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, teams have the luxury of taking an ultra-cautious approach when their draftees are so young. OG is expected to return to full strength, but it will be up to the team that drafts him to manage his playing time next season.
In addition to fitting the “young and athletic” mold, Anunoby embodies the trendiest NBA buzzwords and most overused scouting catchphrases. OG has been referred to as a “3-and-D” player. Though on limited attempts, he shot a respectable 36 percent over the course of his high school and college career, via IUHoosiers.com. With a 7-foot-2.25 wingspan and a standing reach of nearly nine feet, Anunoby has all the necessary physical tools.
“I think I can become the best defender in the league,” OG proclaimed at the NBA combine, “I think I can guard five positions.” His defensive versatility and ability to drain open shots make OG the perfect fit for the beloved ideation of “positionless basketball”.
Why is Chicago seemingly so risk-averse when it comes to the draft? The easiest way to get younger is to draft younger players. Two historical examples may shed light on the Bulls draft-day conservatism. First, they tried their luck on an elite prospect lauded for his physical abilities more so than his basketball skills when they traded their 2006 second overall pick (LaMarcus Aldridge) for Tyrus Thomas. Unfortunately, Thomas did not live up to his expectations and the Bulls are still feeling repercussions from his acquisition.
The other example occurred 16 years ago, when Chicago rolled the dice on the Eddy Curry/Tyson Chandler experiment. Both players came straight to the NBA from high school and in short, the results were not fruitful for the Bulls.
Similar risks have paid off, though on rare occasion. Think of guys like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. Raw prospects. Project players who were taken high in the draft and eventually reached stardom. Speaking of Kawhi, The Ringer’s Jonathan Tjarks compared OG Anunoby to Leonard back in November. Tjarks doubled down on his claim last month by comparing OG to Draymond Green.
We already know Anunoby has the length and athleticism to fit the bill, but take every prospect-to-player comparison with a grain of salt. I forgot to mention Eddy Curry was supposed to be the next Shaq, and Tyson Chandler the next Kevin Garnett. OG Anunoby could be a star or he could be the next Tyrus Thomas.
Hindsight is 20/20, and maybe that’s the problem. The Bulls have been burned in the past by gunning for youth and prioritizing athleticism. Perhaps they are afraid of getting burned again.
We’ve seen immaturity stunt the careers of teenage draftees. We’ve seen raw, off-the-charts athleticism both flourish and fail miserably in the NBA. The answer for the Bulls may not lie in taking a chance on one of the most mysterious prospects of this year’s draft. Rather, a more open-minded approach toward the draft would be beneficial for Chicago’s future.
Be it in a Bulls uniform or not, it’ll be worth keeping an eye on OG Anunoby moving forward.
