Three of the NBA’s top four draft picks made their official debuts on the opening night of the season, and each rookie experienced immediate struggles as their teams faced difficult losses.
Caleb Wilson Struggles in Chicago Debut Against Toronto
Caleb Wilson’s NBA debut with the Chicago Bulls resulted in a historic low, as the fourth overall pick recorded a minus-45 plus-minus rating during a 135-92 loss to the Toronto Raptors. In 32 minutes on the floor, Wilson scored 16 points while committing nine turnovers and hitting just one of his eight attempts from beyond the arc. The minus-45 mark stands as the lowest plus-minus value ever recorded in an NBA debut, surpassing previous rough first outings by Jalen Green at minus-37 in 2021 and Amen Thompson at minus-34 in 2023.
“That was obviously a bad game from him,” Chicago coach Tiago Splitter said. “He and we all will learn from it. He wanted it to be too forced and didn’t give the ball up quickly enough when two, three opponents came toward him.”
Wilson acknowledged the difficult start while pointing out the length of the 82-game schedule. “A season is 82 games long and I can learn from my mistakes,” Wilson said.
Cameron Boozer Shows Resilience for Utah
Cameron Boozer, selected third overall, experienced shooting struggles of his own by hitting just two of his 15 field goal attempts during his debut. Despite the 2-for-15 shooting performance and a minus-32 plus-minus rating, Utah coach Tuomas Iisalo praised the 19-year-old power forward’s overall impact and his defense against Lauri Markkanen.
“That was a typical Cam Boozer,” Iisalo said. “His defense against Markkanen was great and people shouldn’t forget that he’s only 19 years old.”
Boozer chased Markkanen around screens and positioned himself correctly under the basket to finish with seven points, eleven rebounds, and five assists, though he missed all six of his three-point attempts. “Naturally, I was a little bit nervous,” Boozer said. “Ultimately, we worked hard as a team and it was really fun.”
Darryn Peterson Seeks Rhythm in Starting Lineup
With AJ Dybantsa sidelined due to injury for the Washington Wizards, fellow high pick Darryn Peterson took the floor as part of the starting five for the Utah Jazz. Playing 31 minutes, Peterson attempted just seven shots and finished with nine points, occasionally appearing out of rhythm within the offense.
“It was okay for a debut, but he has to improve his decision-making,” Utah coach Will Hardy said. “I don’t want to pillory Darryn with that, that applied to our entire team today.”
/https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.basketusa.com%2Fmain%2F2026%2F10%2Fdalton-knecht.webp)
