The Chicago Bulls fell to the Denver Nuggets 133-128 on Sunday night in a preseason contest that featured some encouraging individual performances but also exposed areas that still need improvement.

Leonard Miller continued making his case for a significant role in the rotation, while Buddy Hield and Noa Essengue also impressed. However, Chicago's defensive struggles and inconsistent offensive execution remain concerns.

Here's the good, the bad and the ugly from Sunday night's loss.

Leonard Miller is making himself impossible to ignore.

Leonard Miller was Chicago's most impressive player on Sunday night, finishing with 26 points on an incredibly efficient 11-of-14 shooting.

The young forward was excellent running the floor, attacking the basket and finding opportunities within the offense. He even stepped beyond the arc and knocked down a few threes, showing some impressive offensive versatility.

Miller's athleticism and ability to run the floor fit perfectly into Tiago Splitter's offensive philosophy. With plenty of competition for minutes among Chicago's young forwards, Miller has made a compelling argument for a consistent role.

Leonard Miller minutes are here to stay.

Buddy Hield showed exactly what he can bring to Chicago's second unit.

Buddy Hield looked like the veteran sharpshooter Chicago was hoping for, finishing with 15 points while shooting 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.

Hield was a catalyst for the second unit offensively, providing the kind of perimeter shooting that can open up the floor for Chicago's younger players.

His ability to move without the basketball and knock down shots forces defenses to respect him along the perimeter, creating additional space for Chicago's athletes to attack the basket.

Noa Essengue continues to show flashes of defensive potential.

Noa Essengue might still be developing offensively, but his defensive versatility was on full display against Denver.

The young forward was picking up opposing point guards for the length of the floor, using his size and athleticism to pressure ball handlers.

Essengue also collected four offensive rebounds, showing the kind of energy that can make him valuable even when he isn't scoring.

If Essengue can make defense his calling card while consistently crashing the offensive glass, there's a path for him to become an impactful player for Chicago this season.

Dailyn Swain needs more opportunities to create offense.

Tre Jones made his preseason debut against Denver, but his return also meant Dailyn Swain spent more time playing off the ball with Chicago's second unit.

Unfortunately, that seemed to take away much of the aggression Swain displayed against Memphis.

After looking comfortable bringing the ball up the floor, attacking the paint and creating opportunities for his teammates against Memphis, Swain was largely limited to catch-and-shoot opportunities against Denver.

That's not where his offensive strengths lie.

Swain is at his best when he's able to use his size and ball-handling ability to get downhill and make plays for himself and others.

While Jones will naturally handle significant backup point guard responsibilities, Splitter needs to find ways to keep Swain involved as a secondary creator.

Josh Giddey's struggles creating his own offense continued.

Josh Giddey has had difficulty consistently generating his own offense throughout the preseason, and that trend continued on Sunday night.

Chicago's point guard struggled to beat his defender off the dribble, limiting his ability to get into the paint and create opportunities for his teammates.

That was an important part of Giddey's offensive success last season.

When Giddey penetrates the defense, he forces defenders to collapse, opening passing lanes and creating opportunities for Chicago's shooters and cutters.

With so many young players still developing offensively, Chicago needs Giddey to be a reliable source of shot creation this season.

Caleb Wilson struggled to take care of the basketball.

The Bulls made a clear effort to get Caleb Wilson involved early against Denver, but the rookie struggled with his decision-making throughout the game.

Wilson finished with five turnovers, frequently attempting difficult passes into tight windows that Denver's defense anticipated.

At times, Wilson appeared to be forcing opportunities rather than allowing the offense to develop naturally.

These are expected growing pains when integrating a young player into an NBA offense, but Wilson needs to become more disciplined with the basketball.

Learning when to attack and when to make the simple play will be an important part of his development.

Chicago's defense still has a long way to go.

The Bulls surrendered 99 points through three quarters against Denver, continuing a concerning trend of defensive inconsistency throughout the preseason.

To Denver's credit, the Nuggets have one of basketball's best offensive systems, built around Nikola Jokic, who finished with a triple-double in just 26 minutes.

Still, Chicago needs to be better defensively.

The Bulls have assembled a roster with plenty of length and athleticism, but those physical tools haven't consistently translated into effective team defense.

Communication remains an issue, particularly when opponents move the basketball and force Chicago's defenders to rotate and recover.

The Bulls also need to do a better job containing their individual assignments and finishing possessions with defensive rebounds.

Chicago wants to build an identity around speed and athleticism, but that approach will be far more effective if the Bulls can consistently get stops and turn those defensive possessions into transition opportunities.