The Chicago Bulls took down the Orlando Magic 110-98 behind great ball movement, great defense, and a tremendous offensive output from their bench unit.
The Chicago Bulls took on the Orlando Magic on Saturday night, their first road game of the 2025-26 regular season. Orlando held a slim lead at the end of the first, but Josh Giddey did an admirable job stepping up in the continued absence of Coby White. Giddey knocked down an open 3-point shot early, and was again aggressive in getting into the paint off the dribble. He was a big part of a Chicago offense that was able to sustain an early lead while Orlando struggled from the perimeter.
The Magic were extremely cold from 3-point range early, shooting 2-16 in the first half as the Bulls took a 52-49 lead.
Chicago ran an admittedly egalitarian offense, but Giddey tying the team lead with nine points and six field goal attempts heading into the half was important.
The Bulls didn't have the production of Matas Buzelis early, as he shot 0-4 in the first half and was limited to five minutes due to three fouls. The bench units played a big role for both teams early. Chicago received 31 points off the bench in the first half.
Patrick Williams continues to look like he is turning a new leaf as an aggressive forward, while Jalen Smith's nine points tied Giddey for the team lead going into the halftime break. Anthony Black was a huge spark for Orlando, with his athleticism generating some great looks inside and a 3-pointer to boot. Paolo Banchero was the workhorse for the Magic early, generating 14 first-half points and being the other player to hit a 3-point FG in the first half for Orlando outside of Black.
The Bulls didn't have total control of the game at half. But with the Magic shooting 12.5% from 3-point range, there was reason to believe the Bulls would come out on top with another solid defensive effort in the second half. And they did.
The third quarter was primarily about the Bulls continuing to establish their identity as a transition-heavy team that is unselfish in all aspects of the game.
Chicago finished the game with 22 fastbreak points and 26 assists. Williams well-rounded stat line of 12 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals was a nice compliment to Nikola Vucevic's 15 points, a key 15 points from Ayo Dosunmu and 16 points from Jalen Smith off the bench, and the team-leading 21 points from Giddey.
In the fourth quarter, the Bulls continued unselfishness what was ultimately led to them holding on despite Buzelis fouling out in 12 minutes of action. They shot 8-14 (57.1%) in the fourth quarter, with multiple players contributing to the scoring.
It was an impressive way to closeout a game for a young team. On top of the solid offense to closeout the game, the Bulls held the Magic to 39.1% shooting from the field and only three (!!) 3-point FGs on the evening. Overall, this was a great effort on both ends of the floor from the Bulls in the win.
On Monday, the Bulls return to the United Center for a matchup against Trae Young and the new-look Atlanta Hawks at 7 PM CST.
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