NBA Draft

Bully for Bobby, Portis taken 22nd

Bobby Portis answers questions during an interview after being selected 22nd overall by the Chicago Bulls during the NBA basketball draft, Thursday, June 25, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
Bobby Portis answers questions during an interview after being selected 22nd overall by the Chicago Bulls during the NBA basketball draft, Thursday, June 25, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

FAYETTEVILLE -- Bobby Portis didn't complain about having to wait nearly three hours after the NBA Draft started Thursday night before the Chicago Bulls made the former Arkansas Razorback the No. 22 pick in the first round.

"I was just anxious to hear my name," Portis said in media session in New York, where he was among 19 players attending the draft. "I didn't care what pick it was. I wanted to hear, 'Bobby Portis from Arkansas.' I didn't care if I was the 13th, 15th, 17th or 22nd pick. I just wanted to be drafted.

First-round Razorbacks

On Thursday night, Bobby Portis became the 12th former Arkansas Razorback selected in the first round of the NBA Draft:

YEAR PLAYER PICK TEAM

1978 Ron Brewer 7th Portland

1979 Sidney Moncrief 5th Milwaukee

1983 Darrell Walker 12th NY Knicks

1984 Alvin Robertson 7th San Antonio

1985 Joe Kleine 6th Sacramento

1992 Todd Day 10th Milwaukee

1992 Oliver Miller 22nd Phoenix

1992 Lee Mayberry 23rd Milwaukee

1995 C. Williamson 13th Sacramento

2001 Joe Johnson 10th Boston

2006 Ronnie Brewer 14th Utah

2015 Bobby Portis 22nd Chicago

"It was a long grind for me to get here from a kid that never played to a kid that's in the NBA now. I feel like that's a big accomplishment for me."

Portis, a 6-11 forward from Little Rock Hall who entered the draft after his sophomore season, became the 12th Razorback to be a first-round pick and the first since 2006 when guard Ronnie Brewer was selected No. 14 by the Utah Jazz.

"That legacy means a lot to me," Portis said. "I'm an Arkansas kid, so for me to be the next draft pick out of Arkansas is big for me and for everyone in my state.

"We have a lot of great talent in the state that never gets to make it to this level because of some obstacles that they have to go through. I got through my obstacles and I got here, and I've got to keep working to stay here."

Michael Qualls, a 6-6 guard who bypassed his senior season at Arkansas to declare for the draft, wasn't among the 60 picks. He was projected to be a second-round pick but tore an anterior cruciate ligament in his knee June 11 while working out for the Phoenix Suns and is expected to be sidelined six to nine months.

Based on the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, Portis, as the No. 22 pick, is guaranteed a two-year contract that will pay him a minimum of $1.16 million as a rookie and $1.21 million his second season. He could sign for a higher amount.

The collective bargaining agreement then provides one-year contract extension options for the players for their third and fourth seasons.

"It's a great feeling to go up there and shake the commissioner's hand," Portis said. "I think that's every kid's dream to get drafted, but I don't want to just get drafted. I want to have a career in the NBA. This is just one step to my career."

Portis has been working out in Chicago, where his agency, Priority Sports, is located.

"Now that I'm a Bull, I feel like I'm already used to the environment there and the fast pace," Portis said. "It's going to be fun to be there."

New Bulls Coach Fred Hoiberg was hired from Iowa State and coached against Portis last season when the Cyclones beat the Razorbacks 95-77.

While it was a tough night for Arkansas in Hilton Coliseum, Portis made 8 of 10 shots -- with all of his baskets coming from the perimeter -- and scored 19 points with 8 rebounds.

"Portis is everything that he was advertised," Hoiberg said after the game. "He's a guy with size that can shoot it. He's got touch, he can move his feet, he can handle the ball, he can pass.

"He's the whole package."

Portis, who wore a red double-breasted suit, attended the draft with his mother, Tina Edwards, along with his three younger brothers. He hugged NBA Commissioner Adam Silver on stage after being picked.

"For me to be a Chicago Bull and keep wearing this red, I think that's special," Portis said. "I bleed that Razorback red, and I take pride in this suit."

Portis, the SEC Player of the Year and a second-team Associated Press All-American, averaged 17.5 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals in 29.9 minutes per game last season.

"He plays hard," ESPN analyst Jay Bilas said after Portis was drafted. "That's what you love about him. He just gets after it.

"He's got a really good turnaround jump shot over either shoulder in the post, and not everybody has that. They usually go over their strong side shoulder, but he can go both ways.

"Not a crazy athlete, but a good rebounder and I think because of his work rate he's going to be a good NBA player."

Portis should help bolster a Chicago front line that is aging and banged up. Pau Gasol is 34; Joakim Noah, 30, is playing with a surgically-repaired left knee; and Taj Gibson, 29, underwent left ankle surgery June 15 that is expected to prevent him from taking part in basketball activities for four months.

ESPN analyst Jalen Rose compared Portis to former NBA player Rasheed Wallace and said he'll provide immediate help for the Bulls.

"You add this young man to the mix, he's going to be a performer right away," Rose said.

The Bulls finished 50-32 last season and reached the Eastern Conference semifinals, but after they lost the series 4-2 to Cleveland, Tom Thibodeau was fired as coach and replaced by Hoiberg, a former NBA player.

"Fans in Chicago can expect a guy that's going to be a blue-collar guy from day one," Portis said. "They can expect a guy that's going to be himself from day one.

"They can also expect a guy that's going to do the things that Bobby Portis does, which is blocking shots, rebounding, running the floor, pick-and-rolling and pick-and-popping. Something of everything."

Portis is the second Arkansas player from Little Rock Hall to be a first-round selection along with Sidney Moncrief, the No. 5 pick by Milwaukee in 1979. Joe Johnson, from Little Rock Central, was the No. 10 pick overall by Boston in 2001.

"I feel like I'm a great ambassador for our state," Portis said. "I do all the right things on and off the court."

Sports on 06/26/2015

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