Game Recap: Bulls close out preseason with win over Timberwolves

Dustin Riese · Senior Writer · 3 hours ago

CHICAGO - Just like that, the regular season is upon us as the Chicago Bulls closed out the preseason on Thursday with a game at the United Center. Looking to close things out on a positive note, the Bulls welcomed the Minnesota Timberwolves to town in what ended up being a great contest.

This was one of those games where both teams not only emptied their benches but also saw most players expected to play see plenty of time on the court. The result was a 126-120 come-from-behind win for the Bulls as they closed out their preseason slate with a 3-2 record. That alone is promising enough for a team not expected to win more than 33 games this season, but this team closed out last season with a 14-6 mark and has proven time and again that it has enough talent to make things difficult for its opponents.

As has been the case all preseason long, Matas Buzelis was a man on a mission, and if this preseason has taught us anything, it would be that he does appear poised to have a breakout season. Tonight was a rather strange line for Buzelis as the second-year man recorded just one assist and one rebound, as that is typically a massive part of his game. What he did well was score a game-high 19 points, which will enter the regular season with tons of confidence.

Buzelis was one of four starters to land in double figures with Jalen Smith, Josh Giddey, and Nikola Vucevic all backing him up. Smith had the best game of his preseason slate with 15 points, as did Vucevic, who may not have scored as many points as he would've liked, but with 13 points and 10 boards, he finally got into his regular-season groove that he needs to be in.

Josh Giddey rounded out the starting five with 14 points, adding nine assists and seven boards for a near double-double. While the starting lineup was busy doing their thing on the court, it was the Bulls' bench who did a great job sparking the comeback as they shouldered the load late.

That included Julian Phillips, whose 17-point, six-rebound night helped spark the fourth-quarter comeback, and one in which the Bulls outscored Minnesota 40-31. Zach Collins (10 points) and Jevon Carter (12 points) added to the list of double-digit scorers as the Bulls' offense was certainly up to the task today.

Preseason or not, Anthony Edwards doesn't take days off, and the Chicago Bulls were on the wrong end of another strong outing. His 25 points led all scorers, while his seven rebounds and five assists demonstrated what he can bring to the table. Julius Randle joined in with 23 points and eight boards, with Rudy Gobert 16 points and eight boards, giving the Timberwolves a strong three-man game from the jump.

When those three guys score at the clip they did in this one, good things happen for Minnesota, and plenty of wins will pile up because of that. Had it not been for those three doing their part to keep things close, the Timberwolves would've gotten blown out as the Bulls' offense took their best punches only to battle back.

Like Chicago, most of Minnesota's success stemmed from its starting five, but this is another team with an extremely deep bench, and that showed the Bulls how deep it can be. Typically, Donte DiVincenzo leads the Timberwolves' second unit, but with nine points on a rough night shooting, others were going to have to pick up the slack.

That is where Terrance Shannon Jr. and Rob Dillingham come into play, as they combined for 27 points and 15 assists off the bench in what was a tough loss for them and an excellent win for the Bulls. Chicago will now get some extra rest before kicking things off for real next Wednesday against the Detroit Pistons.