The Chicago Bulls own the 18th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Their options with that selection are plentiful.
In the weeks leading up to the draft, NBC Sports Chicago will examine a handful of prospects that could be in play for the Bulls in their expected range. First up: Ohio State forward E.J. Liddell.
Bio
Name: E.J. Liddell
School: Ohio State
Position: Forward
Age: 21
Height: 6-7
Weight: 243
Wingspan: 6-11 ¾
2021-22 Stats: 19.4 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 2.6 bpg, 2.5 apg | 49% FG, 37.4% 3P, 76.5% FT
Three Things to Know
- He is an Illinois high school kid: Yes, although he grew up closer to St. Louis than Chicago, Liddell has Illinois high school ties dating back to his days at Belleville West. Those years were storied ones for Liddell; he won Illinois Mr. Basketball in 2018 and 2019 while leading Belleville West to consecutive state championships, then entered Ohio State the 38th-ranked recruit in his class. That’s two spots higher than Isaac Okoro, who was selected fifth overall in the 2020 draft after one season at Auburn.
Liddell, meanwhile, went on to three productive years as a Buckeye. As a junior, he averaged 19.4 points and took home All-Big Ten and Big Ten All-Defense honors, paving the path for him to enter the 2022 draft as a projected first-round pick.
- He models his game after Paul Millsap, Grant Williams, P.J. Tucker and Draymond Green: Liddell rocketed his scoring average from 6.7 points as a freshman reserve to 16.2 as a sophomore and 19.4 as a junior, enjoying high-usage starting roles in each of the latter campaigns. But he knows that his responsibilities may change at the next level.
“I've been working on lots and lots of lateral movement, lots of jumping and just being able to shoot corner 3s,” Liddell said at the NBA Draft Combine in May. “I haven't ever really been in the corner my whole life, because I've been involved in different plays and whatnot.”
Indeed, Liddell’s NBA livelihood could depend on his ability to flourish as a versatile, two-way role player, and he certainly has the skill set to do so. In addition to shooting at a career-high clip and swatting 2.6 shots per game as a junior, Liddell also displayed the ability to guard the perimeter well, a tantalizing trait for modern-day big men. He firmly believes his motor will allow him to toggle between the power forward and center spots, and his passing ability will add to his offensive upside.
That’s the type of player NBA teams are hunting for to fill out their front court rotations — just ask Millsap, Williams, Tucker or Green. Each have impacted contenders in multiple facets throughout their careers, with the latter three playing outsized roles on conference finalists in 2022.
“They're different players, but I see bits and pieces of my game,” Liddell said. “Draymond is a great facilitator. Grant Williams has become a really good spot-up shooter. I watch PJ Tucker as well, just his effort around the floor. I take pieces of their game and just add them to mine.”
- He improved his shooting percentages each of his three seasons at Ohio State: Liddell didn’t just increase his scoring average on an annual basis in college. He also significantly ratcheted up his efficiency, to the point that it’s not difficult to envision him blossoming into a legitimate spot-up threat in the pros. See below:
| FG% | 3P% | FT% | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | 46.4% | 19.2% | 71.8% |
| 2020-21 | 47.4% | 33.8% | 74.6% |
| 2021-22 | 49% | 37.4% | 76.5% |
Better yet, Liddell bumped his 3-point volume year-over-year as well, from hoisting 26 3-point attempts total as a freshman (0.8 per game) to 123 as a junior (3.8 per game).
“A lot of reps but also my confidence level,” Liddell said when asked what went into those improvements. “Every time I shoot the ball now I think it's going in. Back when I was a freshman I started off really slow, and my confidence level was really down. But as the offseason came my confidence level just got up.”
Liddell likely won’t be asked to self-create as much as he did at Ohio State in the NBA, but if he can consistently knock down catch-and-shoot 3s from the corners or in pick-and-pop actions above the break, he will be immensely valuable.
Bulls Fit
That brings us to Liddell’s fit in Chicago, which has the potential to be seamless if he hits near the high end of possible outcomes.
Provided Liddell proves to be as NBA-ready as he appears — and the Bulls had success with a 21-year-old, three-year college-goer in Ayo Dosunmu last season — he’s a dream third big to add to a front court rotation that features Nikola Vučević and Patrick Williams on the front line.
Why? Liddell has the help-side rim protection potential to play alongside Vučević. He’s switchable enough to theoretically add a layer to the Bulls’ defensive schemes. He’s sturdy enough to possibly give Billy Donovan another option at a backup center spot that featured a hodgepodge of names in 2021-22, from Tristan Thompson to Derrick Jones Jr. to Tony Bradley. And if his shooting translates to the next level, all the better for a team that’s 3-point efficiency cratered as last season endured.
Put simply, selecting Liddell would be a vote for versatility and lineup optionality, which were both lacking during the swaths of last season that Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso missed.
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