Bulls Stumble Despite Josh Giddey's Return, Fall 110-101 to Raptors

Chicago Bulls fans got their first look at the complete team on Thursday night against the Raptors. The combination of the trade deadline aftermath with the returns of the injured Josh Giddey, Tre Jones and Jalen Smith provided intrigue as to what the new Bulls would look like.

Ultimately, though, the product on the court left much to be desired. The Bulls suffered their seventh consecutive defeat — first since the NBA All-Star break — in a 110-101 loss to Toronto.

Chicago dropped to 24-32 on the season and fell to the No. 12 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Anfernee Simons scored 20 points to lead the Bulls, but shot an inefficient 7-of-18 from the floor. Isaac Okoro went for 16 points, while Jones had 12 points and six dimes in his first game back from a hamstring strain.

Giddey struggled in his return from a similar hamstring injury. The Australian point guard, who missed 19 of Chicago's previous 23 games, finished with five points on 1-of-7 shooting, five assists, four rebounds and four turnovers. Matas Buzelis was held to just four points and failed to convert on any of his seven three-point attempts.

The Bulls turned the ball over 23 times, their second-highest total this season. They also allowed Toronto wing Brandon Ingram to erupt for 31 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals. Ingram scored 33 points in the two teams' most recent meeting, a 123-107 Raptors win on Feb. 5.

Assistant head coach Wes Unseld Jr. served as the Bulls' active head coach for the game following the death of Billy Donovan's father. Guard Jaden Ivey played zero minutes on Thursday, which Unseld said was "strictly a basketball decision" after the game.

The Bulls couldn't get out of their own way from the very beginning. Chicago turned the ball over five times in the first four-plus minutes as the Raptors raced out to a 10-2 lead, forcing Unseld to call a timeout.

Nick Richards subbed in for Smith, and Chicago's offense finally ignited shortly after with a four-point sequence. Raptors guard R.J. Barrett was assessed a flagrant foul for elbowing Richards in the chest, then Okoro pulled the Bulls within two with a layup through contact.

Along with Jones, Richards and the Bulls' bench rallied the team back, but turnovers continued to cause problems. Collin Sexton committed three giveaways and a personal foul by himself in just three minutes and 23 seconds. However, the Bulls only trailed by two after the first period, 25-23.

Chicago quickly gained its first lead of the game following baskets from Patrick Williams, Buzelis and Sexton. Scottie Barnes scored eight unanswered points, though, and Toronto soon went up by double digits. Even though the Bulls trimmed their turnover total down to two in the second quarter, a poor shooting stretch led to an eight-point Chicago deficit at the break.

Toronto extended its advantage to as much as 14 out of halftime, but the Bulls' three-point shooting kept them within reach. Chicago hit four of its first seven attempts and used a 7-0 run to make it a seven-point game.

That run was largely spurred by Jones. Coming off the bench, the nifty guard racked up eight points and three assists as the main facilitator of the Bulls' offense. Jones also beat the buzzer on a fastbreak layup attempt, cutting the margin to single digits entering the fourth.

Guerschon Yabusele knocked down a three, while Rob Dillingham and Giddey each scored at the start of the final quarter. Chicago trailed Toronto, 96-92, but struggled to pair its defensive stops with more offensive results down the stretch.

Simons finally ended the Bulls' cold shooting streak with a three-pointer. His shot with 2:12 remaining made it a 103-101 game, but that was as close as Chicago would make it. Toronto scored seven consecutive points to end the game and hand the Bulls their first loss after the All-Star break.

The Bulls have six games remaining in their current homestand, with four of those coming against playoff teams from a year ago.