Oh my god! Try not to smile, but the Chicago Bulls are just two losses away from a top-eight pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. After a loss to the Denver Nuggets last night, the Bulls crept closer to the bottom of the standings, and honestly, they still played a good brand of basketball.
Up next on the calendar, the Bulls have two more games before the league hits pause for the All-Star break. Wouldn’t it be a beautiful weekend spent with loved ones, knowing a top-eight pick is on the way? Come on, Chicago, you know what needs to be done.
Let’s talk Bulls basketball.
David Banks-Imagn Images If you told me to guess, before tip-off last night against the third seed in the Western Conference, whether Chicago had a chance, I’d pick the Nuggets ten times out of ten without a second thought. But once the game actually started, I found myself second-guessing that opinion into oblivion. The Bulls controlled a game in which they somehow lacked control of their own structure and team depth. They even held a lead at the top of the fourth quarter before letting it slip away. And no — Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray weren’t injured or having off nights. Yet Chicago stayed competitive. Honestly, it was a very promising sight to see. Ignoring the lowlights of course.If you don’t like that you don’t like Chicago Bulls basketball pic.twitter.com/94gf1q8Gvr
— Barstool Chicago (@barstoolchicago) February 8, 2026 Let’s talk about the guys who made their Bulls debuts, starting with “Young Bull” Collin Sexton. With that nickname alone, you knew he’d fit the ideal version of a Chicago Bull. He finished his debut with a low-efficiency 17 points, four rebounds, and three assists. His hands weren’t the safest, and his shot selection was definitely questionable. But he brought momentum plays to the UC. A couple of and-ones and plenty of bank shots, Sexton was the guy making plays that either sparked runs or added fuel to them. It wasn’t a great game by any stretch, but I already see a role for him on this team this season: get the crowd excited, make things happen, and occasionally make the kind of plays that give a game away. This might be an overreaction, but it already feels like he should be part of the tank this year, and part of the roster until the moment the Bulls actually want to start winning. Next up is Rob Dillingham, and I’ll be honest: I was wrong. I don’t know what kind of lock and key they had him under in Minnesota, but I haven’t seen him move like he did last night since his college run. He also put up an inefficient nine points, but added four assists, three rebounds, and a steal in 20 minutes. He was playing free and fun. His handle, his footwork, the moves before the shot, it all flashed serious potential. As of today, it’s hard to know who sticks in the Bulls’ long-term plans, but one thing I know for sure is that I can’t count Rob out anytime soon.Rob Dilly setting up the lob to Nick Richards!@iamnickrichards | @CHSN__ pic.twitter.com/kzbbRnEDsV
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) February 8, 2026 And finally, Nick Richards. This man isn’t young, but we already knew he was a solid big. Before getting buried in the depths of Phoenix’s rotation, he put up respectable numbers for a traditional center. So it’s no surprise to see him come in and do the dirty work, rebounding, setting screens, rim running. On a guard-heavy team, he’s going to get plenty of shots at the rim and lob attempts. And on top of all that, he hit a three in his first game with the Bulls, after making just one three in his previous 258 NBA games. If that’s something he even slightly adds to his arsenal next season, he becomes a very intriguing sign-and-trade asset. And honestly, the Bulls should let him build that value all the way up. The other guys, Anfernee Simons, Jaden Ivey, and Guerschon Yabusele, weren’t the efficient versions of themselves we saw in their debuts. Combined, the three of them made just 12 field goals and missed 23. Yikes. Again, I get that a loss is technically a good thing, but man, a little consistency would be nice to bank on. Lose the games, just don’t tank your value. © Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images Yabusele didn’t seem distraught by his four-of-13 night from the field or his inability to slow down Nikola Jokic. He’s probably just happy to be hooping, and even starting, on an NBA team after being out of the league for a couple of years. He already took to X to send a message to Bulls fans, telling them how much he loves the city. A bit of a premature reaction, sure, but I’ll always love a guy who’s honest about how he feels.Thanks for the warm welcome Chi-Town! Couldn't get the win for the first one at home but we will get better. I'm proud to wear this jersey and I love this team already ✊?❤️ #777
— Guerschon Yabusele (@yabusele28) February 8, 2026 In the Bulls postgame presser, two things really caught my eyes and ears, and both revolved around Matas Buzelis. The first was Billy Donovan talking about how he’s handled Matas while he deals with the inconsistency of a brand-new roster, midseason, just in his second year in the league. He spoke about how Matas still hasn’t fully grasped what’s happening yet and is still “digesting” it all. Honestly, it’s probably good that he’s being exposed to this so early, because it doesn’t look like this team is headed toward any real roster stability anytime soon.Billy opens up about missing some of the guys that were traded, and how Matas is navigating the change“I’m a little bit sensitive to that…I think he’s still a little bit digesting that, quite honestly” pic.twitter.com/m0jPh93QJ0
— Will Gottlieb (@Will_Gottlieb) February 8, 2026 The other thing that stood out was seeing Matas — a rookie just last season — already acting like a vet, handing out advice to the younger guys about Billy’s… adventurous rotations. We all know youth and development aren’t exactly Donovan’s priorities, often to his, and the team’s, detriment. Matas has already gotten the short end of the stick there, and we saw a bit of the same with Noa Essengue before he went down with injury. Turns out Matas had been advised by Zach LaVine that he might only get five minutes a night, and that those five minutes are where you have to absolutely ball out if you want to earn a real spot in the rotation. He took that message and passed it down to his current teammates, getting them aligned with the reality, and expectations, of playing for Billy.Matas knows better than most about how to handle Billy Donovan’s way of coaching young players’ mistakes. Asked him what advice he gave Dillingham: “I told him be aggressive. If you get subbed out, you get subbed out. Just what it is.” Said he passed along the advice Zach… pic.twitter.com/vafM4HwhLY
— Joel Lorenzi (@JoelXLorenzi) February 8, 2026MORE BULLS FROM BLEACHER NATION: Go Ad Free | Subscribe to the BN Newsletter
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