UCLA Basketball: Adem Bona Works Out for East Non-Contender in No Man's Land

A weirdly undesirable gig in one of the league's top markets.

Feb 24, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Adem Bona (3) stands on the court as USC Trojans guard Bronny James (6) celebrates the win at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Sophomore UCLA Bruins power forward/center Adem Bona continues to make the rounds on the pre-draft circuit. The 6-foot-10 big man has worked out for a variety of clubs, including lottery-bound teams like the Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz.

Both those franchises boast a variety of intriguing young assets plus solid, tradable veteran talent.

Sadly, it appears that Bona's workout tour has taken a bit of a dire turn. Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic reports that Bona, along with G League Ignite forward Ron Holland, two-time All-Big Ten University of Illinois shooting guard Terrence Shannon Jr., ACC All-Defense Virginia wing Ryan Dunn, All-American Duke center Kyle Filipowski, and All-Big East guard Justin Moore have worked out for perhaps the league's most miserable team, the Chicago Bulls.

The Bulls haven't made a meaningful transaction since August 2021 (they've made exactly one trade in that interim, to acquire the rights to raw forward Julian Phillips with the No. 35 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft). This despite the team missing the playoffs entirely across the past two seasons, with a veteran-laden roster that cost team president Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley significant draft equity. Prior to a slightly self-aware postseason press conference (his first ever), Karnisovas seemed incredibly satisfied with the slightly-worse-than-mediocre, slightly-better-than-top-lottery-pick-worthy finishes of the team across the past two seasons, which did include a pair of play-in berths.

Bona is exactly the kind of player Karnisovas seems to enjoy targeting in the draft: raw, athletic, with high defensive upside and a good motor, but absolutely no jumper, which head coach Billy Donovan and his staff will not bother to develop. Bona, already the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2024, deserves to land with a team where he can truly grow. That will never happen with the current Bulls infrastructure in place, but as long as fans keep filling the United Center, neither the Karnisovas/Eversley pairing (called "AKME" by fans) nor Donovan seems likely to face any accountability from acting owner Michael Reinsdorf. It's one of the most miserable situations in the league: a team that has surrendered draft capital to still not be good enough to qualify for the playoff in a league where the majority of its teams do so, but also one that's not bad enough to ever reach the top of the lottery.

Adem Bona deserves better than the Chicago Bulls, who currently possess only the No. 11 pick in this year's draft. Thankfully, selecting Bona that high would be a significant reach, so he may luck out and land with an organization that actually understands how to run a basketball program.

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