Still celebrating the win over the Milwaukee Bucks yesterday, and the Chicago Bulls are back in action tonight.
The Bulls’ home opener for the 2026-27 season tips off a little over 24 hours after Chicago got their first win of the season. And coming in as the away team, also on the second night of their back-to-back, is the Washington Wizards.
We’re still yet to see a great Bulls game, and I doubt we’ll get one this soon. But the schedule only gets harder from tonight, and a win could be the best result we see for a little while.
Norman Powell Bulls vs Bucks. Mandatory Credit: Brad Repplinger-Imagn ImagesGame Info
Chicago Bulls (1-1) vs Washington Wizards (1-1) – 7:00 p.m. CT on Chicago Sports Network (TV) and 104.3 The Score (Radio)
Chicago Bulls
Josh Giddey Norman Powell Matas Buzelis Caleb Wilson Jalen SmithWashington Wizards
Trae Young Bilal Coulibaly Keyshawn George Anthony Davis Alex SarrGame Lines
The Bulls are 1.5-point underdogs at home against the the Wizards, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
Clutch Caleb Wilson Leads Bulls to First Win! 132-125 vs. the BucksBleacher Nation Fantasy
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What To Watch For
The first back-to-back of the season for Chicago and the first game at home, as the Bulls host the Washington Wizards tonight. Both teams come in with a 1-1 record, and hilariously enough, both teams beat the Milwaukee Bucks and lost to the Toronto Raptors. So, no defining edge so far. The Bulls, last night, won their first game of the season against the Bucks in Milwaukee, 132-125. A rough start to the game that Chicago eventually got the hang of by the end. Defense was scarce, but the Bulls had balanced production from the whole team, with seven players scoring in double digits. Almost all of those points came in waves, which meant that at any point, the Bulls were always scoring. That depth is what makes Chicago a dangerous team, and tonight, against a Wizards team that is a bit more top-heavy, depth could be key in running them out of the gym.Getting buckets in Milwaukee. t.co/lnqwdhLQBC pic.twitter.com/3hKEpefFzK
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) October 24, 2026 It wasn’t a pretty win last night, and it all started in the first quarter. Over the last two games, it has felt like Jalen Smith is the only one who realizes the game is on in the first quarter. A strong start for the Bulls would make a win so much easier when they don’t have to spend the rest of the game chasing. And in both their games so far, it was because in that opening quarter, the Bulls played very unorganized basketball. There is a possibility we see that again tonight, which would not guarantee any success against Washington. The biggest talking point last night was x.com/KCJHoop/status/2113767615646560685?s=20Tiago Splitter benching Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis in a game that went down to the wire. Both of them haven’t been providing too much to winning recently, and Splitter was willing to run the guys who would. Yes, development of these players is key, but if rookie Caleb Wilson and second-year player Noa Essengue are being aggressive in their roles, there isn’t much room to argue for Matas and Josh. Tiago did say that while the starting lineup may stay relatively unchanged tonight, it doesn’t guarantee you’ll play when the game is on the line. A chip on the shoulder for the two “best” players on the team last season.Tiago on his approach to the starting and closing lineups: "You've got to see, game-by-game, who's going to finish the game. But you cannot change the starting lineup every time a guy plays well or plays bad. If not, you go crazy, you change every game." pic.twitter.com/xgg5vQjIK0
— Will Gottlieb (@WillGottlieb) October 23, 2026 Last night, we saw huge performances from Norman Powell, Jalen Smith, Tre Jones, Leonard Miller, Isaac Okoro and Caleb Wilson, who could become big-minute grabbers in Splitter’s rotation if they continue that tonight against the Washington Wizards. A first impression is always the one that sticks, and good, consistent performances on back-to-back nights help that massively. The Washington Wizards themselves are kicking off a new era, one that doesn’t lead them to the bottom of the NBA standings again. And they hope to do that by signing former NBA All-Stars and All-NBA players in Trae Young and Anthony Davis, who’ve looked great in their two games so far. They both have their weaknesses too, with Young’s defense and Davis’ vulnerability. But Alex Sarr and Keyshawn George’s skill sets around them have made those weaknesses a bit less noticeable. The Bulls will have their hands full tonight guarding those four guys, so much so that Zach Collins was DNP’d last night to keep him available today.Tiago Splitter said it’s likely Zach Collins plays Saturday vs. Wizards in home opener because of matchups and size of their frontcourt
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) October 23, 2026 The biggest narrative of tonight should have been Number 1 pick AJ Dybantsa vs. Number 4 pick Caleb Wilson. But Dybantsa has missed both his games so far and is OUT again tonight with an ankle injury. Caleb always seems to turn it up when he is playing one of the three guys drafted ahead of him, and if AJ would’ve suited up tonight, beating him on his debut would done wonders for Caleb Wilson’s ROTY case.Breaking: AJ Dybantsa will miss the Wizards season opener against the Bucks, head coach Brian Keefe announced.He will be day-to-day with an ankle injury. pic.twitter.com/ujYJ30rZyz
— ESPN (@espn) October 20, 2026Injury Report
Chicago Bulls
Nicolas Claxton OUT (hamstring) Noa Essengue OUT (head)Washington Wizards
AJ Dybantsa OUT (ankle) Tristan Vukcevic OUT (hip) Jamir Watkins OUT (knee)Hence then, the article about home opener pre gamin bulls vs wizard 7 pm ct projected lineups how to watch more was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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