ROCK ISLAND, Illinois — Ever since he was a little kid, Tyler Hall was a Chicago Bulls fan. In his hometown of Rock Island, Illinois, people wore jerseys and hung up posters. He grew up around the fandom, especially with a father who loved Michael Jordan.
On Monday, Hall went from a Bulls fan to being a part of the franchise. His agent called him that day to tell him he made it onto Chicago’s Summer League roster.
“It was a big sigh of relief when I found out that I got a spot (with Chicago), it’s been a dream of mine,” said Hall. “So I’m looking forward to taking advantage of the opportunity that they are giving me.”
Heading into Thursday’s draft, the former Montana State Bobcat only had one pre-draft workout and that was with Chicago. All his eggs seemed to be in one basket, but that didn’t bother the Big Sky Conference’s all-time leading scorer.
“I’ve been kind of on the radar for about three years now, so a lot of teams kind of know what I bring to the table. I was confident the whole way through (the draft process), but I tried to take advantage of the workout I was given,” Hall said.
This isn’t Hall’s first go-around in the NBA Draft process. He declared last year after his junior season without an agent before deciding to return to Montana State for his senior campaign.
“There is no opportunity for me to go back, so I’m kind of putting it all out there and looking at other options. It was nice going through this process last year and knowing what to expect and how to talk (to teams) and things like that,” said Hall.
There was no turning back for Hall in this year’s NBA Draft. He didn’t get selected in two rounds of last Thursday’s NBA Draft, but that didn’t deter him.
“I watched the whole thing,” Hall said about the draft. “I could have knew going in that I would most likely go undrafted, but it was still exciting because everyone watches the 60 picks, but they don’t understand that there is a lot of people watching that draft and it’s a big day for a lot of people (who declared).”
There are always the stories of undrafted free agents — underdogs proving they belong in the league. A Summer League contract with Chicago is no guarantee Hall will make the official roster, but now he’s ready to prove his worth as he begins he career with the Bulls.
“I put in a lot of hard work, so to even be in this position, not a lot of people get that opportunity. I’m very grateful of it, but I don’t want to settle for just that. So that’s kind of just my mindset through this whole process,” Hall said.
Hall will join the Chicago Bulls on Sunday as they begin their Summer League training. Their first game is Friday July 5 against the Los Angeles Lakers on ESPN.
