NBA

Oklahoma City Thunder at Chicago Bulls

· National Basketball Association
Final
114 - 95

1-2, 0-1 Home

Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren lead Thunder to easy win over Bulls, 114-95

Jalen Williams added 24 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

Zach LaVine had 22 points and nine rebounds for Chicago. Nikola Vucevic added 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Josh Giddey finished with 14 points and seven rebounds in his first game against the Thunder since an offseason trade to Chicago for Alex Caruso. Oklahoma City granted his request to be dealt after his role in the playoffs was reduced.

Caruso, a popular player during his three seasons with the Bulls, got a standing ovation and waved to the crowd during an early timeout. He checked into the game late in the first quarter and finished with three points in 22 minutes.

Takeaways Thunder: The Thunder are looking good through two games, after earning the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference last year. There was no letdown against Chicago after beating the Nuggets 102-87 in an important game to start the season. Oklahoma City and Denver both finished 57-25 last season, with the Thunder earning the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference by virtue of a tiebreaker.

Bulls: Chicago never found a rhythm after rolling past Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks in Milwaukee on Friday. The Bulls shot 34.8% overall and made just 15 of 53 3-pointers.

Key moment The Thunder ended the first half on a 22-3 run and took a 59-39 lead to the locker room.

Key stat The Bulls cooled off in a big way from 3-point range after making 21 of 47 against Milwaukee. Coby White, coming off a 35-point outing, was 0 for 9 from beyond the arc.

Regular Season Series

OKC leads series 1-0

Matchup Prediction

Bulls: 44.2%
Thunder: 55.8%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 114 - 95
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 114 - 95
4th 21.1 Dalen Terry steps out of bounds turnover 114 - 95
4th 29.1 Talen Horton-Tucker defensive rebound 114 - 95
4th 32.0 Alex Ducas misses 22-foot three point jumper 114 - 95

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/okc.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originOKC https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/chi.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCHI
45-107 FG 32-92
42.1 Field Goal % 34.8
8-40 3PT 15-53
20.0 Three Point % 28.3
16-20 FT 16-22
80.0 Free Throw % 72.7
54 Rebounds 61
9 Offensive Rebounds 11
45 Defensive Rebounds 50
21 Assists 23
15 Steals 6
5 Blocks 2
10 Turnovers 26
0 Team Turnovers 0
10 Total Turnovers 26
1 Technical Fouls 0
1 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 1
10 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 21
16 Fast Break Points 20
64 Points in Paint 30
18 Fouls 19
25 Largest Lead 3

Game Information

United Center

Location: Chicago, IL
Attendance: 20,923 · Capacity:

2024-25 Northwest Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Oklahoma City 3 0 1.000 - W3
Minnesota 2 1 .667 1 W2
Denver 1 2 .333 2 W1
Portland 1 3 .250 2.5 L1
Utah 0 3 .000 3 L3

2024-25 Central Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Cleveland 4 0 1.000 - W4
Chicago 2 2 .500 2 W1
Indiana 1 3 .250 3 L3
Milwaukee 1 3 .250 3 L3
Detroit 0 4 .000 4 L4
Full Standings

NBA News

Hawks' Bogdan Bogdanovic out at least month due to hamstring

Hawks' Bogdan Bogdanovic out at least month due to hamstring

Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, who hasn't played since the season opener because of a hamstring injury, underwent a non-surgical procedure Tuesday and will be re-evaluated in approximately four weeks.

Shams: 76ers fined for misrepresenting Embiid's health

Shams: 76ers fined for misrepresenting Embiid's health

Shams Charania reports on the 76ers being fined $100K for misrepresenting Joel Embiid's health.

Rudy Gay announces retirement after 17 NBA seasons

Rudy Gay announces retirement after 17 NBA seasons

Check out the numbers behind Rudy Gay's 17-season NBA career.

76ers fined $100K for statements about Joel Embiid's health

76ers fined $100K for statements about Joel Embiid's health

The 76ers have been fined $100,000 by the NBA for public statements made by coach Nick Nurse and president of basketball operations Daryl Morey about the health status of Joel Embiid.

Warriors' Andrew Wiggins (back strain) out vs. Pelicans

Warriors' Andrew Wiggins (back strain) out vs. Pelicans

Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins will miss Tuesday night's matchup against the Pelicans because of a lower back strain.