By the end of NBA draft combine week, Caleb Wilson knew a few key things about Chicago: Michael Jordan, “The Last Dance” and SLAP.
The North Carolina standout is projected as a top-four prospect in the 2026 NBA draft class alongside BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, Duke’s Cameron Boozer and Kansas’ Darryn Peterson. Those predictions translated into a hefty spotlight Wednesday when the four players took the central dais for combine media availability. But Wilson knew how to make a strong impression on a local crowd at Wintrust Arena.
As a North Carolina player, Wilson holds Jordan in high regard. He watched “The Last Dance” when the series aired in 2020. And although it’s still new, Wilson familiarized himself with the Bulls front office before an interview with the team Wednesday. The prospect flexed that knowledge with a grin: “I know about the SLAP.”
The acronym — which stands for size, length, athleticism and physicality — is one of the few known factors of new executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham’s approach to his role. Graham unveiled the concept during his introductory news conference last week, citing the principle as a key.
Wilson certainly fits the profile for a SLAP player. He measured in at 6-foot-9¼ inches at the combine this week with a 7-0¼ wingspan. The forward is a bouncy, explosive player who lives and breathes above the rim. And after just one meeting, Wilson felt confident he could fit into Graham’s vision for the Bulls.
“For sure,” Wilson said. “I’m whatever my team needs me to be. I win. That’s what I’m going to do.”
The No. 4 pick is driving most of the attention, but the Bulls front office is deeply assessing the entire class to prepare for the No. 15 pick and two selections in the second round. The Bulls plan to talk to roughly 20 players this week, a list that includes Wilson, Dybantsa, Boozer, Peterson, Nate Ament, Koa Peat, Chris Cenac Jr., Labaron Philon Jr. and Jayden Quaintance.
Here’s what else we learned from the combine this week.
Darryn Peterson talked creatine
The biggest question Peterson faced ahead of the NBA combine had nothing to do with his talent on the court — and everything to do with his ability to stay on it.
Throughout his freshman season at Kansas, the guard was plagued by a mysterious cramping condition that began with a September episode that sent him to the hospital. He missed 11 games in the regular season, at times sitting at the end of the bench for the second half of games after appearing to play normally.
In an interview with ESPN last week, Peterson said that a new round of bloodwork revealed high doses of creatine as the cause for the cramping. The guard had not taken the supplement — which can help with recovery and muscle growth — before college and mostly ingested creatine in smoothies and other meal options the Kansas staff provided.
“I didn’t think they would give me anything that wouldn’t be beneficial,” Peterson said Wednesday. “Obviously didn’t know what I had going on, so they gave it to everybody on the team. … I was super surprised because during the year I was doing everything I could to figure out what it was.”
Peterson played the entirety of the postseason for Kansas. And despite the attention the storyline drew, Peterson said the cramping issue did not come up often during his meetings with teams this week. The guard admitted he was surprised by the lack of questions about his medical status but voiced confidence that the issue would not continue into his NBA career.
Versatility is a major selling point for Peterson — who is eager to play as a point guard in the NBA despite moving off the ball for his one season at Kansas — but the guard’s main appeal is his ability to score. Peterson went 19-for-25 in the spot-up shooting drill at the combine, finishing second, but the guard still wasn’t satisfied.
“Coming in, I ain’t gonna lie, my main goal was to dominate the shooting drills,” Peterson said. “I didn’t shoot it as well as I wanted to … but it’s just fun to be here. I’m super excited just to come here and enjoy the experience.”
Measuring up
Although most of the projected lottery picks did not participate in Wednesday’s scrimmages, the measurement and drill portions of the combine provided important assessments for teams to analyze in the coming weeks.
Michigan’s Aday Mara logged the top height (7-3) and standing reach (9-9). Virginia Tech’s Tobi Lawal notched the highest maximum vertical jump (45.5 inches) and standing vertical jump (40 inches). Florida’s Rueben Chinyelu ranked at the top in wingspan (7-7½) despite measuring just over 6-9 in height.
Cenac Jr. made a strong case as a potential late lottery pick throughout his on-court drills, measuring 6-10¼ barefoot and logging a 7-5 wingspan. Michigan’s Morez Johnson Jr., the Thornton High graduate and 2024 Mr. Basketball of Illinois, made an impression with a 7-3½ wingspan, a fast finish in the pro lane and some sharp shooting in the star-shooting drill. Connecticut’s Alex Karaban also stood out in shooting drills — finishing first in midrange shooting and the 3-point star drill — after boosting his vertical jump by 5½ inches since the 2024 combine.
