The Chicago Bulls are one of the most well-known and successful franchises in NBA history. Obviously, the Bulls were made famous as a global brand with the arrival and continued dominance of Michael Jordan throughout the 1980s and 1990s. The Bulls reached stratospheric heights as far as popularity and recognizability, thanks to Jordan and the championship teams of the 1990s, but there is so much more that has made the Bulls the franchise they are today.

A big reason for their success has been the way they have been able to evaluate and draft talent through the NBA Draft. The Bulls have drafted some incredible NBA-level stars who have gone on to have successful careers. Just as we did with the San Antonio Spurs recently, today we will focus on the 10 greatest draft picks in Chicago Bulls history. Please remember that these are draft picks only and a player like Scottie Pippen, although acquired on draft night, will not be included due to the fact that he came to Chicago via a trade with Seattle. Now that the rules are clear let’s get into the list.

These are the 10 greatest draft picks in Chicago Bulls history.

10. Reggie Theus

Credit: Fadeaway World

Career Stats: 18.5 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 6.3 APG, 1.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 2x All-Star

Our top 10 gets kicked off with the Bulls’ ninth overall pick in 1978, Reggie Theus. He came to Chicago as a highly-touted combo guard out of the University of California and would spend the first five and a half seasons of his career with the Bulls. Theus would have his first 20.0 PPG season in 1980, the second season of his career, and earn his first All-Star appearance in 1981, averaging 18.9 PPG, 5.2 APG, and 1.5 SPG.

Theus would earn another All-Star selection with the Bulls in 1983, averaging 23.8 PPG, 5.9 APG, and 1.7 SPG. During his time with Chicago, Theus averaged 18.8 PPG, 5.6 APG, and 1.3 SPG. Over the next four and a half years, Theus spent time as a member of the Kings and averaged similar numbers with 18.8 PPG, 8.1 APG, and 1.1 SPG. Theus would play for a total of 13 seasons in the NBA and averaged over 18.0 PPG and 6.0 APG for his career.

9. Kirk Hinrich

Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 10.9 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.3 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 1x All-Defensive Team Selection

Kirk Hinrich was a two-way star for the Chicago Bulls for 11 of his 13 seasons in the NBA. Hinrich was the seventh overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by Chicago and would almost immediately become their starting point guard. Hinrich was the face of the “Baby Bulls” movement as he and a young supporting cast led the Bulls to the playoffs five out of six seasons from 2005 thru 2010. Hinrich shined as a scorer with around 15.0 PPG, as a playmaker with over 7.0 APG, and as a defender with anywhere from 1.5 to 2.0 SPG.

Hinrich and the Bulls could never get over the championship hump, but they provided fans with some of the greatest moments of the early 2000s. In his first stint with the Bulls from 2004 thru 2010, Hinrich averaged just over 13.0 PPG in the regular season and over 15.0 PPG in the playoffs. Hinrich ranks top 10 in most major statistical categories in Bulls history and sits proudly higher than most on the Bulls’ all-time GOAT pyramid.

8. Elton Brand

Credit: Fadeaway World

Career Stats: 15.9 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.9 SPG, 1.7 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 1x Rookie Of The Year, 2x All-Star, 1x All-NBA Team Selection

Back in 1999, the Chicago Bulls made Elton Brand their first overall pick in the NBA Draft. Brand immediately rewarded them with a Rookie of the Year campaign that saw him average 20.1 PPG, 10.0 RPG, and 1.6 BPG. Brand would have another 20.0 PPG season in 2001 as well, adding 10.1 RPG and 1.6 BPG once again. In the 2001 offseason, Brand would be traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Tyson Chandler and Brian Skinner.

Brand would insert himself into the Los Angeles Clippers franchise hierarchy over the next seven seasons. He would earn two All-Star selections with Los Angeles in 2002 and 2006 and average 20.3 PPG, 10.3 RPG, and 2.3 BPG over those seven years. Elton Brand would finish his career with stints in Philadelphia, Dallas, And Atlanta before retiring in 2016 at 37 years old. Although his time was short-lived in Chicago, he is undoubtedly one of their best draft picks ever.

7. Joakim Noah

Credit: Jim O’Connor-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 8.8 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 2.8 APG, 0.8 SPG, 1.3 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 1x Defensive Player Of The Year, 2x All-Star, 1x All-NBA Team Selection, 3x All-Defensive Team Selection

If there is any one player who could be considered Chicago’s heart and soul after the Michael Jordan era was over, it was Joakim Noah. He was Chicago’s ninth overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft after winning two national championships at the University of Florida. Noah quickly became the on-court emotional leader for the Bulls, helping Chicago become serious contenders during the last 2000s and 2010s.

In 2014, Noah would have the best single season of his career. He would earn his second straight All-Star selection, the only All-NBA Team selection of his career, and Defensive Player of the Year honors. He averaged over 1.0 SPG and over 1.0 BPG to take home the award while leading the Bulls to 48 wins. Chicago made the playoffs seven straight seasons from 2009 thru 2015, with Noah manning the middle as their defensive anchor.

6. Toni Kukoc

Credit: MPS-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 11.6 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 3.7 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.3 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 3x NBA Champion, 1x Sixth Man Of The Year

Toni Kukoc is not only one of the greatest Bulls draft picks in team history but certainly their greatest international draft choice of all time as well. Kukoc was a second-round pick of the Bulls in 1990 out of Croatia but decided to take some time and play three more years of international basketball in Yugoslavia and Italy before joining the team. He averaged 10.1 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.4 APG, and 1.1 SPG as a rookie, and the rest is history.

Kukoc would have one of his best offensive seasons in 1995 when he averaged a career-high 15.7 PPG as well as 5.4 RPG and 4.6 APG. In 1996, as the Bulls were setting a new NBA record with 72 wins, Kukoc was named the NBA’s best player off the bench, winning the Sixth Man of the Year award, averaging 13.1 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.5 APG, and 0.8 SPG. Kukoc would spend a total of six and a half seasons with Chicago and win three NBA championships from 1996 thru 1998.

5. Horace Grant

Credit: Fadeaway World

Career Stats: 11.2 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.0 SPG, 1.0 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 4x NBA Champion, 1x All-Star, 4x All-Defensive Team Selection

Horace Grant is another one of the great Chicago Bulls draft picks during the late 1980s. Grant was taken with the 10th pick in 1987 by the Bulls after a decent college career at Clemson University. Grant was highly sought-after thanks to his defensive effort, which helped him earn four All-Defensive selections in his career as well as four NBA championships. Not only was Grant a tough defensive stopper for both guards and bigs, but he also was a tough defensive assignment armed with a beautiful mid-range jumper that seemed automatic when he got going.

Grant played seven seasons with the Bulls to begin his career and averaged 12.6 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 1.1 SPG, and 1.1 BPG over that time. From 1991 thru 1993, Grant won three straight NBA championships with Chicago. He averaged 11.7 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 1.1 SPG, and 1.2 BPG during the course of those three playoff runs with Chicago. Horace Grant would go on to spend seven seasons with the Orlando Magic, two seasons with the Lakers, and one with the SuperSonics before retiring in 2004. He added his fourth NBA championship in 2001 with the Lakers.

4. Jimmy Butler

Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 18.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 4.2 APG, 1.6 SPG, 0.5 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 1x Most Improved Player, 6x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Team Selection, 5x All-Defensive Team Selection

Other than Kukoc, Jimmy Butler is the lowest-selected player in the NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls. Butler was drafted 30th overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Bulls and spent his first two seasons trying to integrate into their lineup off the bench. He would become a starter in 2014 and by 2015, was the NBA’s Most Improved Player and an All-Star averaging 20.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 1.8 SPG. Butler would go on a tear during his last three seasons in Chicago, making three straight All-Star trips and a fourth one during his one and only season in Minnesota in 2018.

Since Minnesota, Butler played for 55 games with the 76ers before deciding to join the Miami Heat in 2019 free agency. In his first season with the Heat, Butler led them to the NBA Finals, which they lost in six games to the Lakers. In 2022, he led them to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. He has done the same thing in 2022-23, leading an eighth-seeded Heat team back to the Conference Finals where they held a 3-0 lead over the Celtics but now head to a Game 7 once again. Can Jimmy finally step up this series and get back to the NBA Finals?

3. Artis Gilmore

Credit: Manny Rubio-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 18.8 PPG, 12.3 RPG, 2.3 APG, 0.6 SPG, 2.4 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 6x All-Star, 1x All-Defensive Team Selection

Artis Gilmore is one of the most feared interior big men in NBA and ABA history. During his ABA years with the Kentucky Colonels from 1972 thru 1976, Gilmore was one of the best the ABA had to offer. As a rookie in 1972, Gilmore won Rookie of the Year and MVP averaging 23.8 PPG, 17.8 RPG, and 5.0 BPG. In those five seasons with the Colonels, he won four rebounding titles and one blocks title, as well as an ABA title in 1975.

Gilmore would make his NBA debut with the Bulls after the merger in 1976-77. By his second season, he was an All-Star again, averaging 22.9 PPG, 13.1 RPG, and 2.2 BPG. He would play seven seasons in Chicago while averaging 19.3 PPG, 11.1 RPG, and 2.1 BPG. Next, Gilmore would join the Spurs for five seasons, where he averaged 16.1 PPG, 9.7 RPG, and 1.8 BPOG while earning two more All-Star selections. Gilmore is undoubtedly one of the greatest players to ever play the game and a staple in Chicago Bulls’ history.

2. Derrick Rose

Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 17.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 5.3 APG, 0.8 SPG, 0.3 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 1x MVP, 1x Rookie Of The Year, 3x All-Star, 1x All-NBA Team Selection

Derrick Rose’s NBA journey is one of both triumph and tragedy. Rose was Chicago’s number-one selection in 2008 after a stellar year at the University of Memphis under coach John Calipari. Rose shined during his rookie season, earning Rookie of the Year honors averaging 16.8 PPG and 6.3 APG in 81 games played. By 2010, his second season, Rose was an All-Star for the first time averaging over 20.0 PPG and 6.0 APG once again.

His 2011 season would be incredible as he became the youngest MVP in NBA history at just over 22 years old. He averaged 25.0 PPG, 7.7 APG, and 1.0 SPG while leading Chicago to 62 wins without his two best teammates for a large majority of the year. After another stellar season in 2012, his entire career would change during the playoffs when he suffered a knee injury that would cost him all of 2013. Rose would never be the same, and although he has given us some amazing moments on the court, he never returned to his MVP form. There is a ton of talk about how great he could have been and what we missed out on as NBA fans. However, let’s choose to remember the greatness he gave us in those first three seasons rather than what could have been.

1. Michael Jordan

Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Career Stats: 30.1 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 5.3 APG, 2.3 SPG, 0.8 BPG

Awards And Achievements: 6x NBA Champion, 6x Finals MVP, 5x MVP, 1x Defensive Player Of The Year, 1x Rookie Of The Year, 14x All-Star, 3x All-Star Game MVP, 11x All-NBA Team Selection, 9x All-Defensive Team Selection

Clearly, the player that comes in at number one on our list is Michael Jordan. As the greatest player in NBA history, the Bulls found themselves extremely lucky that both the Rockets and Trail Blazers decided on bigs for their future and Jordan fell in their laps at third overall in 1984. Jordan was explosive and athletic as a rookie and everyone just knew he was going to be an outstanding NBA player, but nobody was ready for what was to come. After going through the growing pains of losing to Boston and Detroit almost regularly, the 1990s were there for Jordan to take.

After years of earning individual accolades, Jordan was finally able to excel at the team level, and once he did, there was no stopping him. Jordan would lead the Bulls to their first three-peat from 1991 thru 1993 with wins over the Lakers, Trail Blazers, and Suns while claiming all three Finals MVP awards. He would then retire for almost two whole seasons in 1994 and 1995. In 1996, he led them to 72 wins during the regular season. Over the next three years, Jordan would again help the Bulls three-peat as NBA champions and collected three more Finals MVPs in the process, making it an NBA-record six Finals MVPs for his career. A little over 40 years later, Jordan remains the Bulls’ greatest draft pick in team history and still the greatest player in NBA history.