One of the fun parts of the infancy stage of the NBA regular season is to see which teams and players enjoy fast starts that take everybody by surprise. It happens every year before Thanksgiving. A few characters have better starts than even the most optimistic members of their fanbase would dream of.

For the 2025-26 regular season, that’s Josh Giddey and the Chicago Bulls. They’re a perfect 5-0. Only the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs are the remaining two undefeated teams still over a week into the new year.

After lengthy contract disputes, Giddey has shown the Bulls that he’s their franchise player. The 23-year-old has averaged 22 points, eight assists and 8.8 rebounds. He’s shot 45.5% from 3 on 4.4 attempts. It remains to be seen if that’s sustainable, but he’s definitely worked himself into early All-Star considerations.

The Bulls’ best start this century has caused their fans to run victory laps online. After being ridiculed for a year in their one-for-one swap with Alex Caruso, Chicago has seen the deal age to the point that it was a win-win at worst for it.

Amid his awesome start, Giddey reflected on his Thunder tenure. While his third season there was filled with frustration, he said it’s all love between both sides. The natural point guard was forced to play an awkward off-ball role as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren surpassed him in the talent hierarchy.

After Giddey scored a career-high 32 points in a 135-125 win over the New York Knicks, he explained why he couldn’t have enjoyed the same success in OKC as a complementary ball-handler.

“I’m in a place where I’m wanted. I love being here. I’m happy being here,” Giddey said. “Having confidence from your teammates to 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 everyone around you, it propels you in the right direction.”

Talent was never the problem for Giddey. It was a classic case where he was in a bad fit situation. The Thunder made the most of it with a first-seed finish and Round 2 playoff run. But he was eventually played off the floor in the postseason and benched.

You couldn’t expect the Thunder to return Giddey to being a primary ball-handler. Gilgeous-Alexander ascended into an MVP winner and NBA champion. Even the 23-year-old himself said that wasn’t a realistic scenario. Instead, a fresh start for both sides would do them some good.

It worked out, to say the least. Caruso was one of OKC’s five most important players in its NBA championship run. The Thunder don’t bring home the Larry O’Brien trophy without his help. He was a seamless fit that energized the league-best defense last year.

Now, two seasons later, everything is going right for Giddey. It’s still the early stages of the season, but the Bulls have to love what they’ve seen from him as their best player. Let’s see if his playoff struggles can be redeemed, but that’s a rich-person problem Chicago will gladly deal with.

“I love when we’ve got other handlers,” Giddey said. “Obviously, the situation was different in Oklahoma City. The personnel they have, they’ve got the best player in the world. You want the ball in his hands. It’s just different situations. I love the guys I get to play with every night.”

Josh Giddey on what’s left him feeling like a more complete player, and specifically as an off-ball guy.

“Confidence. Being in a place where I’m wanted. I love being here. … that’s what you need as a player.

“I love when we’ve got other handlers. …Obviously the situation was… pic.twitter.com/QKobOUiP8k

— Joel Lorenzi (@JoelXLorenzi) November 1, 2025