Bulls quietly make flurry of roster moves following the 2025 NBA Draft
Chicago eyed guard help in the aftermath of the draft.
With a new wave of players comes a heightened sense of optimism. It’s perhaps the best feeling for fans in the aftermath of the NBA Draft. Adding fresh faces is the most encouraging way of cheering up a discouraged fan base.
After drafting Matas Buzelis with the 11th overall pick in 2024, Bulls fans witnessed firsthand just how much a tantalizing young player can turn one’s hopes around. Buzelis led the team in dunks and blocks, en route to earning an All-Rookie Team selection. Chicago might finally have a desirable prospect on the roster.
A year later, the Bulls nabbed France’s Noa Essengue with the 12th overall pick. Similar to Buzelis, Essengue is a young wing with loads of potential. However, he is far more raw at this point in his development. Fortunately, for Essengue and the Bulls’ fandom, he’s only 18 years old. Thus, there’s plenty of time for the young prospect to reach his sky-high ceiling.
Other than selecting Essengue in the first round, Artūras Karnišovas and Co. drafted Australia’s Lachlan Olbrich with the 55th overall pick. Olbrich is another forward, although more of a grittier prospect than Essengue at 6-foot-10 and 232 pounds.
Chicago Bulls 2025 undrafted free agent signings
On the heels of drafting two forwards, the Bulls seemingly made it a priority to add guard depth ahead of next month’s Summer League. Since the conclusion of the NBA Draft, the Bulls have signed Missouri’s Caleb Grill and Villanova’s Wooga Poplar to Exhibit 10 contracts.
Caleb Grill, Guard
Grill is a 25-year-old combo guard who played collegiately at Iowa State, UNLV, and Missouri. Over six seasons, Grill averaged 8.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.1 steals per game while splashing 35.2 percent of his three-pointers.
The 6-foot-3 guard’s best season came suiting up for the Tigers in 2024-25. As the SEC’s Sixth Man of the Year, Grill totaled 13.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.7 steals, and 2.7 triples per contest. The graduate senior converted an impressive 47.2 percent of his field goals and 39.6 percent of his threes.
Wooga Poplar, Guard
Poplar is a 22-year-old combo guard who spent three seasons at Miami before transferring to Villanova ahead of the 2024-25 campaign. The Philadelphia native improved mightily every season collegiately, going from 2.3 points per game as a freshman to 15.3 as a senior.
Like Grill, Poplar’s best season came in his last. Poplar averaged 15.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.9 three-pointers per game. The senior also played with great efficiency, knocking down 46.0 percent of his field goals and 38.7 percent of his threes.
The two experienced guards add plenty of toughness and three-point shot-making to the Bulls’ Summer League team. Grill and Poplar will make their Summer League debuts, alongside Essengue and potentially Buzelis, on July 11 in Las Vegas.
