The Chicago Bulls welcomed back a two-way guard, and DePaul coach Chris Holtmann gave the Blue Demons something good to talk about in this week’s Chicago basketball report.
Every Tuesday, Tribune writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead — for the Bulls, Sky and local college basketball teams. Want more? Sign up for our Tribune sports newsletter.
Yuki Kawamura makes a return to the court
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Tyrese Proctor tries to stop Chicago Bulls guard Yuki Kawamura during a preseason game at the United Center on Oct. 9, 2025. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)
After three months away from the game, two-way guard Yuki Kawamura made a full return Thursday with the Windy City Bulls in a dominant 131-104 win over the San Diego Clippers.
Kawamura was waived by the Bulls earlier this season while recovering from a blood clot, but remained in Chicago for the entirety of his treatment and earned another two-way contract immediately upon medical clearance to return to play. He came off the bench for Windy City in Thursday’s game, racking up seven assists.
The Bulls have worked through the majority of their guard deficiency after suffering a series of injuries at the position earlier this season. Starting point guard Josh Giddey practiced Sunday with Windy City and could return to practice with the Bulls later this week if he continues to experience limited discomfort after missing several weeks with a hamstring strain. This means that Kawamura likely won’t see minutes with the Bulls on his two-way contract; however, coach Billy Donovan has not ruled out the possibility if the team suffers backcourt injuries again in the future.
Chris Holtmann’s promise
DePaul head coach Chris Holtmann gestures during a game against UConn, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Hartford, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
Chris Holtmann and the DePaul men’s basketball team gave the Blue Demons some good PR in the same week the news broke of a game-fixing scandal involving a former team.
In an indictment that became public Thursday, four former DePaul men’s basketball players were alleged to have taken thousands of dollars in bribes to purposely underperform in the first halves of three Big East games during the 2023-24 season.
The game-fixing scandal, part of a scheme allegedly involving 39 players on 17 NCAA Division I teams, happened before DePaul hired Holtmann in March 2024.
Holtmann is trying to help turn around the program that lost 39-straight regular-season Big East games up until last January — including some that were alleged to have been fixed.
On Friday, one day after the news of the indictment broke, DePaul beat Marquette 80-75, its first win in the series since March 2022. That stretched the Blue Demons’ home winning streak at Wintrust Arena to three games, all in the Big East. It’s a small number but significant given the Blue Demons were just 4-16 in conference play last season, Holtmann’s first. They are now 11-7, 3-4, with two of the conference losses to No. 2 Connecticut.
After the game, Holtmann posted on social media: “Highest student attendance in the history of Wintrust and one of the largest crowds!!! Thank you!!! First round on me at Kelly’s Pub near campus. See you in 35 min!”
He kept his word. At 12:52 a.m., DePaul posted a video on social media of Holtmann sitting on a bar, announcing he would buy the first round for students and then passing around a bucket of beer.
On Monday, senior guard CJ Gunn was named Big East player of the week after he scored a career-high 31 points, including seven 3-pointers, against Marquette. Gunn is averaging 14.5 points per game on 45.3% shooting.
Number of the week: 14.6
Chicago Bulls forward Isaac Okoro tips the ball against the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Matt Marton)
The Bulls rank second-to-last in the NBA in deflections, managing only 14.6 per game. They outpace only the Charlotte Hornets, who tally 14.5 per game, and have regularly sat at the bottom of the league in this statistic throughout this season.
Hustle statistics don’t tell the entire story for a team’s defense — in fact, the Bulls are well-ranked in many key hustle statistics, including shot contests (45.1 per game, second in the league) and charges drawn (0.6 per game, third in the league). But a lack of deflections reflects Chicago’s inability to disrupt opposing offenses before they take a shot, which could be one explanation for why teams shoot the ball so well against the Bulls.
Week ahead: Bulls
Former Chicago Bulls player Derrick Rose speaks while being honored at halftime of a game between the Bulls and the New York Knicks at the United Center in Chicago on Jan. 4, 2025. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Tuesday: vs. Clippers, 7 p.m., CHSN
Thursday: @ Minnesota, 7 p.m., CHSN
Saturday: vs. Celtics, 7 p.m., CHSN
Monday: vs. Lakers, 7 p.m., CHSN
The Bulls will retire the jersey of former MVP and hometown hero Derrick Rose after Saturday’s game against the Boston Celtics. The ceremony will include speeches from Rose and former teammates. The game will also feature giveaways and a special exhibit in the United Center atrium.
Week ahead: Best college basketball games
Wednesday: Maryland men at No. 11 Illinois, 6 p.m., Big Ten Network
Wednesday: Northwestern men at USC, 10 p.m., Big Ten Network
Saturday: Illinois women at No. 24 Nebraska, 1 p.m., Big Ten Network
Saturday: No. 11 Illinois men at No. 4 Purdue, 2 p.m., FOX
Saturday: Seton Hall men at DePaul, 4 p.m., TruTV
Saturday: Northwestern men at UCLA, 5 p.m., FS1
Sunday: Clemson women at Notre Dame, 2 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Northwestern goes hunting for its first Big Ten win with a West Coast road trip to play USC and UCLA.
The UCLA game is part of a packed Saturday slate for local teams, including big road games for the Illinois men and women. Illinois’ game at No. 4 Purdue is the start of a seriously difficult stretch of road tests. After the Boilermakers, the Illini’s next two away games are at No. 7 Nebraska and at No. 10 Michigan State.
What we’re reading
Quote of the week
Nebraska forward Pryce Sandfort, center, shoots against Northwestern guard Angelo Ciaravino, left, and forward Nick Martinelli in Evanston on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
“It speaks to the unselfishness, the maturity of this team. It’s an old group, and they’ve really bought into the whole team concept on both ends of the floor. It makes our job as coaches a lot easier when you can hold them accountable. They don’t take it personal. There’s never been one time when they talked back or hung their heads, and we’re going to have to continue with that.” — Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg after a 77-58 win over Northwestern to improve to 18-0. He was referencing his players’ ability to get the ball to leading scorers Pryce Sandfort and Braden Frager, who combined for 42 points Saturday against the Wildcats.