The Chicago Bulls are the talk of the NBA town. After grabbing a 135-125 win over the New York Knicks on Halloween, Chicago is 5-0 for the first time since Michael Jordan graced the United Center floor in the '90s.
They've cooked with a unique recipe that features a deep bench, a balanced offense, a group of selfless players and a scheme that puts a roster devoid of prototypical "stars" in the best position to succeed.
The Bulls have been led by Josh Giddey, who's quickly developing into an All-Star-level point guard. Nikola Vucevic is having one of the best seasons of his career at age 35. Matas Buzelis has taken the proverbial sophomore leap.
But Billy Donovan's group has been so much more.
Here are four stats from the Oct. 31 win over the Knicks that perfectly encapsulate how and why this team has been so good to begin the 2025-26 campaign.
Chicago Bulls played a nearly flawless game in win over New York Knicks
That balanced, intelligent, efficient offense was on full display in the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup win. It was, you could say, almost spooky good.
31: Number of assists in Bulls' victory
Chicago leads the league in assists per game with 30.6. It's eighth in total assists (153), ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers (150) and Oklahoma City Thunder (143), despite playing one less game.
Against New York, the Bulls had 31 assists on 45 made baskets. They shot 53.6 percent from the field and 45.9 percent from three.
Nearly 70 percent of Chicago's made shots came off an assist, and almost 90 percent of their made threes (88.2) were assisted. Giddey and Ayo Dosunmu had nine dimes each.
6: Bulls players to score in double figures
Giddey finished with a career-high 32 points in the win. Vucevic had 26 and Buzelis scored 13.
The bench played a crucial role again. Dosunmu scored 22 points, Kevin Huerter had 15 and Jalen Smith added 10.
54: Points in the paint
The Bulls' ability to score near the rim rather than hoist a ton of threes is already making a dramatic difference in their offense. They nearly doubled up the Knicks in points in the paint, 54-28 -- a product of their humming ball movement.
Chicago spaces the floor and gets defenses off balance, creating clear driving lanes and open cuts to the rim that often end with easy points.
35: Number of free-throws attempted
The Bulls struggled to get to the free-throw line last season. They were 29th in free-throw attempts per game at 19.7. But things have noticeably flipped thus far in 2025-26.
Chicago was 28-for-35 from the charity stripe against New York. The Knicks only attempted 23 free-throws total.
Upon first glance, it's difficult to comprehend why the Bulls have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA so far this season. But digging a little deeper, it becomes clear: They field one of the league's most efficient offenses. (And one of the stingiest defenses).