Hope is a dangerous thing, particularly in this dark age of Chicago sports.
For the city’s five big franchises – the Bulls, Bears, Blackhawks, White Sox and Cubs – the past few years have mostly been spent either mired in the wasteland of irrelevance or buried in the depraved depths of self-pity.
Watch NBA with ESPN on Kayo Sports | Stream an average 9 LIVE Regular Season games per week plus the best of the NBA Playoffs.| New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.
And after 2024, when they lost a combined 62.5 per cent of their games in the calendar year, the golden age of Michael Jordan and six championships couldn’t have felt so far away.
As for this year? The Blackhawks are on the up and playing a brand of hockey that is watchable, if not downright entertaining. But still, there is a sense it may not quite be sustainable.
The Bears, meanwhile, continue to find new ways to let everyone down after following up four-straight wins with a complete and utter letdown against the Snoop Huntley-led Ravens.
As for their most recent win against the Bengals, it didn’t even feel like a win considering how close they went to throwing it away.
The 2025 season was done a long time ago for the White Sox, and never reached any great heights, although it was an improvement on the disaster that was 2024, while the Cubs won a playoffs series for the first time in eight years.
Which brings us back to the Bulls and that dangerous thing called hope. Because after opening a season 5-0 for the first time since 1996-97, when winning and Jordan were synonymous with Chicago sports, there is finally a reason to actually have hope.
Hope that these aren’t the same old Bulls who, at least for the past few years, have been forever stuck on the treadmill of mediocrity.
MORE: Josh Giddey erupts for career day against the Knicks
Vibes are good in Chicago. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)Source: AP
While they are no longer undefeated, with the Bulls going down 128-116 to the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, it at least means expectations can be somewhat kept in check.
And with games against the 76ers, Bucks, Cavaliers and Pistons to come in the next fortnight, we should soon have a clearer idea of whether Monday’s loss to New York was just a blip on the radar or a regression back towards the Bulls of old.
But even in defeat, this still didn’t feel like the Bulls of old, especially when you consider the Knicks shot at a 47.6 per cent clip from beyond the arc.
It is going to be hard to beat any team when they are shooting like that, let alone when you are without two of your top scoring options in Coby White and Ayo Dosunmo.
What the Bulls did have on Monday, however, was Josh Giddey and for the eighth time in Chicago colours, he recorded a triple-double.
For every point Giddey racks up, every rebound he gobbles up and every dime he dishes out, the 23-year-old is earning all $100 million ($A154m) of the four-year contract he signed in the summer.
And after fellow Australian Dyson Daniels took home the award last year, Giddey is now the betting favourite to be crowned the NBA’s Most Improved Player.
So, what is real and not real from Chicago’s red-hot start to the season?
Is Giddey poised to take another leap in his development and if so, what does it mean for his standing in the league?
And are the Bulls not the same middle-of-the-road team they were pinned as during the pre-season?
Giddey shines for the Bulls AGAIN | 00:31
Before looking more specifically at Giddey and how he has transformed his game, it is first important to consider how he fits into Chicago’s new-look system, which is built on running, cutting and ball movement.
Giddey, of course, is the perfect player to mould that kind of offence around but it also requires buy-in from the entire playing group and at the moment, coach Billy Donovan is getting the most out of a roster that isn’t necessarily as talented as others in the Eastern Conference.
With that in mind, Donovan said after they went 5-0 that he wasn’t getting too far ahead of himself because he knew the Bulls’ new play style requires a level of dedication and commitment that is hard to sustain over an 82-game season.
It is no coincidence that Giddey brought up last year’s NBA Finalists, the Indiana Pacers, when discussing Chicago’s new pace-and-space offence with reporters recently.
“We’re not really an isolation team,” the Australian said.
“We’re a team that moves the ball, cuts, drives, gets into the paint. We’re playing at a pretty high rate, so obviously transition’s our number one and if that’s not there, then you get into the halfcourt and you’ve got to be able to move the ball.
“For us, it’s all about ball movement, playing out of blur screens, handoffs, cuts, paint touches, and we’re done a really good job.
“I think we’ve made teams have to defend. They have to get back and it’s tiring to guard that for 48 minutes. It’s a luxury having depth, where our starting unit comes out, our bench unit comes in and the pace doesn’t drop off at all.
“It’s exhausting. I’ve been on the other side, playing Indiana. It’s exhausting playing against them because of how much they run. I can only imagine what it’s like playing against us.”
Matas Buzelis suits Chicago’s playing style. Michael Reaves/Getty Images/AFPSource: AFP
There was plenty of talk in the offseason that some teams could look to follow the Indiana blueprint, prioritising a deep roster that would allow them to cycle through players who maintain a relentless level of pace and physicality that eventually wears the opposition down.
That is exactly what it has been like playing the Bulls early this season and this is of course without their most potent scoring threat, injured guard Coby White, who also thrives pushing the pace in transition and getting to the rim.
He will also, of course, only improve Chicago’s spacing as a career 36.9 per cent 3-point shooter even if he can be a tad inconsistent there.
But even without White, the Bulls have a distinct identity and while it may feel new given the different energy around this playing group, it is really just building on what Donovan already put in place last year.
The Bulls finished second in the league in pace last season and while they rank tied seventh now, their 102.9 possessions per 48 minutes are actually more than the 102.83 they recorded last season.
But if you want more proof of the constant player and ball movement that has made the Bulls offence so potent this season, you only have to look at their assist numbers which rank at the top of the league (30.2 assist per game and 20.6 assist ratio).
Chicago also ranks tied third in defensive rebounds per game (36.2), with Giddey and Nikola Vucevic seventh and fifth inside the top seven in that category among all players in the NBA.
Josh Giddey is thriving in Chicago. Sarah Stier/Getty Images/AFPSource: AFP
That again helps the Bulls quickly get the ball back up the court, especially with guards like Giddey and Tre Jones, whose outlet passes turn those rebounds into layups before the defence is even able to get back.
Chicago’s 34.2 points per game in transition, meanwhile, rank first in the league and while they are second with 60.5 drives, only 54 per cent of their points come off them — which rates the 10th-fewest.
That again, speaks to why they rank last in the league in isolation possessions per game (3.2). As good as Giddey has been, this isn’t a team with a clear focal point or go-to superstar who can win in one-on-one match-ups.
So more often than not it is death by a thousand cuts for opposition teams, with constant driving and screening eventually leading to 3-pointers as was the case for Giddey in the win against the Knicks last week.
In a lot of ways it is an offensive system that requires its player to be selfless, and Donovan revealed after Chicago’s win over Orlando that Giddey — despite being the current face of the franchise and fresh off signing a $100 million extension — is leading from the front in that regard.
Giddey entered that game for Jones with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter and when Donovan called a timeout with the Bulls leading 99-92, he did so with the plan of keeping the Australian in the game and pulling back-up point guard Ayo Dosunmu.
Giddey had other ideas.
“I think the chemistry on the team in terms of their relationships are really good on and off the court,” Donovan told reporters.
“I just appreciate the sacrifice… I didn’t close with Josh, I was going to put him back in (but) when Ayo made that three he said, ‘Let him keep playing, he’s going well’. I agree with him. I think it was the right thing. Maybe if Ayo hadn’t made that shot he would have gone in the game but it speaks to Josh caring about winning and caring about his teammates.”
That selfless attitude, which is a feature of the entire playing group, is perhaps best illustrated by the fact the Bulls have had at least six players score double figures in all six of their games to open the season.
“Having depth is massive,” Giddey said.
“The best teams can go nine or 10 deep without a drop-off. That group was playing well, so I wanted to let them finish, and they closed it out perfectly.
“Depth’s a big luxury for us — especially with how fast we play. When a lineup’s clicking, you let them go. We’ve got a selfless group that just wants to win.”
Giddey Triple-Double in Bulls loss | 00:53
The depth of talent the Bulls have on the roster is worth highlighting again too.
After being a constant source of trade rumours, Nikola Vucevic has been a key piece of Chicago’s early success.
Matas Buzelis looks ready to take another leap in his second year as the perfect player for this system, who both attacks the rim with force and can knock down catch-and-shoot 3-pointers.
Isaac Okoro is an important defensive piece, while Patrick Williams — another one constantly brought up in trade rumours — looks on the verge of finally putting it all together.
Kevin Huerter has been a solid scoring option off the bench, Tre Jones looks rejuvenated in his return to Chicago and Dosunmu has formed a dynamic connection with Jones when they share the backcourt while spacing the floor to open up the defence for others.
Speaking of the defence, the Bulls have been surprisingly effective on that end of the floor to open the season, although that looks less likely to be sustainable given their first four opponents shot just 26.7 per cent from 3-point land.
Donovan said the idea has been to force teams into contested shots, so the Bulls do deserve some credit but that number was always bound to regress with the Knicks shooting over 40 per cent in both of their games against Chicago.
But either way, with White soon to return and Giddey playing at an All-Star level, for the first time in what feels like a long time, there is a reason for the Bulls to be optimistic about the direction this franchise is heading in.
And at the moment, wherever that may take them, it looks like Giddey will be the centrepiece of it all.
Giddey is the centrepiece of it all. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
That was despite there being many critics of the four-year, $100 million ($A153m) contract the Bulls handed Giddey in the offseason.
Chicago hardly rushed to give Giddey that contract though. In fact, it was only after a drawn-out negotiation process that both sides met in the middle.
The Bulls were smart to wait as long as they did considering there weren’t any other teams with the salary cap space to pose a genuine threat in a potential bidding war for Giddey.
Really, the only risk was that Giddey would take the qualifying offer and essentially bet on himself before entering free agency next summer.
Given the question marks over his shooting and defence, there was no guarantee it would pay off.
But at the same time, if the growth Giddey showed on both fronts after the All-Star break last season were a sign of what was to come, it could have cost the Bulls in the long run.
With the way Giddey has opened this season, even if it is admittedly an incredibly small sample size, you have to think there would be a serious market for his signature had he taken the qualifying offer.
But it is hard to say Giddey would have definitely been performing the way he has so far had his playing future beyond this season been in question.
After all, Giddey himself told reporters after the win over the Knicks on Saturday that there is a certain freedom to being “in a place where I’m wanted”.
“Being in a place where, obviously the contract stuff is out the way now, that’s off my back this season. I’m in a place where I’m wanted,” Giddey said.
“I love being here. I’m happy here. I think having confidence from your teammates and your coaches to trust me to go out there and make plays. That’s what you need as a player. When you have the belief of everybody around you it propels you in the right direction.”
Giddey has no bad blood with OKC | 01:03
At the rate Giddey is going, that could include his first All-Star selection.
While he may feel “wanted” in Chicago, that isn’t to say he didn’t feel that way in Oklahoma City.
Giddey never spoke a bad word about any of his teammates or staff at the Thunder. In fact, it was the opposite and they were just as complimentary in return, even if things didn’t work out the way either party would have hoped.
Giddey just wasn’t the right fit in a predominantly off-ball role at Oklahoma City and when the possibility of coming off the bench was brought up, he decided a change of scenery was best for both him and the Thunder.
It was one of those rare moments where Giddey, otherwise always the selfless type to do what is right by the team, had to put himself and his career ambitions first.
Although considering what Alex Caruso provided the Thunder in the playoffs last year, you could argue he was doing right by the team anyway, especially if he wasn’t 100 per cent committed to that new role.
But either way, it was a decision that has now pocketed Giddey $100 million and in a Bulls offence that is built around his strengths, the Australian is thriving.
“I think Giddey is a little underrated in how good he is going to elevate the floor of your offence,” Adam Mares said on ‘The Kevin O’Connor Show’.
“He’s going to get the ball up the floor quickly, you’re going to get into transition which is something they do really well. Even in the halfcourt, it’s that he can get you into your offence quickly so you’re operating with a full shot-clock every possession, even in the halfcourt, which is really valuable.”
Giddey has made significant strides. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)Source: AP
While Giddey made significant leaps as a 3-point shooter at the end of last season, it was hard to parse just how real the strides he made were.
After all, it isn’t like all teams in the NBA are playing their best basketball at that time of year.
But even if there are only six games to work off so far this season, the early indications are that Giddey is at bare minimum no longer the shooting liability he once was and that is important if this Bulls team has playoff ambitions considering the way he was played off the court in Oklahoma City.
Giddey is shooting at 40.7 per cent from downtown on 4.5 attempts per game and while developing a reliable off-the-dribble 3-pointer will be the next step in unlocking his full potential, Giddey is looking plenty confident on catch-and-shoot threes.
To that effect, NBA analyst Zach Lowe said on his podcast that Giddey’s catch-and-shoot three “appears to be a real thing”.
“He’s not just completely ignored off the ball and on the ball.”
Giddey has improved as a shooter. Michael Reaves/Getty Images/AFPSource: AFP
But that isn’t the “big transformation” in Giddey’s game. Instead, according to Lowe, that can be seen in just how “much more confident” he is playing into “his physicality and his strength”.
“If you go under picks against him, which is the default defence against him daring him to shoot, he’s become so much aggressive at just zoom, beating you to the spot or if it’s a tie, just nudging you out with his shoulder and going up for floaters or once he gets that separation by hitting people, the other defenders come and sense a problem and then he starts spraying it out.
“You put him with a five-out centre, and Vooch is a decent five-out centre, and give him space to work with… Giddey can do a lot of damage.”
In a similar vein, Sporting News writer Steph Noh called the increased physicality Giddey is playing with the “biggest development” in his game this season.
SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell, meanwhile, singled out one particular Giddey drive against the Knicks to underline just how the Australian is finally leaning into using his 6-foot-8 frame to his advantage.
Giddey is averaging 16.5 drives per game, which ranks fifth in the NBA, while his 6.0 free throws attempted per game are a marked improvement on the 3.2 he averaged last season.
Donovan said he had a conversation with Giddey in the preseason, not just about getting to the rim more often but cutting out some of the low-percentage mid-range shots he was settling for last year.
“Most players, not just him, don’t shoot a great percentage on those kind of shots,” Donovan said.
“But we need him downhill.”
Giddey did exactly that in his career game against the Knicks and was especially effective in the first half on his way to 21 points, with Donovan crediting the Australian for being the “catalyst” in their early success.
“Even in plays he wasn’t involved,” the Bulls coach added.
“The kick-ahead passes that helped us get on the break to help create some advantages… I thought all the way around he played a great game.”
Donovan said Giddey has been “very open to exploring everything” from being a screener and roller to being flexible in playing both on and off the ball.
Josh Giddey dazzles in masterful showing | 00:38
“There’s nothing I don’t think he physically can do. He can do everything,” Donovan added.
But as for Giddey’s confidence shooting the ball, Donovan said the biggest difference is he is now taking the “right” shots.
“He’s taking really good shots where his feet are under him and he’s set and he’s able to get it off,” added Donovan.
“I do think from a young player standpoint coming all the way from Australia, the speed and pace of an NBA game is probably a lot different from what he had seen.
“So he’s probably figured some of that.”
It is also still easy to forget that Giddey is only 23 years old and that even this version of him is far from the finished product.
He may still be a few years away from really putting it all together and, coincidentally, that could come just as he hits free agency entering the prime of his career.
But that is a problem for another day, and it may not even be a problem for the Bulls if they continue on an upwards trajectory and don’t give Giddey a reason to question his future in Chicago.
For now, he is playing the best basketball of his career and, even if it is early, the verdict is clear: Giddey is clearly outplaying his contract.
