The Chicago Bulls added another lengthy wing to their arsenal Wednesday by selecting French teenager Noa Essengue with the No. 12 pick in the NBA draft.

Without any college playing experience, Essengue was one of the lesser-known names to be selected in the top 15. So why did the Bulls take a swing on him? And what does his future look like in Chicago?

Here’s what to know about the newest Bull.

1. Where has Essengue played?

A native of Orléans, France, Essengue came up through the French youth development system with Orléans Loiret Basket before signing his first professional contract in 2021 with Centre Fédéral de Basket-ball.

Essengue left in 2023 for the German league to join Ratiopharm Ulm, where he played one season in the youth development league before moving up to the top professional tier for the 2024-25 season. He averaged 10.7 points and five rebounds for Ulm this season.

Essengue is also a future prospect for the French national team. He competed for the under-18 team at the 2024 FIBA U-18 EuroBasket tournament, then moved up to the senior team for EuroBasket qualifiers in 2025.

2. Why did Essengue leave his German team for draft night in New York?

Essengue caused a bit of a stir leading up to the draft when he chose to leave Germany while Ulm still was competing in the finals of the Basketball Bundesliga championship.

Ulm faced Bayern Munich in Game 4 of a best-of-five series Tuesday, a day before the draft took place in New York. Although Essengue missed a potential close-out game — Ulm lost 67-53 at home to push the series to a decisive fifth game Thursday — he said that was always the agreed-upon plan with the coaching staff. (He was averaging only 3.7 points in fewer than 14 minutes per game in the finals before he left.)

“We talked a lot with my coaching staff, all the staff from Ulm,” Essengue said. “It was like, ‘If I get in the green room, I’m leaving.’ And the coach said yes. So on the day I learned I’m in the green room, the coach said, ‘Just go there, live your dream and we’ll finish the job.’”

Essengue’s teammate Ben Saraf also left after he was invited for draft-night festivities. The Brooklyn Nets selected Saraf at No. 26.

3. Why did the Bulls draft Essengue?

General manager Marc Eversley said the front office first watched Essengue in September when Ulm played an exhibition against the Portland Trail Blazers. At the time, Essengue was a raw 17-year-old still finding his footing at the top level of German professional basketball. He hit three 3-pointers while logging 20 points and eight rebounds, making a strong impression on Eversley and other NBA executives.

Although Essengue is versatile enough to play anywhere between the three and five, Eversley said the Bulls ideally see him as a wing who can match up against a wide range of frontcourt and backcourt opponents.

Eversley drew his own comparisons between Essengue and 2024 first-round pick Matas Buzelis, who excelled in his rookie season as an oversized wing who could pick up a wide variety of assignments on defense. It might seem counterproductive to draft two players with similar skill sets in back-to-back drafts, but Eversley cited this as a strength — rather than a weakness — in the team’s draft strategy.

“I like the length, the versatility, the ability to be switchable on defense,” Eversley said. “Those are all intriguing qualities.”

4. Could the Bulls have picked higher?

Eversley said the Bulls kept in touch with three or four teams to negotiate the price of trading up for a higher pick. Such a trade could have allowed the Bulls to take a swing on a true center such as Khaman Maluach (No. 10, Phoenix Suns) or a more developed forward such as Collin Murray-Boyles (No. 9, Toronto Raptors).

Ultimately, the front office didn’t feel it was worthwhile to move up.

“We felt comfortable that the player we wanted was going to be there for us,” Eversley said.

5. In what areas can Essengue improve?

This should come as no surprise, but an untested rookie who won’t turn 19 until late December is going to have more weaknesses than strengths in his debut season.

So, yes, Essengue will come to the Bulls with a long to-do list to build his game to an NBA level. Although he’s lengthy with large hands and a sprawling reach, he needs to get stronger to begin finishing through contact and providing a physical challenge to opposing bigs. Essengue is excellent at getting to the free-throw line in Germany, but it’s unclear if that talent will translate to the NBA.

His shooting will be a major focus. And his ballhandling and playmaking will need extensive development — not just this year but in the long term — to give Essengue the independence to create proactively.

6. Will he play for the Bulls this year?

It’s too early to say.

Essengue will be in Chicago this weekend to begin his onboarding process. He also is expected to participate in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, where he will get his first minutes playing alongside Buzelis.

But beyond this summer, the Bulls still are determining the appropriate timeline for the teenager. Eversley made it clear the front office understands the patience necessary to establish a strong foundation with a player this young. And that means the Bulls haven’t ruled out stashing Essengue for a year as they wait to clear out contracts for 2026-27.

Ultimately, Essengue’s debut could be contingent on the front office’s ability to execute a series of transactions to move players such as Nikola Vucevic.