Chicago Bulls: Grading the signing of Vanderbilt star Simi Shittu
Entering preseason play, the Chicago Bulls roster has swelled to 20 players after signing Simi Shittu to a training camp deal.
While the 2019 NBA Draft did not exactly pan out the way Simi Shittu would have liked,he has now been offered another chance to make the league. After being passed on in both rounds of the draft, the Vanderbilt star is set on making a name for himself with the Chicago Bulls.
In his freshman season with the Commodores, Shittu averaged 10.9 points, 6.7 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. At 6-foot-10 and weighing 240 pounds, his playmaking ability was highly touted aspect of his game. But after teammate (and eventual No. 5 pick) Darius Garland went down just five games into the season, Shittu was limited by the shot makers surrounding him.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports was the first to break this news.
Undrafted free agent forward Simi Shittu — a McDonald's All American — has agreed to a camp deal with the Chicago Bulls, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) September 25, 2019
A Canadian basketball product out of Ontario, Shittu was the No. 19 most highly rated prospect in the 2018 crop of recruits, per ESPN’s rankings. For reference, Bulls first-round pick Coby White ranked four spots behind him at No. 23. With a five-star recruiting and a McDonald’s All American selection under his belt, many fans had high expectations for Shittu.
Unfortunately, he was unable to immediately live up to those lofty standards. His shot was spotty at best and an abysmal 55 percent showing from the free throw line is very concerning. He also often looked lost on defense, out of position and not rushing back for transition defense.
For a player of Shittu’s physical ability, that’s just inexcusable.
But it’s possible getting shunned on draft night was enough to finally wake him up. Just coasting by on physical ability will never be enough to make the league. Proper coaching and a little more discipline on behalf of Shittu would transform his uncanny speed, strength and reflexes with a genuine NBA skill set.
Chicago scooped up Shittu after the Memphis Grizzlies underutilized him in Summer League play, only giving the bruising forward six minutes total play time. Preseason play should give Shittu more time to shine, hopefully allowing the Bulls to keep him around on their Windy City Bulls G League affiliate.
dark. Next. Best, worst case scenarios for Kris Dunn
The bottom line here is simple. The G League is not a place to find low-tier role players to fill a team. It’s a to accumulate project players in the hopes that just one pans out and reaches their full potential. Seen by his status as a recruit just one year ago, Shittu is clearly one of those guys with sky-high potential. Regardless if he becomes that franchise changing player or not, getting Shittu acquainted with the Chicago Bulls organization and ideally retaining him on the G League roster is the perfect sort of low-risk, high-reward gamble that smart front offices make.