The Chicago Bulls Haven't Beaten the Phoenix Suns in a Shockingly Long Time

The Chicago Bulls will try to do something tonight that they have not done since Christiano Felicio was on the roster. Sorry, I probably should have provided a trigger warning.

When the Bulls take the court at Mortgage Matchup Center in a matter of hours, they will be looking for their first win against the Suns in roughly six years. The last time they beat Phoenix was on March 18, 2019. What did that matchup look like, you ask? It was about as ugly as you can imagine.

The 20-win Bulls walked away with a 116-101 victory over the 17-win Suns. Robin Lopez served as Chicago's leading scorer with 24 points on 11-14 shooting. The big man started the game alongside Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen, Kris Dunn, and Shaquille Harrison. Felicio clocked nearly 19 minutes off the bench, while guys like Wayne Seldon, Antonio Blakeney, and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot saw 14+ minutes of action. Oh, Jim Boylen was also barking out orders on the sideline.

Not a single player on that 2018-19 roster remains on this current team. And, of course, both the head coach and the two lead front office execs are gone. A remarkable amount has changed for the franchise since that game, and yet so much remains the same.

While the Suns have taken a trip to the NBA Finals and have watched multiple superstars come and go, the Bulls have a singular playoff appearance on their resume. They are still without an obvious player to build around and are back to hoping that lottery balls come to their rescue. It's a franchise that has provided very little optimism, and their staggering 11-straight losses to the Suns serve as a reflection of that.

Seriously, do you know how hard that is to do? Chicago and Phoenix may not be meeting all that frequently, but it's extremely difficult to go winless against a team for over half a decade. It truly speaks to the Bulls' recent incompetence, as well as the Suns' ability to stay relevant despite the constant change.

Bulls Last 11 Games Versus the Suns (h/t Stathead)

March 19, 2025 – PHX 127, CHI 121
February 22, 2025 – PHX 121, CHI 117
January 22, 2024 – PHX 115, CHI 114
November 8, 2023 – PHX 116, CHI 115
March 3, 2023 – PHX 125, CHI 104
November 30, 2022 – PHX 132 – CHI 113
March 18, 2022 – PHX 129, CHI 102
February 7, 2022 – PHX 127, CHI 124
March 31, 2021 – PHX 121, 116
February 26, 2021 – PHX 106, CHI 97
February 22, 2020 – PHX 112, CHI 104

The good news is that this should be some good bulletin board material for head coach Billy Donovan heading into this evening's matchup. The bad news is the Bulls will need a whole lot more than a chip on their shoulder to win.

Phoenix is the heavy favorite to pull off a 12th-straight victory against Chicago. The 35-win team has turned what many believed would be a tanking season into another legitimate shot at a postseason run. They have rebuilt on the fly in a way the Bulls could only dream of. Might Billy Donovan's team be able to pull off the upset? You can never say never, but even getting this weight off the organization's shoulders isn't going to be enough to help them stand on their own two feet.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on X for the latest news