When Andre Drummond left the Chicago Bulls this summer to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers, Chicago was left with a rebounding void.
Drummond’s departure also means the Bulls will be able to give more playing time to their young, developing big men. Billy Donovan will likely give 24-year-old Jalen Smith plenty of playing time, and 22-year-old Adama Sanogo, who is famous for his time at UConn, is another player who should see his opportunities increase.
Although small in stature, Sanogo is a rebounding machine. He averaged 22 points and 14.7 rebounds in 29 G League games last year for the Windy City Bulls, and he even had a ridiculous 20-rebound performance in one of the nine games he played for the Chicago Bulls in 2023-24, Sanogo’s rookie season.
Sanogo won a national championship with Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies in 2023 and won Final Four MVP along the way, but he still went undrafted.
Chicago could benefit from Sanogo going unnoticed, and the fruits of their trust in the Mali big man could blossom as early as this season.
Donovan recently indicated that Sanogo would get more playing time this year, according to a report from Dave Borges of the New-Times.
“I hope he can stay,” Donovan said of Sanogo, according to Borges. “We don’t necessarily have a lot of size, so there might be more opportunities for him this year. But I like the kid. I imagine he’ll get more opportunities with us this year than he did last year.”
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