The Chicago Bulls walked out of State Farm Arena with a win on Sunday night, but if you were looking for signs that their defense had finally turned a corner, this 152-150 shootout against the Hawks probably didn’t ease your concerns. Yes, it’s a win-and an entertaining one at that-but it also served as a reminder that Chicago still has some serious work to do on the defensive end.
Let’s start with the good news: Matas Buzelis is starting to look like the real deal. The second-year forward put together his best performance yet, dropping a career-high 28 points on a scorching 10-of-11 shooting night.
He buried seven threes-also a career best-and did it with the kind of confidence that makes you think this might be more than just a hot streak. It was his second straight 20-point game, and it’s clear the game is starting to slow down for him.
And Buzelis wasn’t alone. This was a total team effort offensively, with nine different Bulls scoring in double figures.
Coby White continued his strong play with 21 points, while Josh Giddey flirted with a triple-double-19 points, 12 assists, and nine rebounds. Kevin Huerter (16), Isaac Okoro (14), Nikola Vucevic (13), Ayo Dosunmu (13), Tre Jones (11), and Zach Collins (10) all chipped in, making this one of the most balanced scoring nights Chicago has had all season.
The numbers back that up. The Bulls posted season-highs in points (152), assists (41), field goal percentage (57.6%), and three-point shooting (47.6%).
Offensively, this was as sharp and fluid as we’ve seen them all year. The ball moved, shots fell, and the confidence was contagious.
But for every highlight on offense, there was a defensive lapse on the other end. Atlanta nearly matched Chicago shot for shot, hitting 52% from the field and an eye-popping 48.9% from beyond the arc.
Jalen Johnson was everywhere-36 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists-and Trae Young, in just his second game back from an MCL injury, looked like his usual self with 35 points and nine assists. Onyeka Okongwu (23 points) and Vit Krejci (20) added to the barrage.
It was that kind of night-where defense felt optional and shot-making was the name of the game.
The Bulls came out blazing, hitting eight of their first 10 shots, including five threes in the opening minutes. That gave them a 21-10 lead early, but the Hawks didn’t blink. A 12-4 Atlanta run closed the gap, and by the end of the first quarter, the game was tied at 38 after a wild one-legged three from Young and a putback by Patrick Williams.
The second quarter was more of the same-offensive fireworks on both sides. The Bulls dropped 45 in the period, building an 83-73 halftime lead, their highest-scoring half of the season. Chicago shot 60.9% from the field and went 12-of-24 from deep in the first half, while Atlanta stayed right there with them, shooting 55.6% and 12-of-21 from three.
The third quarter saw the Hawks punch back. Young and Krejci combined for five threes, and Atlanta put up 42 in the frame to take the lead. But Dosunmu gave the Bulls a late push with a pair of tough layups to put Chicago back on top heading into the fourth.
From there, it was a back-and-forth battle. Big-time buckets from Young, Johnson, White, and Buzelis kept the game tight.
With just over a minute left and the Bulls clinging to a one-point lead, Giddey stepped up and buried a clutch three. Then Vucevic disrupted the Hawks’ offense with a timely steal, leading to an Okoro and-one finish in transition that gave Chicago some breathing room.
Still, Atlanta wouldn’t go away. Johnson knocked down a three with 4.9 seconds left to cut it to 151-150. Buzelis hit one of two at the line, and Young had a chance to tie it at the buzzer, but his floater while falling away didn’t go down.
With the win, the Bulls have now taken three straight and sit at 13-15, holding onto 10th place in the East. The Hawks, meanwhile, drop to 15-15 after the loss.
These two teams will run it back on Tuesday, again in Atlanta. If Sunday night was any indication, we could be in for another high-scoring thriller. But for the Bulls, the question remains: Can they tighten things up defensively, or will they keep relying on shootouts to get by?