Following a stretch in which they won just two of 10 games, the Chicago Bulls have now rattled off three straight victories—all against teams with winning records. Chicago defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 127-111, followed by a 136-125 win over the Cavaliers again, and most recently topped the Atlanta Hawks 152-150 in the NBA’s highest-scoring game of the year.
The Bulls increased their scoring output for the fourth straight game, culminating in a 152-point explosion against the Hawks. Nine players reached double digits, and Chicago shot an impressive 57.6 percent from the field and 47.6 percent from three-point range.
Chicago’s balanced attack was on full display, with no player scoring more than 30 points. Matas Buzelis led the charge with 28 points, going 10-of-11 from the field and 7-of-8 from three. Coby White added 21, while Josh Giddey contributed 19 points, nine rebounds, and 12 assists.
Chicago's defense is anything but complementary
Scoring 152 points is impressive, but the flip side is just as concerning—the Bulls nearly lost, giving up 150 to Atlanta. Two Hawks, Trae Young and Jalen Johnson, scored 35 or more points, while Atlanta shot over 50 percent from the field and made nearly half of their 47 three-point attempts.
It feels wrong to criticize the Bulls after three straight wins, but a reality check is necessary. Over that span, Chicago ranks first in offensive rating but 27th in defensive rating. Their latest 152-point win inflates the numbers, but the team’s porous defense is a reminder that their margin for error is slim. The Bulls had to score 152 points just to secure the victory, and that shouldn’t be the case.
So far this season, Chicago has won only three games (all within the first two weeks of the season) in which it didn’t score at least 120 points. The Bulls are 3-10 when failing to reach that mark. Across their 13 wins, opponents average 120.1 points, compared to 125.6 in their 15 losses—the narrowest margin in the NBA.
These statistics make one thing clear: the Bulls essentially must score 120 points to win, and even then, victory isn’t guaranteed. Even in wins, opponents average 120.1 points per game, ranking 29th in the NBA.
It’s a stark contrast to the season’s start, when the Bulls won by playing sound defense. That was more a blip than a trend. This team, like the one that heated up late last season, competes primarily through offense. Don’t expect them to grind out wins on defense anytime soon, and until that changes, the Bulls’ margin for error will remain slim.