The Chicago Bulls are officially in the win column.

After an ugly season opener in Toronto, the Bulls bounced back with a 132-125 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night. It wasn't pretty early on, but Chicago managed to overcome a rough start with a strong second-half performance and some impressive contributions from its young players.

The Bulls showed plenty of resilience in this one, leaning on their bench to get back into the game before their starters took over down the stretch.

Here's the Good, Bad and Ugly from Chicago's first win of the 2026-27 season.

The Good

The bench unit saved the Bulls in the first half.

Early on, it looked like Milwaukee was going to run away with this game. The Bulls were settling for jump shots and couldn't hit the ocean from the beach. Their offense was stagnant and the Bucks were getting just about anything they wanted on the other end.

That changed midway through the second quarter when Tiago Splitter turned to a lineup of Tre Jones, Buddy Hield, Isaac Okoro, Noa Essengue and Leonard Miller.

That group sparked a 16-0 run that completely changed the momentum of the game.

Jones was facilitating and getting into the paint. Hield was creating offense, Okoro was finishing plays and Essengue was making his presence felt defensively. Meanwhile, Miller looked like he was picking up right where he left off in the preseason, finishing with 19 points and three rebounds.

This Bulls bench has the talent to outplay the starters on any given night. Having a second unit capable of completely flipping a game is a luxury for a young team that will inevitably experience some growing pains.

Norman Powell did exactly what he was brought to Chicago to do.

When the Bulls' young core struggles offensively, Powell is supposed to be the guy who can settle things down and create a bucket. That's exactly what he did against Milwaukee.

Whether he was getting downhill, drawing fouls on the perimeter or creating his own shot, Powell looked comfortable being Chicago's bailout option. He finished with 25 points and provided the reliable scoring threat this team desperately needed.

Jalen Smith continues to be a steadying presence.

After a solid performance against Toronto, Smith followed it up with another impressive outing, finishing with 14 points, 13 rebounds and three steals.

Smith continues to do a little bit of everything for this Bulls team. He's grabbing important rebounds, stepping outside and knocking down threes and even putting the ball on the floor to attack closeouts.

He might not be the flashiest player on the roster, but his consistency has been one of the biggest positives through Chicago's first two games.

Noa Essengue made an impact on both ends of the floor.

Essengue was all over the place against Milwaukee.

Defensively, he blocked shots, forced tie-ups while battling for loose balls and drew offensive fouls. His activity and energy were exactly what Chicago needed when the starters struggled to get anything going.

Offensively, Essengue did a great job cutting into open space when his teammates attacked the basket. One of his best plays came on a perfectly timed cut that ended with a dunk off a Josh Giddey pass.

Essengue is still developing, but performances like this show how valuable his energy and defensive instincts can be.

Caleb Wilson came alive in the second half.

After a difficult NBA debut against Toronto, Wilson looked much more comfortable in his second professional game.

The fourth overall pick was outstanding in the second half, stepping outside and knocking down a few threes, attacking the basket with aggression and even connecting on his signature turnaround fadeaway.

His defensive effort was equally impressive. Wilson rotated over from the help side to block shots and even threw himself out of bounds to stop a Milwaukee basket at one point.

He finished with 21 points and six rebounds, but his biggest contributions came down the stretch. Wilson knocked down important free throws to help put the game away before sealing the victory with a steal on a Tyler Herro pass.

For a rookie coming off a rough debut, this was exactly the kind of response Bulls fans wanted to see. Caleb Wilson's potential is limitless and today was a reminder that he's only scratching the surface.

The Bad

Chicago's perimeter defense continues to be a problem.

The Bucks shot lights out from three, exposing some of the same defensive issues that plagued the Bulls against Toronto.

Chicago's point-of-attack defenders struggled to contain penetration, forcing help defenders to collapse into the paint and leave shooters open on the perimeter.

While the Bulls might not have the personnel to completely fix their point-of-attack defense this season, they can certainly do a better job recognizing opposing shooters.

AJ Green, for example, is one of the best shooters in the NBA, yet Chicago consistently gave him clean looks from beyond the arc.

The Bulls need to be more disciplined about who they're helping off of. Giving up open threes to elite shooters is a recipe for disaster, regardless of how well the offense is playing.

The Ugly

For the second consecutive game, the Bulls came out looking completely flat.

The energy was low, the offense consisted of drive-and-kick possessions ending in missed threes and the defense was giving up quality looks far too easily.

Chicago cannot afford to make falling behind early a habit. The bench bailed the starters out against Milwaukee, but relying on a massive run from the second unit isn't a sustainable formula for winning games.

Matas Buzelis continues to struggle.

It hasn't been the most inspiring start to year three for Buzelis.

The young forward played just nine minutes in the first half as Splitter opted to ride the hot hands of Miller and Essengue instead and finished the game with 17 minutes played.

There's still plenty of time for Buzelis to turn things around with 80 games remaining, but the emergence of Miller is worth keeping an eye on for Bulls fans.

Miller has been playing excellent basketball dating back to the preseason and is making a legitimate case for more minutes. If Buzelis doesn't become more assertive offensively, he could find himself losing playing time to the young forward.

A similar situation could develop between Giddey and Jones.

Giddey wasn't necessarily bad against Milwaukee, but Jones simply made a bigger impact. He was a pest defensively and consistently put pressure on the paint, creating opportunities for his teammates in a similar way as Giddey does.

Splitter has already shown he's willing to ride whoever is playing the best basketball, regardless of where they sit in the rotation.

That competition could be exactly what this young Bulls team needs.

Final Thoughts

The Bulls still have plenty to clean up, particularly defensively and with their slow starts. But Friday's win offered a glimpse of what this roster is capable of when its young players are clicking.

Wilson bounced back, Miller continued his impressive play and the bench proved it can change the course of a game.

More importantly, Chicago showed some fight after an embarrassing season opener.

It's only one win, but it's a sign of encouragement for a Bulls team playing their home opener tomorrow night against the Wizards.