Leonard Miller pushing ahead of Essengue, Williams in Bulls’ rotation

Leonard Miller has been one of the Bulls’ best players this preseason and appears to have moved ahead of Noa Essengue and Patrick Williams in new head coach Tiago Splitter’s rotation, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Miller, the 33rd overall pick in the 2023 draft, saw limited action over two and a half seasons in Minnesota but became a rotation regular for Billy Donovan late last season after arriving in Chicago as part of the Ayo Dosunmu trade. Through four preseason games, the 6-foot-10 Canadian is averaging 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 19.4 minutes per game while shooting 65.1 percent from the field and 60 percent from three.

Miller and Jalen Smith have taken on larger-than-expected roles with centers Nic Claxton (hamstring) and Zach Collins (quad) and forwards Isaac Okoro and Tobe Awaka sidelined, according to the Chicago Tribune. Smith appears set to open the regular season as the starting center, and Miller was his primary backup in Wednesday’s win over Milwaukee.

Splitter has suggested Smith will keep getting minutes even after Claxton and Collins return, valuing the floor spacing of a big man who has hit 36.7 percent of his threes over the past three seasons. Miller is in the final year of his rookie contract at $2.4 million, while Smith is on an expiring $9.4 million deal.