Bulls, even without Giddey, overcome Banchero's big night

The Orlando Magic did not get off to a good start to begin the New Year, as the Chicago Bulls handed them a 121-114 loss. The seven-point loss capped a 1-2 three-game road trip for the Magic, who dropped to 19-16. What were a few of our takeaways?! Let's examine!

Paolo Banchero stacking games together:

Magic Bulls — Jan 2, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) warms up before an NBA game against the Chicago Bulls at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Over his last two games against the Toronto Raptors and Indiana Pacers, Paolo Banchero averaged 26.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and six assists, looking closer to his usual self. He continued to make progress, despite the seven-point loss. Banchero finished with 31 points on 13-of-23 shooting and 2-of-5 from deep, adding six boards and assists apiece.

The Bulls' fast-paced scheme and lack of true defensive-minded wings posed a great matchup for Banchero, on paper. The fourth-year wing did a fairly good job of puncturing the gaps and taking advantage of mismatches, minus a pair of bad fourth-quarter turnovers. For the most part, he didn't settle, which is quite important.

Nobody is denying that it's been an uneven season -- to put it lightly -- for Banchero. But the 23-year-old is inching closer to the nightly standard we all expect from him.

Paint woes continue:

It's been a particularly inefficient season from the Magic in the paint, ranking in the bottom-third in field goal efficiency on non-restricted area paint 2s (41.8 percent) while being a middle-of-the-pack team around the rim.

Orlando's finishing over its road trip was even more egregious. It shot just 55.4 percent in the paint over their two games against Atlanta and Indiana, including 38.1 percent on non-restricted area paint 2s. Those struggles continued, going 22-for-44 in the paint, including just 3-of-14 on non-RA paint buckets.

That's abysmal -- and those are points you can't leave on the board against the league's seventh-worst defense. The Bulls were far more efficient in that area, outscoring the Magic by 10 while shooting 62.7 percent (27-43) in that area -- the difference in the end.

Magic defense can't slow down shorthanded Bulls:

The Bulls were down guards Josh Giddey, who's dealing with a hamstring injury, and Coby White, dealing with calf tightness. While the Magic are navigating their own injuries, the Bulls' missing two of their top-two scorers did not matter.

Whenever the Magic tried to mount a run, Chicago had an answer. Led by Tre Jones and Matas Buzelis, Chicago consistently bent the Magic's back line and put them in rotation with a flurry of cuts and dribble drives.

Evidently, those led to myriad paint touches, and it constantly felt like the Magic defense was scrambling without much containment. The Bulls shot 50.0 percent, and despite struggling from beyond the arc in the second half, still found a way to pull away when it mattered most.