The Chicago Bulls made a slam dunk when they selected Caleb Wilson with the No. 4 pick. Then, with all eyes set on their second first-round selection of the night, they made a somewhat polarizing decision.
Texas' Dailyn Swain was a perfect example of what Bryson Graham preached when he took the reins of the team. He's uber-athletic, long, and has the potential to be a multi-position defender and elite slasher.
However, Summer League wasn't kind to the former Longhorns star. With an on-ball role and thrown right into the fire, his playmaking, handles, and shooting woes were on full display, and it wasn't a nice watch.
Bulls rookie Dailyn Swain knows he must get out of his own head
Swain struggled mightily on offense. He converted just four of his 31 shots in four Summer League games (12.9 percent), and he looked like a deer in headlights every single time he was rushed to make a decision. When asked about that, he admitted that he was a victim of overthinking:
“I think it’s really easy to notice when I’m in my own head and kind of putting pressure on myself. I just try to stick with what I know that works,” Swain told The Athletic's Joel Lorenzi. “ Obviously having a routine is not gonna save you every game; you’re gonna have bad games. But I just try to stick to what I know and not get too discouraged and not feed into what people are saying in the media and stuff like that. All my teammates have been nothing but encouraging.”
To be fair, Swain was asked to do something he isn't — at least at this point in his development. He's used to playing off the ball as a 6-foot-8 athletic freak who did most of his damage as a slasher. While he could also create for himself, he was more of a driver than a shooter, and definitely not a facilitator.
The Bulls' Summer League roster was poorly constructed, lacking true ball-handlers and playmakers. That also led to plenty of Caleb Wilson hero-ball and stagnant and predictable possessions. It was Summer League basketball.
That said, as much as this was all new for him, missing 18 consecutive shots is certainly alarming. He went two games without knocking down a field goal, missed all of his nine shots from outside of the paint, and he simply looked overwhelmed by the situation.
Fortunately for him, he won't be asked to do that when it actually counts. The Bulls have Josh Giddey and Tre Jones for playmaking purposes, and he won't have to be the initiator as often — if at all. He can focus on mastering what he already does well.
Summer League is the right time to make mistakes. It's all about shaking off the jitters and just getting a first taste of NBA action, and it's mostly irrelevant. Of course, this wasn't an encouraging start to his career, but there's still plenty of time before tip-off.
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