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Shortly after the Warriors paid the Chicago Bulls $3.5 million Thursday night for the rights to former Oregon forward Jordan Bell, The Chronicle caught up with The Oregonian’s Tyson Alger, who covered each of Bell’s three seasons with the Ducks. Here is the full Q&A:

1. Bell was the 2016-17 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and some considered him the best defender in college basketball last season. What makes him so special on that side of the ball?

“First and foremost, Bell is very athletic. His freshman year he was always a tenacious shot-blocker, primarily because he could just jump out of the gym. But over the years we saw Bell develop from a defensive player who just used his physical traits, to one who learned to play the game. He was an elite rebounder this past season and still instilled fear into driving opponents. He was able to do this without getting into foul trouble, either. With his speed, he’s able to defend multiple positions and isn’t a liability if needed to extend to the perimeter.”

2. Bell emerged as a legitimate NBA prospect during the NCAA Tournament. Could you break down what he did to help the Ducks reach the Final Four? Were you surprised by his tournament performance?

“I wouldn’t say I was surprised. Over the last two years, Bell’s best games have come when the stakes were high. Before this NCAA Tournament run, Bell put up an absolutely monster game in the 2016 Sweet 16 against Duke. This year, he was just all over the floor. He had double-digit rebounds in each NCAA Tournament game, and the amount of shots he altered far exceeded the amount he blocked. He was in such a zone that teams worked around him, as he was able to make up for the loss of Chris Boucher in the paint almost single-handedly. Tyler Dorsey got most of the headlines for Oregon during the tournament, but they don’t beat Kansas in the Elite Eight without Bell. During the tournament, we saw Bell at his best — starting plays on defense and getting in on the fast break on the other. His offensive game improved greatly from his freshman year, and he was able to utilize a little bit more of a midrange game during the postseason. On another note, he was a liability at the line early in his career, but saw his free-throw percentage rise from 50 percent his freshman year to 70 percent this past season.”

3. In your mind, how do Bell’s skills translate to the NBA? Is he someone who can contribute as a rookie?

“I think he can contribute on defense right out of the gate. As I mentioned earlier, there aren’t many guys in the league more athletic than him and he’s become disciplined enough to not accumulate fouls. In today’s NBA, his ability to extend out to the perimeter will be huge. I don’t expect him to fill up the stat sheet much initially on the offensive end, but he’s taken big strides there over the last three years and it wouldn’t surprise me if he becomes more effective with that in the future. I wouldn’t ever expect him to start nailing threes, and he has to cut down on the occasional careless turnover.”

4. Some have compared Bell to Draymond Green. What similarities do you see between those two?

“I’ve seen this comparison a lot, and Bell mentions it as well. They have similar games on the defensive end, highlighted by the fact that both aren’t ideally sized to play big or small, yet still can. Draymond’s offensive game is far more developed than Bell’s, though Bell, in my opinion, isn’t near his ceiling on that end.”

5. What’s Bell like away from the court? How do you think he’ll fit into a locker room filled with All-Stars?

“From what I’ve heard about the Warriors’ locker room, Bell will fit right in. He’s a passionate player who wants to win, but he’s also laid back, cerebral and a great interview. He’s very confident in his abilities. He’s very accountable. I look back to the Final Four, after he failed to grab two rebounds in crunch time, when he sat at his locker in tears for the full 30 minutes of interviews, answering every single question reporters lobbed at him.”

Connor Letourneau is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cletourneau@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @Con_Chron