The Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night selected Noa Essengue with the No. 12 pick in the first round of the NBA Draft.
The lanky 6-9, 194-pound forward from France has been honing versatile skills in with the club Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany.
Essengue is the second youngest player in the NBA Draft. He turns 19 in December.
Essengue has the ability to run the court and attack off the dribble, averaging 12.4 points and 5.3 rebounds in Germany this season. He seven-foot wingspan and is a highly-rated defender.
It is safe to say he is a project at this point, but the same was said about Matas Buzelis a year ago.
Essengue actually left his German professional team to attend the NBA Draft. He said his coach gave him his blessing to go live his dream of playing in the NBA.
He said playing professionally with the German team has helped him develop. He said he has played with NBA guys, and some in the Euro League as well.
Essengue said he needs to work on his shooting, but he thinks there are some qualities he can bring to the Bulls right away.
“I think I can do pretty much everything — all of the details, like shooting, passing the ball, attacking the rim,” Essengue said. “I think my biggest thing right now is like the open-court game.”
“International scouts have seen him play at the youth level several times, but we’ve seen him live many times,” said Bulls General Manager Marc Eversley. “We’ve watched a lot of tape on him, and we’re excited about, you know, his ability to come in and play our style of play.”
The Bulls have a pick in the second round Thursday at No. 45 overall. There has been talk of potential trades in the roster, but so far, no moves in that department.
Meanwhile, the Miami Heat chose former Illinois star Kasparas Jakucionis with the No. 20 pick.
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