On Thursday, a 7-0 run got our Chicago Bulls within two points of the Toronto Raptors late. Thankfully, Chicago preserved its losing streak by permitting a 9-0 Raptors response, which shut the door on what would have been an undesired Bulls comeback. Even with Josh Giddey, Jalen Smith and Tre Jones back in action, Chicago happily continued its tank, falling 110-101 to a pseudo-contending Toronto team.
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@ Dan Hamilton-Imagn ImagesBulls Bullets — February 20, 2026
Wes Unseld Jr., subbing in for Billy Donovan, made some surprising lineup decisions all around. His undersized new post-trade deadline starting five comprised Giddey at the point, 6-foot-3 Anfernee Simons at shooting guard, 6-foot-4 Isaac Okoro at small forward, 6-foot-8-but-skinny Matas Buzelis at power forward, and 6-foot-8 Smith at center. The 6-foot-11 Nick Richards, a nice lob threat with real strength inside, could easily be inserted into the starting unit, with Smith, Buzelis and Okoro all shifted down a position and Simons shifted to a bench role. Granted, Simons may be the Bulls’ most dynamic scorer, but he’s an absolute sieve on defense. Richards scored six points on 2-of-2 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 shooting from the charity stripe, pulled down five rebounds and blocked one shot in 12 minutes off the bench. More crucially, however, key “second draft” trade acquisition Jaden Ivey felt the squeeze from a suddenly-healthy Bulls backcourt, and was relegated to being a healthy scratch behind even Rob Dillingham… or was he? Speaking to press postgame, Unseld claimed the move was a “basketball decision,” and emphasized that he wanted to play Giddey and Jones extended minutes while exploring their fit alongside Simons.“Strictly a basketball decision. It’s really hard to play six guards. I wanted to push to see if I could get Josh and Tre’s minutes up,” Unseld said. “I think we were comfortable, given where they’ve been.
“I just felt those guys gave us the best chance. We had some pretty good stretches, pretty good combinations. He was just the odd man out tonight.”
As our pals at BlogABull note, it’s likely that Unseld was acting at the impetus of Donovan — meaning that Ivey might just not be a part of the Bulls’ preferred rotation down the season’s home stretch. This would be a disastrously shortsighted, win-now move for Chicago. Keep in mind, too, that the Bulls aren’t exactly winning now, anyway. The Toronto loss represents Chicago’s seventh straight. With Simons and Collin Sexton both impending free agents anyway, Ivey and Dillingham theoretically represent the most important new Bulls. Chicago needs to see what it has out of these guys, and assess whether either former lottery pick can become a long-term piece alongside the Bulls’ apparent “core” of Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis, Noa Essengue (supposedly) and their 2026 lottery pick. That said, the Bulls wouldn’t be the Bulls without a sneaky injury update, however. Ivey mentioned that he has some knee soreness, per K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network, but he managed to run through a full practice successfully. Whether he should have is anyone’s guess.Here’s some of Jaden Ivey about not playing tonight. He admitted to having some knee soreness, but was available. #Bulls pic.twitter.com/0hDk6HqvMb
— Mike McGraw (@McGrawDHSports) February 20, 2026 Chicago’s offense looked like the work-in-progress it clearly is during the first half, as the Bulls’ typically pass-happy approach struggled with the post-injury guys only now playing next to so much new personnel. Simons’ double-digit scoring helped the Bulls stay within single digits of Toronto at the break, 53-45. Most concerningly, Chicago’s 13 turnovers outpaced the club’s nine assists at the time.This is why I physically can’t watch the games.
(via @cbefred) pic.twitter.com/4j2cdj8H3h
— BullsMuse (@BullsMuse_) February 20, 2026
It’s going to be a brutal few years. Bulls fans will need to track the output of their most promising young pieces — but things get murky when those pieces perform the way Matas Buzelis did on Thursday. He chipped in just four points on 2-of-10 shooting from the floor, while frequently settling for treys; he went a dismal 0-of-7 from beyond the arc. Still, the native Chicagoan may just have the highest upside of any current rostered Bull. As he becomes more of a defensive target on opposing clubs’ scouting reports, the 21-year-old may have a few more games of this ilk. When it comes to Giddey and Jones’ health, the dynamic guards expect to play in both games for this weekend’s back-to-back slate, according to Johnson. Elsewhere in the NBA, Memphis Grizzlies shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope underwent a season-ending surgery on a misaligned right pinky finger, sources inform Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. A two-time league champion with the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets, the 6-foot-5 swingman has a $21.6 million player option for 2026-27. He’ll likely grab it, even if it means he’ll be stuck on the rebuilding Grizzlies for another season.
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