The Chicago Bulls were dealt some ominous injury news heading into their New Year’s Eve home game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday.
Starting guards Coby White and Josh Giddey will be out for at least the next week’s worth of games with right calf tightness and a hamstring strain, respectively, while reserve center Zach Collins is on the shelf with a right toe issue.
Giddey will miss at least two weeks before he’s reevaluated, while Collins will be out for at least the next 10 games. The 6-foot-9 Gonzaga big man missed his second game Wednesday, having already sat out Chicago’s 136-101 lambasting by the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.
But the absences of this key trio didn’t seem to matter much.
With Tre Jones and, in a surprise, Jalen Smith installed into Billy Donovan’s first five — and Matas Buzelis and Isaac Okoro each shifted down a position — Chicago managed to bring out a bit more defense on the floor against a conversely defense-averse New Orleans squad. The shorthanded Bulls rang in the new year right with a 134-118 blowout victory.
Heading into the bout, the Bulls had dropped their first two encounters with Zion Williamson and co. this season — and barring a, um, NBA Finals clash (technically possible, we guess?), this marked their last meeting of 2025-26.
After we learned that both Coby White and Josh Giddey would be out for at least a week with their respective new ailments, we expected supersubs Tre Jones and Ayo Dosunmu to step up in a big way on both ends of the hardwood. New starters Jones and Smith each notched double-doubles, but Isaac Okoro (!) was the Bulls’ leading scorer.
Let’s get into it.
Patrick Gorski-Imagn ImagesFirst Half: An Unlikeley Bulls Hero Rises
Williamson, who has already been in and out of the Pelicans’ lineup amid his annual injury woes, drew his second straight start after coming off the bench for seven games. He didn’t disappoint, at times looking like a one-man wrecking crew in downhill actions.
The 6-foot-6 vet scored a game-most 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the field and 7-of-9 shooting from distance. Williamson also chipped in seven boards and three dimes.
The downside of life without White, Giddey, or Collins available was actual rotation minutes for Patrick Williams, Dalen Terry and even Jevon Carter. Williams and Terry saw some run in the first quarter — with Williams even logging uncharacteristically strong minutes in the fourth frame.
Okoro looked good on both ends instantly, doing his best to slow down Williamson while also chipping in 11 points during the first period.
Chicago enjoyed an encouraging first-half run, pacing the Pelicans by as many as 11 points. But New Orleans rallied all the way back to take the lead, briefly, midway through the second frame.
A fast-breaking Buzelis was empowered in Donovan’s system early, making a case for a return to the Slam Dunk Contest at All-Star Weekend 2026. The man showed no mercy attacking the rim.
Matas with the SPIKE.@BuzelisMatas | @CHSN__ pic.twitter.com/DR66XvSHhH
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 1, 2026The Bulls played to their strengths in the first half, scoring an encouraging 38 points in the paint. Chicago led marginally at the break, 67-62.
Okoro’s 16 points in the opening half threatened to eclipse his 19-point season-high (more on that in a second).
Isaac Okoro in the 1st half vs. Pelicans: +146-8 FG16 PTS4 REB pic.twitter.com/VzRuNKvLJv
— Bulls on CHSN (@CHSN_Bulls) January 1, 2026Jones already had notched nine points without missing a field goal, along with dishing out eight first-half dimes. The Bulls had connected on 52.9 percent of their field goal tries heading into the third quarter.
Player of the Half: Isaac Okoro with 16 points on 6-of-8 field goal shooting, four boards, and a +14 plus-minus.
Second Half: Pass-Happy Chicago Demolishes New Orleans Late
The Pelicans and Bulls played each other fairly evenly in the third frame, with Chicago ultimately prevailing 30-28 to improve their lead to seven points ahead of the final quarter.
Jalen Smith, en route to a quiet double-double during his first start of the year, put his body on the line during a mid-quarter Zion Williamson drive. The two-time All-Star was whistled for his fourth foul and immediately subbed out, freeing Chicago from New Orleans’ best player.
Beyond Williamson, former Golden State Warriors champ Jordan Poole was feeling it, too, with an intimidating performance from distance.
NYE Poole Party ?JP up to 22 PTS, 4-8 from three pic.twitter.com/9ue0gLUAWY
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) January 1, 2026Despite Poole and Williamson getting theirs against Chicago, the Bulls’ egalitarian offense (they had five players in double digits already by the end of the third) helped the home team capture a 97-90 edge after three quarters.
Chicago continued to gradually build on its lead through the first half of the fourth frame with efficient, pass-happy, controlled basketball. The Bulls built out a game-high 17-point edge with 5:22 remaining in regulation, capped off by catch-and-shoot treys from Kevin Huerter and Dosunmu.
The Bulls’ defense got careless, allowing a 7-0 New Orleans spurt to cut Chicago’s edge to a scarily manageable 10 points with time to spare.
Stunningly, Patrick Williams of all people woke up to help key a 7-0 Chicago response. All told, eight Bulls players logged double-digit scoring nights. Yes, including Williams, who scored 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field (2-of-4 from beyond the arc) and 2-of-2 shooting from the foul line in 20 minutes.
Jones, Smith and Okoro stood out in the win. All three players brought efficiency, unselfishness and a hint of defense into Chicago’s new-look starting unit. If the Bulls really do wind up trading Coby White’s expiring contract away this year, they just might be okay after all.
By “okay,” we mean “finishing with a sub-.500 record and qualifying for the play-in tournament.” But still, it’s the Bulls. That’s about as good as we can expect this team to ever get.
Okoro finished with a season-best 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the floor (2-of-4 from deep) and 6-of-8 shooting from the foul line, five boards, two dimes, two blocks, a steal, and an insane +31 plus-minus. The bout marked his first 20-point game in two seasons, per Adam Amin of CHSN. Chicago has amassed a 15-10 record when Okoro has played, and a brutal 1-7 record without him.
The 6-foot-4 Auburn product, a lottery pick in the cursed Patrick Williams draft, also asserted himself as perhaps Chicago’s top screening perimeter player with some hard picks.
Smith notched a 14-point, 14-rebound double-double, while rising for two stifling Pelicans rejections.
David Banks-Imagn ImagesThe Bulls chipped in a sparkling 32 assists against a season-low seven turnovers, while enjoying a 25-15 advantage in transition points and a 62-53 rebounding edge. Chicago improves to a 16-17 record with the win, while dropping New Orleans to 8-27.
To kick off 2026, Chicago will finish its six-game United Center homestand with back-to-back bouts against the Orlando Magic and Charlotte Hornets on Friday and Saturday. After this blistering performance, maybe the Bulls can cook up an honest-to-goodness win streak again.
Player of the Game: Trey Jones with 20 points on a perfect 7-of-7 shooting from the field and 5-of-6 shooting from the charity stripe, 12 assists (against a stunning zero turnovers), two rebounds and a +16.
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