The Chicago Bulls had enough juice to make their home opener feel alive, but not enough polish to finish the job.
A third-quarter collapse proved costly in a 124-120 loss to the Washington Wizards, who leaned on their veteran presence to walk out of the United Center with the win. Chicago had plenty to enjoy in the building anyway, mostly because rookie Caleb Wilson put on the kind of show that gets a crowd buzzing in a hurry.
Wilson turned in the best all-around line of his young career, piling up 30 points, 14 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. More important for Chicago, he gave the Bulls a real chance against a Wizards frontcourt that had the size advantage.
The night opened with the kind of energy the Bulls were clearly hoping to feel at home. Whether it was the crowd, the second game of a back-to-back, or just the team settling in after two uneven outings, Chicago looked noticeably more settled from the jump.
The three-point shot, which had been a problem through the first two games, started to fall right away. Six of the Bulls’ first seven attempts came from beyond the arc, and three of them dropped - Josh Giddey hit the first, then Jalen Smith and Norman Powell followed.
Tre Jones later joined in with his first make of the season.
Chicago also came out with a more physical edge defensively, especially against Anthony Davis, and that helped the Bulls build a double-digit lead. Washington answered before the end of the quarter and took a 28-27 edge into the second, but the Bulls at least looked comfortable for stretches. It was less of a total turnaround than a sign that the first few games had started to teach them something.
Wilson made sure the tone stayed aggressive. After closing the previous game by icing it in Milwaukee, he attacked from the opening tip and kept going at the rim.
Against what the Bulls found to be some loose Wizards defense, he repeatedly tested their interior protection. In the first quarter alone, he had four dunk attempts - two finished cleanly, and two more drew whistles.
Matas Buzelis added to the crowd’s enjoyment with a steal-and-dunk sequence that turned the building up another notch. Chicago wanted to play fast, and Washington let them. That showed up in the numbers: the Bulls won fastbreak points 34-9.
The tempo stayed in Chicago’s favor for much of the night, helped by long rebounds off Washington’s 10-33 shooting from three and by some active defense that created transition chances. The Bulls finished with a 14-12 edge in turnovers, and they forced 10 steals by getting their hands into passing lanes. The roster may not be imposing, but it does have length, and that length bothered ball-handlers more than it had in the first two games.
Then came the third quarter, and everything tilted.
Instead of building on their strong start out of halftime, the Bulls fell apart. Chicago shot just 7-24 from the field in the period and went 2-11 from deep.
Washington’s size became a major factor, as the Wizards outboarded the Bulls 16-9 and shot 10-12 on attempts in the paint. The Bulls couldn’t keep the rim protected, and they couldn’t keep the game from slipping away.
Tiago Splitter pointed to the inconsistency after the game, saying, "We were very inconsistent with coverages and Trae Young and AD, of course their vets and know how to manage the floor there, and did a good job ... I thought we didn't take the best shots that third quarter. We forced a couple, even in the paint going again their bigs we have to be smarter," Tiago Splitter said after the game.
Washington owned the quarter by a 20-point margin and took a 97-82 lead into the fourth. Chicago’s foul trouble piled up too, with eight personals in the period. For a young team that had done plenty right up to that point, the damage was frustratingly self-inflicted.
Still, the Bulls weren’t finished. Late in the fourth, they ripped off a 16-4 run and suddenly had the crowd leaning forward again. Wilson and Buzelis buried back-to-back threes to pull Chicago within one possession, but there just wasn’t enough time left to fully erase the deficit.
Wilson’s night still stood out as the headline. He finished with five made dunks in the first half alone, and he would have had three more if the ball hadn’t bounced off the rim - though he still drew a whistle on each of those plays. Buzelis added his own highlight moments, including a big poster that had the United Center roaring.
For all the missed chances, the Bulls gave themselves a look. They just couldn’t survive that third-quarter stretch, and in a game that featured plenty of rim-rattling offense, that was the difference.
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Splitters willingness to trust reserves over more established names like Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis gave the game a different feel, especially as the Bulls settled in and found a better rhythm. It also suggested a coach willing to make tough calls early in the process, which matters for a young team trying to sort out roles and identity. Whether that approach holds up as the schedule tightens is the next question, but for one night it worked. [Read more 🡒]
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After getting blown out by the Raptors in their season opener, the Bulls needed something to steady the mood quickly, and their response against Milwaukee at least gave the building a pulse again. Chicagos 132-125 win over the Bucks offered a first look at what Caleb Wilson can bring when the game tightens, and the rookie was right in the middle of it as the Bulls picked up their first victory of the season.
Wilson put up 21 points and six rebounds in the win, a solid showing that came with the kind of energy Chicago has been searching for since opening night. Just as important for a team trying to reset early, Wilson made it clear afterward that he intends to keep grinding and stay locked in as the schedule moves forward. [Read more 🡒]
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Noa Essengue is at least trending in the right direction, listed as probable despite a right head contusion, giving the Bulls some hope of having another piece available for the opener. Chicago is also dealing with absences on the other side of the matchup, with Nic Claxton and Tristan Vukcevic both out, but the bigger long-term question for the Bulls remains when Dybantsa will finally be ready to step on the floor. [Read more 🡒]