Too Little, too Late; the New Orleans Pelicans Defeat the Chicago Bulls (Again) —114-104.

“Started off strong; ended game weak. Seems to be a trend; every d**n week.” —
Get the On Tap Recap, from the rematch inside the Madhouse on Madison below:

The Chicago Bulls fall (yet again) to the New Orleans Pelicans: 114-104.

Déjà vu

In eerily similar fashion to the Bulls’ last matchup with New Orleans —
the Bulls got off to a hot start, but fizzled out and were cooled down en route to a disheartening loss.

Unlike their previous matchup, the Bulls didn’t get completely bullied in this one. They got outrebounded 39-30, but showed a lot more effort battling inside, grabbing 13 offensive rebounds to the Pelicans’ 14.

Both teams shot miserably from outside; Chicago shot a lowly 26.5%(13 of 49), and New Orleans didn’t do any better; going eight of 33 (24.2%). With 12 lead changes, and the game being tied nine times, the battle essentially came down to which team had the hot hand longer.

Story continues below.

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The biggest lead for New Orleans was 15, with the Bulls’ biggest lead being eight.

It was a back-and-forth affair, and a much better showing than their matchup from November 24th —
but in what seems to be a trend for the Bulls as of late — they just couldn’t get the job done.

“It’s a simple game”

Dec 14, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) drives to the basket against New Orleans Pelicans center Derik Queen (22) during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn ImagesCredit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Chicago opened the game with noticeably more energy than in recent performances. The Bulls aggressively attacked the paint and surprised the Pelicans by dominating the offensive glass, grabbing nine offensive rebounds to New Orleans’ two. Patrick Williams made an impact off the bench, leading the Bulls in scoring early with six points on two consecutive three-pointers.

Nikola Vučević tried to set the tone early by collecting five of his eight total rebounds in the first quarter alone. He also made a noticeable effort to attack the basket, putting the ball on the floor and working in the post. It was nice to see him opt for more looks inside, as opposed to jacking up shots from outside — while being the tallest player on the floor.

There’s a center that does that last part exceptionally well, but he resides in San Antonio — not Chicago. 

As commentator and former Bull Stacey King often says, “It’s a simple game,” but for these Bulls, last night’s contest was anything but simple. The Bulls shot an efficient 46.7% (7 of 15) from inside the arc in the quarter, and only four of 16 from outside of it. You would think that would encourage them to continue to work inside the paint, and shoot less from outside, for the remainder of the game — right? 
Think again.

different day; same bulls.

Dec 14, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jordan Poole (3) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls guard Kevin Huerter (13) during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn ImagesCredit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Chicago got worked in the second quarter.

Yet again,
the Bulls’ inability to consistently matchup with the size of their opponents seemed to be their downfall.

New Orleans dominated the glass, outrebounding Chicago 20-7 and collecting eight offensive rebounds while the Bulls managed none. The Pelicans also took control in the paint, flipping the script by attacking inside and converting nine of 19 attempts around the rim.

Meanwhile, the Bulls strayed from the inside-focused approach that earned them a 26-21 first-quarter lead. Instead, they settled for 13 three-point attempts—making only two—and took just six shots from inside the arc, abandoning the strategy that had brought them early success.

The Pelicans took a 52-47 lead going into halftime.

“bears, beets, battle-star galictibulls”

Dec 14, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey (3) fouls New Orleans Pelicans guard Jordan Poole (3) during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn ImagesCredit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

To the Bulls’ credit, they definitely did battle back in this one. 

They came out of the break and outscored the Pelicans 28-24 in the third quarter.

Josh Giddey, limited to around eight minutes in the first half due to early foul trouble, made a significant impact for the Bulls when he returned. He scored nine points in the quarter and grabbed several timely offensive rebounds, helping to spark the team’s offense.

The Bulls also regained control on the boards, outrebounding the Pelicans 14-10 and snagging three offensive rebounds while allowing none. They also reverted to their first-quarter strategy of attacking the basket, converting an impressive eight of 11 two-point attempts.

Between going on a 16-2 run, and the Madhouse on Madison breaking out into “Green Bay Sucks” chants at one point (shoutout to our Bears on Tap crew) — the Bulls seemed to regain some serious momentum heading into the fourth, closing the quarter only trailing by one point.