After giving shocking contract extensions for coach Billy Donovan and the front office, how the Chicago Bulls were going to follow that up this offseason was a fascinating question. Armed with the No. 12 overall pick, the Bulls could have gone a variety of ways, including trading it for a veteran or using it on an NBA-ready player. For a team stuck in play-in limbo, that would have been fitting. Instead, they selected raw French prospect Noa Essengue, the second-youngest player in the draft.
Essengue is a blank slate as a prospect. He has the athletic and physical tools to be a two-way forward in the league and the Bulls' decision to go for a high-upside player should be celebrated.
Patrick Williams' Time in Chicago May Come to an End After the 2025 NBA Draft
However, the most important part of this selection is what it means for Patrick Williams. The former fourth-overall pick will be further marginalized in the pecking order after this pick.
Chicago used their lottery pick last season to draft Matas Buzelis, another power forward with a similar skill set to Essengue. Buzelis showed intriguing flashes last season, taking over as the starter over Williams. Assuming that Buzelis will be a surefire starter to begin next season and the fact that the Bulls will want to give Essengue a look, not much playing time is left for Williams.
This puts Williams firmly on the trade block. However, Chicago's disastrous decision to give him a five-year, $90 million extension ties their hands. At this point, the 23-year-old is a negative contract that the Bulls will struggle to get a positive return for in a potential trade. The Patrick Williams saga will forever be remembered as just another mistake in the long and embarrassing track record of the current Bulls front office, which somehow just got an extension.