Game ID: 22500023
New York Knicks @ Chicago Bulls
Friday, October 31, 2025 at 8:00 PM ET
United Center, Chicago, IL
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
CHI 35 37 28 35 135NYK 27 26 38 34 125
CHI vs NYK ScoutingCHI vs NYK Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
CHI availability going into 10/22 · season opener
full strength
CHI availability going into 10/25 · 2 days' rest
full strength
CHI availability going into 10/27 · 1 day's restOUT Carter missed 2 since 10/22, out tonight
CHI availability going into 10/29 · 1 day's restOUT Carter missed 3 since 10/22, out tonight
CHI availability going into 10/31 · 1 day's restOUT Carter missed 4 since 10/22, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 2 since 10/27, out tonight
CHI availability going into 11/02 · 1 day's restOUT Carter missed 5 since 10/22, returns tonight: 12 min (110% of 11)
OUT Terry missed 3 since 10/27, returns tonight: 1 min (11% of 11)
CHI availability going into 11/04 · 1 day's restBACK Carter back 11/02 after 5, 12 min since (110% of 11)
BACK Terry back 11/02 after 3, 1 min since (11% of 11)
CHI availability going into 11/07 · 2 days' restOUT Dosunmu missed 2 since 11/02, returns tonight: 20 min (76% of 26)
BACK Carter back 11/02 after 5, 12 min since (110% of 11)
BACK Terry back 11/02 after 3, 7 min since (67% of 11)
CHI availability going into 11/08 · back-to-backOUT Carter missed 2 since 11/04, out tonight
BACK Dosunmu back 11/07 after 2, 20 min since (76% of 26)
BACK Terry back 11/02 after 3, 7 min since (61% of 11)
NYK availability going into 10/22 · season opener
full strength
NYK availability going into 10/24 · 1 day's rest
full strength
NYK availability going into 10/26 · 1 day's rest
full strength
NYK availability going into 10/28 · 1 day's rest
full strength
NYK availability going into 10/31 · 2 days' restOUT McBride missed 2 since 10/26, returns tonight: 29 min (123% of 24)
NYK availability going into 11/02 · 1 day's restBACK McBride back 10/31 after 2, 29 min since (123% of 24)
NYK availability going into 11/03 · back-to-backBACK McBride back 10/31 after 2, 26 min since (110% of 24)
NYK availability going into 11/05 · 1 day's restBACK McBride back 10/31 after 2, 22 min since (94% of 24)
NYK availability going into 11/09 · 3 days' restBACK McBride back 10/31 after 2, 22 min since (93% of 24)
10/22 vs DET 115-111 — CHI notes
CHI won 115-111. CHI shot 45% (39 of 87) to DET's 44%, 11 of 30 from three, and went to the line 32 times to DET's 26 — 26 points from the stripe to their 18. CHI turned it over 17 times to DET's 10, and DET turned those into 8 steals. Vučević led with 28 (11 of 18, 4 of 6 from three); Buzelis added 21, Giddey 19. The hinge was Q1, 35-19: from level to 16 ahead, and the lead reached 23. Okoro was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
10/25 @ ORL 110-98 — CHI notes
CHI won 110-98. CHI shot 47% (39 of 83) to ORL's 39%, 10 of 27 from three. Giddey led with 21 (7 of 18, 2 of 5 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Smith added 16, Vučević 15. The hinge was Q4, 27-18: a lead of 3 became 12. Jones was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
10/27 vs ATL 128-123 — CHI notes
CHI won 128-123. CHI shot 52% (48 of 92) to ATL's 50%, 16 of 43 from three. CHI turned it over 14 times to ATL's 6, and ATL turned those into 8 steals. The glass went 51-36 for them. Dosunmu led with 21 (7 of 10, 4 of 6 from three); Giddey added 18, Vučević 17. The hinge was Q2, 30-23: the deficit went from 8 to 1. CHI trailed 57-58 at the half and won the second half 71-65.
10/29 vs SAC 126-113 — CHI notes
CHI won 126-113. CHI shot 54% (49 of 91) to SAC's 52%, 14 of 32 from three, and got to the line 18 times to SAC's 26. CHI turned it over 15 times to SAC's 10, and SAC turned those into 10 steals. The glass went 46-31 for them. Buzelis led with 27 (11 of 18, 4 of 6 from three); Giddey added 20, Huerter 18. The hinge was Q3, 39-27: CHI came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 10, and the lead reached 17. CHI trailed 62-64 at the half and won the second half 64-49. Giddey was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
10/31 vs NYK 135-125 — CHI notes
CHI won 135-125. CHI shot 54% (45 of 84) to NYK's 49%, 17 of 37 from three, and went to the line 35 times to NYK's 23 — 28 points from the stripe to their 17. CHI turned it over 7 times to NYK's 12. Giddey led with 32 (12 of 21, 4 of 8 from three, 4 of 6 at the line); Vučević added 26, Dosunmu 22. The hinge was Q2, 37-26: a lead of 8 became 19, and the lead reached 22. Dosunmu was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
11/02 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 115, shooting 42 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and Bridges at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. Chicago comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Giddey at 22 and Vučević at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest.
So: Chicago wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Chicago at 40 percent from three to New York's 34. Call it Chicago 118, New York 115, New York keeping it close.
11/04 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 117, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Giddey at 23 and Vučević at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. Philadelphia comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 119, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 29 free throws a game; Maxey at 32 and Embiid at 22 a game. Without Barlow (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: Chicago wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Chicago has been plus-5 a night and Philadelphia minus-2 and the line, where Philadelphia takes 29 free throws a game to Chicago's 23. Call it Chicago 122, Philadelphia 120, Philadelphia keeping it close.
11/07 @ MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Milwaukee comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 120, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Gia. Antetokounmpo at 30 and Rollins at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Porter Jr. (7 straight), Nance (6 straight). 2 days' rest. Chicago comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 120, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 21 free throws a game; Giddey at 24 and Vučević at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Dosunmu (2 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Milwaukee wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Chicago has been plus-8 a night and Milwaukee minus-6. Call it Milwaukee 120, Chicago 119, Chicago keeping it close.
11/08 @ CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 116, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 23 free throws a game; Mitchell at 30 and Mobley at 21 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Second night of a back-to-back. Chicago comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 121, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 20 free throws a game; Giddey at 24 and Vučević at 18 a game. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Chicago has been plus-3 a night and Cleveland minus-3. Call it Cleveland 121, Chicago 116.
10/22 vs CLE 119-111 — NYK notes
NYK won 119-111. NYK shot 43% (37 of 86) to CLE's 47%, 14 of 40 from three, and went to the line 36 times to CLE's 18 — 31 points from the stripe to their 12. The glass went 48-32 for them. Anunoby led with 24 (9 of 17, 4 of 9 from three); Brunson added 23, Towns 19. The hinge was Q1, 33-23: from level to 10 ahead, and the lead reached 17. McBride was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
10/24 vs BOS 105-95 — NYK notes
NYK won 105-95. NYK shot 38% (33 of 86) to BOS's 43%, 17 of 45 from three, and went to the line 25 times to BOS's 15 — 22 points from the stripe to their 10. The glass went 53-37 for them. Brunson led with 31 (10 of 20, 3 of 7 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Towns added 26, Bridges 12. The hinge was Q2, 42-14: NYK came in trailing by 8 and left it ahead by 20, and the lead reached 24. Bridges was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
10/26 @ MIA 107-115 — NYK notes
NYK lost 107-115. NYK took 15 more shots (98 to 83), fed by 16 offensive rebounds, but shot 39% to MIA's 46%, 15 of 54 from three, and got to the line 21 times to MIA's 31. Brunson led with 37 (14 of 26, 5 of 11 from three); Bridges added 20, Towns 15. Q1 was theirs, 27-24, but the other 3 periods went 91-80 against them. Yabusele's -15 in 16 minutes was the worst on the floor.
10/28 @ MIL 111-121 — NYK notes
NYK lost 111-121. NYK took 13 more shots (92 to 79), fed by 17 offensive rebounds, but shot 42% to MIL's 54%, 13 of 40 from three. Brunson led with 36 (14 of 25, 1 of 5 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Bridges added 24, Shamet 16. Q2 was theirs, 45-32, turning a 1-point deficit into a 12-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 89-66 against them. They led by as many as 14. Hart's -18 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
10/31 @ CHI 125-135 — NYK notes
NYK lost 125-135. NYK shot 49% (45 of 91) to CHI's 54%, 18 of 45 from three, and got to the line 23 times to CHI's 35. NYK turned it over 12 times to CHI's 7, and CHI turned those into 8 steals. Brunson led with 29 (12 of 25, 3 of 8 from three); Anunoby added 26, Bridges 23. Q3 was theirs, 38-28, the deficit cut from 19 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 107-87 against them. McBride's -22 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/02 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 115, shooting 42 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and Bridges at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. Chicago comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Giddey at 22 and Vučević at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest.
So: Chicago wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Chicago at 40 percent from three to New York's 34. Call it Chicago 118, New York 115, New York keeping it close.
11/03 vs WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 116, shooting 43 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Brunson at 33 and Towns at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. Washington comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 127, shooting 45 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Sarr at 18 and George at 18 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Watkins (2 straight), Cooper (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-5 a night and Washington minus-6 and the defense, New York allowing 116 a night to Washington's 127. Call it New York 122, Washington 115.
11/05 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 118, shooting 44 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 30 and Towns at 20 a game. One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 113, shooting 51 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Randle at 27 and McDaniels at 20 a game. Without Edwards (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-3 a night and Minnesota minus-3 and the line, where Minnesota takes 27 free throws a game to New York's 22. Call it New York 117, Minnesota 115, Minnesota keeping it close.
11/09 vs BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 118, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 19 free throws a game; Brunson at 27 and Towns at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 6 a night. 3 days' rest. Brooklyn comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 120, shooting 43 percent and 30 from three, 30 free throws a game; Porter Jr. at 27 and Thomas at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Traore (2 straight), Wolf (2 straight), Saraf (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-6 a night and Brooklyn minus-7 and the arc, New York at 40 percent from three to Brooklyn's 30. Call it New York 123, Brooklyn 112, New York by 11.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NYKGY G. Yabusele
JB J. Brunson
JC J. Clarkson
JH J. Hart
KT K. Towns
LS L. Shamet
MB M. Bridges
MM M. McBride
MR M. Robinson
OA O. Anunoby
TK T. Kolek
CHIAD A. Dosunmu
IO I. Okoro
JG J. Giddey
JP J. Phillips
JS J. Smith
KH K. Huerter
MB M. Buzelis
NV N. Vučević
PW P. Williams
TJ T. Jones
VU Vucevic
NYK/CHI the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Giddey, Vucevic lead Bulls past Knicks 135-125 and a 5-0 start, their best in 29 years.
CHICAGO -- — Josh Giddey scored a career-high 32 points with 10 rebounds and nine assists, Nikola Vucevic added 26 points, and the Chicago Bulls beat the New York Knicks 135-125 on Friday night to stay undefeated and get out to their best start in nearly three decades.
Ayo Dosunmu came of the bench to score 22 points with nine assists for the Bulls, who improved to 5-0 and are off to their best start since the 1996-97 season when they opened 12-0 and went on to win the NBA Championship.
Billy Donovan earned his 200th coaching win with Chicago.
Jalen Brunson scored 29 points and OG Anunoby had 26 to help power New York’s second-half comeback attempt. The Knicks cut Chicago's lead to two points midway through the fourth quarter after trailing by 22 late in the second quarter.
Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points and 10 rebounds despite playing with a right quad strain and landing hard on his hip in the third quarter. Mikal Bridges scored 23 points in the NBA Cup group play opener for both teams.
Both teams relied heavily on 3-pointers, with Chicago hitting 17 of 37 and New York converting 18 of 45. The Bulls outshot the Knicks overall from the floor, 53.6% to 49.5% .
The Bulls opened a 72-53 lead at the half, penetrating with crisp passing plays.
The Knicks went on a 23-9 run to start the third quarter and closed to 115-113 on Anunoby's 3 with 5:43 left in the fourth quarter before Vucevic and Giddey connected on key possessions to ice it.
Mitchell Robinson returned to the Knicks starting lineup after missing New York's first four games with a left ankle injury and had 11 rebounds. Guerschon Yabusele returned after sitting out one game with a sprained left knee.
Up next Knicks and Bulls: The teams meet again, on Sunday in New York.